Andy Packer

  

Andy lives and works in Adelaide. He has worked as a performer, writer, conceiver and director of theatre and opera productions, creative producer of multidisciplinary arts programs, producer of large-scale outdoor events and festival director.

In 2007 Andy founded Slingsby, a theatre company producing tour-ready original productions for adults and young people aged 10 and up.

In the past four years Slingsby has premiered three productions and toured to 49 venues in 33 cities and towns across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, USA, Canada, UK, Scotland and Spain. The company has recieved 11 awards including two Ruby Awards (2010 Best Work and 2009 Arts Entrepreneur) and a Business SA Export Award.

Andy was Creative Producer of the Adelaide Fringe's family programs in 2007 and 2008, initiating the Fringe Family Weekend, which attracted attendances of up to 40,000.

Andy was Creative Director of COME OUT Festival 2011 which included expanded international and public art programs and achieved record participation with more than 160,000 children,
young people and families engaging with the festival. The COME OUT Festival 2011 Opening Parade received a 2011 Ruby Award for Best Community Impact over $100,000.

In 2013 Andy will direct the World Premiere of Slingsby's Ode To Nonsense, an opera based on the life and work of Edward Lear, composed by Quincy Grant with Libretto by Jane Goldney.

For the Adelaide Festival 2012 Packer is directing Mass by Leonard Bernstein.

He spoke with artsHub ahead of the festival.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
In this order (in the past) Actor, cowboy, fighter pilot, dancer, physical instructor in the army, actor (now) an independently wealthy cowboy.

When did you know you would work in the arts?
When I was about five I sang “Christopher Robin is saying his Prayers” in a church variety show.
I liked the idea of theatre at that stage – then it went away until I was in high school and realized that theatre and dance made me extremely happy.

How would you describe your work to a complete stranger?
Telling stories – live on stage. Specifically I am interested in telling stories that honestly address the pain of the human experience but ultimately remind the audience of the infinite possibility and wonder of the universe.

Is there a mission to your work?
My aim is to create theatre that allows the audience to reflect on their own lives from an arms length (or the distance between the viewer and the players). Really great theatre can restore or reboot us. Mostly I see my goal as trying to give an audience a cathartic experience – if an audience member is moved to tears I have done my job.

What's your background – what did you study to get to where you are?
I undertook a BA in Theatre Studies at Adelaide University – but left to work in the industry before I finished the course.

What's the first thing career related you usually do each day?
Listen to music. If I can get away with it, during breakfast with my three boys and my wife, but if it has to be delayed I listen to music on the bus or while riding my scooter in to work.

Can you describe an "average" working day for you?
Lots of music, lots of emails, lots of phone calls – as many diverse conversations as I can fit in alongside reading and viewing other peoples art.

What's the one thing - piece of equipment, toy, security blanket, – you can't work without?
Probably my iPhone – for music. I find musical inspiration to be very important in the work that I do. The other, probably more important, security blanket is a team of collaborators that inspire and trust me. Without confidence a director is pretty useless.

What gets you fired up?
Experiencing the work of other artists – be it film, theatre, visual arts or music. YouTube and Vimeo are great for seeing excerpts of opera, theatre and dance from around the world – to introduce you to a new world created by another artist. I think that inspires you to be bold in building your own new worlds.

Who in the industry most inspires you?
People like Lindy Hume, Katrina Sedgwick, Barrie Kosky, Robert Lepage, Nico Muhly, Geoff Cobham, Quincy Grant and many of the performers I have the pleasure to work with.

What in the industry do you despair about?
When the balance of the conversation is dominated by talk about the industry leaving less room for talk about the art. Both are important but if we focus primarily on the industry we are all lost.

What is the best thing about your job?
The incredibly freedom I have to be creative. There are always constraints but if you approach constraints in the correct way they can become points of inspiration.

What’s the most challenging aspect?
Everyone faces challenges. I wouldn’t say that I face any unreasonable challenges. Perhaps the most important challenge as an artist is finding the confidence to keep taking risks no matter what is at stake.

What are the top three skills you need in this industry?
Ideas, confidence and flexibility.

What advice would you give anyone looking to break into your field?
Read the above. If you are up for that – go for it.

How do you know when you missed the mark?
The feeling in the audience during the show and the looks on their faces as they leave the theatre.

No one needs to tell me when it is off the mark. However when things do fail I am interested to hear from people why they thought it did. I try to internalize then ignore all of that feedback before going back into refining or creating the next piece. If you are open to criticism your work will always improve.

Which of the below phrases best suits your career development to date and why?
"The road to success is always under construction. "
"Opportunity dances with those who are already on the dance floor."
"Success is best measured by how far you've come with the talents you've been given. "
"No one can cheat you out of ultimate success but yourself."
I sometimes think it is not possible to have a ‘career’ in the arts – just a series of random opportunities that you make the most of. The experiences and outcomes are diverse. The only constant is you (and hopefully a few collaborators).