People

Our Staff

Agnès Michelet, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Migrating from France to Australia in 2000, Agnès has carved out a career as a highly respected individual in the national dance sector. Previous roles include Program Manager and Acting Executive Producer of FORM Dance Projects, General Manager of Darwin’s Tracks Dance Company, and Director of STRUT Dance in Perth. Prior to her career in Australia, Agnès worked with a broad range of performing arts organisations in France, including the European Centre for Contemporary Mimodrama, street theatre company Friches Theatre Urbain, and multimedia dance artist Jean-Marc Matos. Agnès has served as a Peer Assessor and Dance Board Advisor at the Australia Council for the Arts; is an Asialink Residency alumnus; holds a Masters in Cross-Disciplinary Art and Design from UNSW; and also a classically trained pianist!

LIZZIE THOMSON, PRODUCER

Lizzie Thomson has over 25 years of experience working in dance as a performer, choreographer, educator and writer. She has collaborated and performed in Australia and Europe with internationally acclaimed artists including Rosalind Crisp, Mette Edvardsen, Marina Abramovic, Angela Goh, Janet Laurence, Jane McKernan and Agatha Gothe-Snape. Lizzie has presented her own performance work in theatres and galleries in Australia, Iceland, Hong Kong and Germany. Her work has been supported by arts organisations including the Art Gallery of NSW, Campbelltown Arts Centre, Carriageworks, Critical Path, Performance Space, Murray Art Museum Albury (MAMA), ReadyMade Works, SÍM Reykjavîk Iceland, Agder Kunstsenter Norway and ABC Arts Online. She has been working as a sessional lecturer at the School of Arts & Media at UNSW since 2013. In 2023, Lizzie was engaged as a research consultant for the Powerhouse Museum. Her writing on dance and performance has been published in books, academic journals and artist catalogues. 

Jasmin Sheppard, FIRST NATIONS ARTIST CURATOR

Jasmin is a Tagalaka, Settler, Hungarian Chinese Contemporary dance artist and choreographer. Jasmin spent 12 years with Bangarra Dance Theatre, performing lead roles such as ‘Patyegarang’. She choreographed ‘MACQ’ for the company in 2013. She has worked independently as a choreographer since 2018: ‘Choice Cut’ for Yirramboi festival and Toronto’s ‘Fall For Dance North’ Festival, ‘The Complication of Lyrebirds’ Sydney Festival (developed and presented by Campbelltown AC and Native Earth Theatre Company), ‘Value For Money’ Araluen Arts Centre and Darwin Festival, ‘Given Unto Thee’ Sydney Dance Company, ‘宿 (stay)’ by S. Shakthidharan (performer, movement director, associate writer). Her work is passionate, political and has been described as “surreal and highly evocative” (The Australian).

Matt Cornell, DIGITAL ARTIST-CURATOR

Matt Cornell is an award-winning choreographer and composer based in the Asia Pacific, working to ask better questions. His career interrogates how we embody systems – social, cultural, political, or technological – and in turn how these systems embody us by forming communities and informing identities. His work takes multiple forms including dancing, performance, sound composition, writing, podcasting, and curation, in varying contexts including in theatres, galleries, public spaces, and online. Across these radically different contexts is the core effort of creating spaces, events, and experiences through which we can gather, to share something which might give rise to new ways to know ourselves and each other and the stories we tell ourselves. That we may get better at living together.

Our Committee

ADRIAN BURNETT, chair

GEORGIA SHEPHERD, SECRETARY

JO CLANCY, FIRST NATIONS ARTIST REPRESENTATIVE

Jo Clancy is a choreographer, dancer, teacher and mentor. A Wiradjuri woman from Western NSW, Jo was born to Dharug Country and lives between Wiradjuri, Dharug and Gundungurra Country with her family. Jo commenced her full-time dance training at NAISDA Dance College in 1990, followed by three years of training and study at Western Sydney University, where she gained a BA in Dance. Jo is currently the Cultural Dance Supervisor at NAISDA. Jo has worked as an independent artist nationally and internationally for over thirty years. She founded her dance collective Wagana in 2007 and works extensively in Aboriginal communities across Wiradjuri, Dharug and Gundungurra Country delivering dance in education programs with early childhood learning centre’s and schools. Jo’s most recent productions and collaborations include Yindyang Bila for the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre exhibition ‘WATER” 2022;  Mawambul for the Coastal Dance Festival in Canada 2023; Warriwal for the Blue Mountains Theatre in April 2024 and Yellamundie Festival 2025; Yamandirra dance film commissioned by the Powerhouse Museum 2025; and Garray Galing Yirung for the Coastal Dance Festival in Canada 2025. Jo’s practice holds, supports and lifts others. It is a gradual, continuous spiral that allows people to enter and exit. She walks and dances softly in Country connecting to her matriarchal line with strength, grace and humility.

RICHARD CILLI, ARTIST REPRESENTATIVE

Richard Cilli combines his expertise as a dancer with his passion for coaching, culture and excellence as Sydney Dance Company’s Rehearsal Director. In this role he enjoys holding space for many talented and dedicated artists at the top of their game to keep developing their craft. As a dancer himself Richard won the prestigious Helpmann Award for Best Male Dancer in 2010 for his performance in Rafael Bonachela’s We Unfold, and was also the winner of the Australian Ballet’s 50th Anniversary Ballet Competition in 2012.

Throughout his performing career, Richard has interpreted the work of an impressive array of choreographers, including Rafael Bonachela, Lloyd Newson, Stephanie Lake, William Forsythe, Anouk van Dijk, Jacopo Godani, Lucy Guerin, Gideon Obarzanek, Alexander Ekman, Adam Linder, Emanuel Gat and Kenneth Kvarnström. Beyond his years as a dancer at Sydney Dance Company, Richard has performed with renowned companies such as Rambert (UK), Chunky Move, Lucy Guerin Inc, Australasian Dance Collective, Dancenorth, and K. Kvarnström & Co (Sweden).

lee-anne Litton, ARTIST REPRESENTATIVE

Lee-Anne Litton is a NSW based performance maker, physical performer and collaborator originally from Mandurah, Western Australia who has created and performed in works within the realms of dance, circus and physical theatre. Lee-Anne’s curiosity in the line between aerial performance and dance theatre, is also influenced by her strong investigation and passion for Contact Improvisation. Lee-Anne is passionate about the framework of interdisciplinary thinking and creativity in regards to the challenge of climate and social change.

VICTORIA HOUSTON

Victoria Houston is a lawyer and a Business Affairs Lead at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation where she negotiates television and audio production deals. Previously Victoria was the National Industrial Officer for Actors Equity (MEAA) for many years where she worked closely with dancers from Sydney Dance Company, The Australian Ballet and Opera Australia negotiating their collective bargaining agreements and recording and broadcasting deals. She has also worked at the Arts Law Centre of Australia advising artists and for 21 years has had a side hustle ushering at the Sydney Opera House. Victoria is passionate about the Arts, especially dance in all its forms.

SERENA CHALKER

Serena is an experienced festival and events director, arts leader and choreographer with expertise in events, live music, dance and interdisciplinary performance. She is the Executive Producer Creative Activations at Inner West Council events and came to Council in 2022 with a 16-year career as an award-winning and critically acclaimed independent artist and co-director of Anything Is Valid Dance Theatre. She currently leads a team of 5 producers to deliver Council’s dynamic program of more than 40 annual creative festivals, events and activations across the Inner West by inspiring, showcasing and empowering the local community. Prior to her career in Local Government, Serena produced and presented her own artistic work both in Australia and internationally as well as working with some of Australia’s leading arts companies, including as the Interim Artistic Director of STRUT Dance where she pioneered the inaugural mid-career artist development program. She also directed multiple site-specific festivals in partnership with Tura New Music. Previously she worked with Sydney Improvised Music Association producing the Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival, Berry Jazz Festival and the Freedman Fellowship Awards. She has presented her own artistic works in Korea, Finland, Germany, United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Croatia, Canada, Singapore and across Australia.