Lure of community brings MTC’s next Artistic Director back to Melbourne

Anne-Louise Sarks came of age artistically in Melbourne, and is excited about championing the city's artists and playwrights in her new leadership role at the Melbourne Theatre Company.

Anne-Louise Sarks has had an intense few months since COVID first impacted on the arts sector internationally.

Only 12 months ago she was living in the UK and preparing to open a new production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town in Basel, Switzerland. Five days before its premiere the production was cancelled.

Jump forward a year and Sarks finds herself living back in her hometown of Sydney temporarily, nursing a month-old baby boy, and planning a move back to Melbourne, where she established her theatre career after graduating from the VCA in 2007.

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Richard Watts is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM, and serves as the Chair of La Mama Theatre's volunteer Committee of Management. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, and was awarded the status of Melbourne Fringe Living Legend in 2017. In 2020 he was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize. Most recently, Richard was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Green Room Awards Association in June 2021. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts