Wayne David Harrison AM (born in

East Melbourne East Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne Local government areas of ...

, Australia in 1953) is an Australian director, writer, producer and performer.

Biography

Harrison was a child and teenage star performing on stage and television, including performing in J.C. Williamsons' musicals. He moved to Sydney in 1975. In 1977 Harrison enrolled at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and completed an Honours Degree majoring in history. In 1979 Harrison began working on the magazine ''Campaign'' as news editor, and later editor. With Les McDonald, he opened "The Bookshop Darlinghurst" in

Darlinghurst Darlinghurst is an inner-city, eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Darlinghurst is located immediately east of the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Hyde Park, within the local government area of the City of Sydney. ...

in 1983. In 1981 after meeting

Richard Wherrett Richard Bruce Wherrett AM (10 December 19407 December 2001) was an Australian stage director, whose career spanned 40 years. he is known for being the founding director of the Sydney Theatre Company in 1979. Early life, education and family Ri ...

, then artistic director of the recently formed Sydney Theatre Company (STC) in Sydney, he was appointed the company's Literary Manager/Resident Dramaturg. He took over from Wherrett as Director of the STC in 1990 and served as Director/CEO until 1999. From 1999 to 2001, he was the Creative Director of SFX/Back Row and Clear Channel Entertainment (Europe). In 2005–2007 Harrison was the Creative Director of Sydney's New Year's Eve event. 2007 he was the director of the Helpmann Awards for Live Performance Australia. In 2006 he co-wrote and directed the

Spiegelworld Spiegelworld is an American theater company. Spiegelworld began by producing shows for a heritage Belgian spiegeltent, made of wood and mirrors, which blurred the lines between cocktail party, live show and night club. Audiences were encouraged ...

circus cabaret sensation ''Absinthe'' which played in New York and Miami, before taking up residency in a custom-built Spiegeltent on the grounds of Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas in 2011, where it is still running. In 2006 he was the director of the

2006 Commonwealth Games closing ceremony The Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 26 March 2006. Performances Countdown The ceremony began with a countdown at the screen starting at 17, footage from ...

, held in Melbourne, as well as the director of the touring production of '' 2 Weeks with the Queen'' for Adelaide's Windmill Theatre Arts and ''End of the Rainbow'' in Sydney, Melbourne and the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

Career

*1995: Directed ''Dead White Males'' by David Williamson (world première) for the Sydney Theatre Company. *1996: Directed '' Heretic'', by

David Williamson David Keith Williamson AO (born 24 February 1942) is an Australian dramatist and playwright. He has also written screenplays and teleplays. Early life David Williamson was born in Melbourne, Victoria, on 24 February 1942, and was brought ...

(world première) for the Sydney Theatre Company. *2002: Directed ''Mum's The Word'' Robert C Kelly Limited (English tour); also directed ''Alone It Stands'' for Mollison Productions. *2004: Directed ''Through the Wire'', National Theatre Connections. *2005: Directed ''The Return of Houdini'' (Variety Magic show), City Theatre,

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

, Iceland. *2008: Director of Codgers Directed and wrote ''Absinthe'' and ''Desir'' for

in New York and Miami. *2011: Directed and wrote '' Absinthe'' for

at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

Honours

On 11 June 2012, Harrison was named a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gov ...

for "service to the arts as a director, writer, producer and performer, to Australian cultural life, and as a supporter of emerging talent."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Wayne 1953 births Living people Australian theatre directors Theatre directors from Melbourne Members of the Order of Australia