Tom Oliver is an actor, singer, producer & creative director from Wynnum in 
Brisbane. He is one of Australia’s brightest talents with a broad portfolio that includes music, theatre, film, television & cabaret. 

Most recently, Tom was the Founder and Artistic Director of Wynnum Fringe Festival & Rock The Bay in Brisbane. Since November 2020, events created and managed by Tom have welcomed approximately 40,000 patrons, employed over 500 creative workers, collaborated with all levels of Government, and injected half a million dollars into local economies. In March 2020, Tom became a core cast member and content producer for The IsoLate Late Show which was broadcast online to three hundred thousand viewers and raised over $110,000 for The Actors & Entertainers Benevolent Fund during the first 10 weeks of COVID19.  

Career highlights include starring as the lead role in the original touring production of Rolling Thunder Vietnam under the direction of David Berthold & Chong Lim, becoming the lead role in the global disco phenomenon Velvet opposite Marcia Hines AM and then joining her band on vocals to tour Australia and New Zealand with KC & The Sunshine Band, Sister Sledge, The Village People, John Paul Young and many more legendary artists. 
@tomoliver_au

Joe has been writing music with Tom and produced a version of “If You Could Read My Mind” from Velvet.

In 1994, Joe began touring with multi Aria award winning artist Wendy Matthews and the legendary Joe Cocker throughout Australia. Tours continued with Sarah MacLaughlan with Joe performing on several albums and single releases. In 2001 Joe Remixed the Lead Single Beautiful View off the album with the same name.

The High Tides of Wendy Matthews

By Morbid Molly

An unwavering, unexplainable urge to create, to muse, to convey…the musician, true musician, that is holds these values to the core placing fan and show at top priority when they share their talents with the world.  This is why we are privy to such a vast, rich culture within the music industry and why we are able to connect with incredibly talented musicians, like Wendy Matthews.

With an extraordinary wanderlust and spirited, gypsy vibe to her life Wendy seemingly has done it all, and then some.  Jingles, voice overs, firsts, lasts and everything imaginable in between and yet she is down to earth, real and one Hell of a talent!  It is hard to believe with a friends list of the who’s who of a vast array of genres, like Cher, The Little River Band, Sarah McLachlan, Rod Stewart and more.  But Wendy knew as an old-soul of four years old that music was her calling, a simple, divine truth that resonates in her life and music today.
“…It’s taken time to push through some personal barriers, I’m not a natural exhibitionist; I just loved music and singing.”

Heading into decades (with a plural) within the industry, a magnificent feat in itself, Wendy has progressed with the grace, humility and passion to grow as an individual and artist.  With more than humble roots, drawing from her passion for the Beatles in her toddler-hood, Wendy was almost pulled into the music industry from first step into the world and spurned on by her adventures of busking and travelling.

“Music is my form of expression so I don’t have much choice…” Wendy’s globe-trotting, musical mission led her straight into the arms of the industry, even if the path was slightly twisted and detoured along the way, or if you ask Wendy, “They were great adventures.”  Even so, she was torn by her love for the freedom and experience and her desire to find the path that would result in a pure, unadulterated happiness from within.

“I left Canada at 16 and a music ‘career’ was not on my mind at all. After busking for a year, I ended up in Los Angeles where I lived for 7 years and although I had some weird and wonderful adventures and worked with some amazing people, much of that was not what I wanted either.”

Whole picture, Wendy is a fairly open book but one that could take on a life of its own, requiring volumes instead of simple chapters.  From busking to LA and beyond, Wendy has done massive touring dates with some of the hottest in the industry, had many an accolade, headed some major bands (Models & Absent Friends), hit the ARIA charts and become a nationally treasured artist, met and worked alongside Japan’s treasure, Hiroshi Sato, as well as Aussie legend Glenn Shorrock (The Little River Band), been inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame, toured with Sarah, Rod and Cher…and this was still not even close to being within the prime of her career with her career still in full stride!
Wendy has also never been a slave to the genre machine, choosing to utilize the incredible diversity of the encompassing music community to enhance and transcend, bringing to light amazing collaborations in all niches, and creating under a different umbrella of sound and soul with her acoustic album and works since.  With the whispers of the song origins, Wendy says, “”To keep creative you have to break down your own personal barriers. With this record that meant moving away from pop and crafting something instrument-driven, something that feels like me playing live.”  With the likes of U2 and Massive Attack as inspiration, and Wendy’s phenomenal voice you simply couldn’t get any better!

Wendy’s mentality is that she will continue to grow and evolve with the industry and within the vast scope of her music. She has never firmly held to stylistic confines, with her career spanning a multi-faceted range of genres, but she truly holds value to her own vision of true music and the dynamic of her band…and the curtain hasn’t fallen yet.  Amazingly Wendy also spearheads an important facet of the industry and fosters new talent and makes music her own way with her independent label and brain-child, Barking Bear…there truly is no limit!
If depth of character comes from experience, then I do believe that Wendy Matthews is a textbook definition if I have ever seen one.  Make no mistake that Wendy has worked her ass off in her career and in her life, but she has seen and experienced what others can only dream.  The 80’s were fantastic, heading up what has become decades worth of memories, the 90’s collaborations, change and growth, and the opportunity to form her own solo career… and now the evolution and culmination of everything that she has worked so hard to achieve.
“One can always think of a purely utopian life and feel you’re missing out but I don’t feel that… Of course it changes over time, but I feel I tell stories and we’re all in this together so I just have to hope there are people who can relate. For me, music heals and helps and moves the maker and the listener.”

With a close-knit relationship with her friends, bandmates, peers and fans, there is a rather utopian vibe to her life and career, and the melodic expression that is her voice.  “Extraordinary, crystal-clear vocals […] a soulfulness that was the mark of a truly gifted singer” says rock historian Ian McFarlane, and I cannot agree more! As for the future?  Wendy has lead a charmed life of sorts, living the dream of doing what she loves, on her own terms so whatever the future holds, there is a magic on the horizon and she is “Super Excited!”.  The Sydney Opera House, collaborations, touring and a passion that Wendy has chosen to share with the world, “I’ve had a love of silver, mostly Navajo jewelry, all my life so I’ll be putting out a WM collection.”

Could it get any better from this lovely example of passion, strength, talent and …well kick ass women?  Sure, and we are lucky enough to be able to support her every step of the way. After all, what are fans for?

iOTA: composer, singer, feature film and stage actor, writer, dancer, voice-over artist, visual artist, rock star and iconoclast.  His unique and extraordinary talents have been recognised with no less than six ARIA Award nominations, four Helpmann Awards, plus Green Room and Sydney Theatre Critics’ Awards.

Most recently, iOTA has written, composed and starred in Average Joe (2016), and Slap and Tickle (2018) for Perth Fringe festival. iOTA was the co-creator of Sydney Festival-commissioned Smoke and Mirrors which twice sold out Sydney Festival Spiegeltent seasons and toured to Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Melbourne Arts Centre and Auckland Festival. The show was then brought back to the Seymour Centre in Sydney by popular demand, and collected three Helpmann Awards: Best Cabaret Artist, Best Original Score and Best New Work. For the 2012 Sydney Festival iOTA’s show Young, Hard and Solo sold out within hours and was one of its highlights. In 2015 his new showB-Girl was staged at the Sydney Opera House.

Baz Lurhmann calls him a “modern day Mick Jagger” and The Age calls him a “rare and true artist.”

Brendan Maclean is a performer on a grand scale: Be it his time behind the microphone at triple j, his work in film or his infamous pop songs Brendan has already begun to carve himself an undeniable mark in the entertainment world. The ARIA award nominated songwriter from Sydney has been riding a wave of success since the release of his 5th E.P. the chart topping funbang1. Brendan’s release of “House of Air” scored 700,000 views in one week being reported on at Billboard, “the most controversial and surprising work in years”. The varied strings to his bow make him one extraordinarily unique individual.

In 2008 his first release Airport People won Song of The Year and in 2010 his EP White Canvas would win him Writer of The Year in the Australian Youth Awards. In 2011 Brendan was invited to host B430, a travel show on the music network Channel [V], and found himself popping up on multiple ABC TV shows including The Chaser, Laid and The New Inventors.

2012 would be a breakthrough year for Brendan’s song writing; supporting Kate Miller-Heidke, Darren Hayes and Amanda Palmer on major national tours. In 2013 he launched a crowd- funding campaign which would raise $22,000 for his record with acclaimed producer Paul Mac, and also caught the eye of Universal Publishing who would go on to sign him for a two album contract. This was also the year Brendan played the role of Klipspringer in Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby – a role that has taken him to Italy, Paris, London and New York to perform and play as part of Fashion Shows, grand balls and the kind of parties most people would dream of. Other feature film credits include Peter in John Curran’s Tracks.

Brendan can also be found online at all times – whether being crowned King of Twitter by Pedestrian Daily or wowing fans on the front page of BuzzFeed with his video clips, there are few working performers in Australia as in touch with their audience as Brendan. This has been proven with successful campaigns with The Voice, Coca-Cola and MTV all calling on Brendan as a spokesperson.

In 2014 Brendan was awarded Young Achiever of The Year at The Honour Awards for his charitable work in the GLBTI community. 2015 saw Brendan star in the award winning Velvet, a show inspired by Studio 54 featuring wall to wall disco classics which toured nationally and internationally, heading to Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Edinburgh.

Brendan has cemented his place with a debut performance at the Opera House Concert Hall stage with media darling Amanda Palmer. He also starred in F*cking Adelaide, a six-part comedy/drama series on ABC iView, which won Best Ensemble Performance at the International Academy of Web Television Awards.

PRODUCER
Peter Rix

WRITER / DIRECTOR
Craig Ilott

MUSICAL DIRECTOR
Joe Accaria

CHOREOGRAPHER
Lucas Newland
 
COSTUME DESIGN
James Browne

LIGHTING DESIGNER
Matthew Marshall

CAST
Waangenga Blanco, Marcia Hines, iOTA, Hugo Desmarais, Yammel Rodriguez, Kitty Bang Bang, Chaska Halliday,
Zachary Webster, Sonja Schebeck

“Lucas Newland’s choreography, Joe Accaria’s musical direction and Matt Marshall’s lighting give all of these charismatic performers a chance to shine, and they do.” – The Australian

Enter a lobby brimming with bohemian verve, an immersive theatrical world of French intrigue. Savour the champagne, graze on a French cheese board and meet the cast of characters who call L’Hôtel home – a crème de la crème of performers from the world of cabaret, burlesque and circus. Follow the characters behind closed doors and become voyeurs to L’Hôtel’s secrets.

L’Hôtel made its debut at Adelaide Cabaret Festival 2021, brought to life by a stellar cast including Brendan Maclean, Caroline Nin, Bri Emrich and Lexi Strumolo. The production is slated to tour Australia 2022/2023.

The Paris of your imagining awaits you at L’Hôtel.

Praise for L’Hôtel:

“The music for this show under the direction of Joe Accaria is very successful, deliciously passionate and moving.” 

Arts Hub

“It’s another triumph from director Craig Ilott, co-creator Stuart Couzens and designer Alfred, whose spectacular set should become the first hotel to tour to global customers, rather than the other way round.” 

The Adelaide Advertiser

“ L’Hotel is exquisite, as is every aspect of this perfectly staged production. We are seduced, lured into an experience that we will never forget. L’Hotel is art in motion, a banquet of sensations and emotions, mesmerising and entrancing.”

Canberra Critics Circle

“The songs are beautiful, the aerial work is astonishing and you never quite know where it’s going next.” 

In Daily

“This immersive show will shine forth as the jewel in the crown of the 2021 Cabaret Festival program.” 

The Barefoot Review

“A beautiful and breathtakingly gorgeous piece of art.”  

Glam Adelaide

Conceived By: Craig Ilott & Stuart Couzens

Producer: Ebony Bott

Set, Costume & Lighting Design: Alfred

Music Supervisor: Joe Accaria

Choreographer: Lucas Newland

Cast: Brendan Maclean, Caroline Nin, Bri Emrich, Lexi Strumolo, Beau Sargent, Masha Terentieva, Leah Shelton, Bently Rebelent

Regarded by many as the greatest musical ever created, Gypsy is the ultimate mother-daughter story – the sophisticated, gripping, funny and heartbreaking tale of Madame Rose, and her fight for her daughters’ success, no matter what the cost.

Set all across America in the 1920s, Arthur Laurents’ landmark show sees Rose, Louise and June grapple their act through the dying days of vaudeville, and the birth of a shocking new form of entertainment – burlesque. Rose’s fanatic determination pushes her family’s loyalty to breaking point, but from the most unlikely of places emerges one of the twentieth century’s most illustrious and ingenious entertainers – Gypsy Rose Lee.
The celebrated score by Jule Styne and Stephen Sondheim is packed with classic songs, including ‘Let Me Entertain You’, ‘Some People’, ‘Everything’s Coming Up Roses’, ‘Together Wherever We Go’, You Gotta Get a Gimmick’, and the iconic ‘Rose’s Turn’.
Three-time Sydney Theatre Award winner Blazey Best (Miracle City, Only Heaven Knows) returns to the Hayes to take on the iconic role of Rose, with Laura Bunting (Rent, Calamity Jane, Assassins) as her daughter Louise.

The design elements are just as harmonious, with Alicia Clements’ simple, largely prop-based settings relying on Trent Suidgeest’s evocative lighting to define spaces. Even more impressive is musical director Joe Accaria’s rendering Styne’s score (originally for orchestra) with a band of four – and no synthesisers! – Sydney Morning Herald

Musical Director Joe Accaria has done new arrangements. “I’ve known Joe for a long time and when we approached him, he didn’t know the show. He’d done musicals but he’s not in the world of musical theatre, and that’s been really valuable because he didn’t approach it with a sense of weight and expectation from previous versions,” says Carroll. “He listened to the music and read the script and just responded to it, and so that’s been really exciting.” 
Limelight Magazine

Musical director Joe Accaria has given the brassy score a rough-and-ready rearrangement for a band of four, while cast members play instruments now and then. – Daily Telegraph

Director Richard Carroll
Musical Director Joe Accaria
Choreographer Cameron Mitchell
Designer Alicia Clements
Lighting Designer Trent Suidgeest
Starring Blazey Best, Laura Bunting, Anthony Harkin, Mark Hill, Rob Johnson, Matthew Predney, Jessica Vickers, Jane Watt and Sophie Wright
Book by Arthur Laurents, Music by Jule Styne, Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

Human Nature are Australia’s leading pop vocal group, having released nine albums (many containing their own, self-penned original material), five of which went to #1 in their native continent, selling millions of records world-wide and garnering 24 platinum awards, 18 Top 40 hits and five Top 10 hits. The group has opened for Celine Dion and Michael Jackson in Europe and Australia. Their chart-topping Motown tribute, Reach Out, went five-times-platinum, attracting the attention of famed songwriter Smokey Robinson, who recorded “Get Ready” with them and presented them in an exclusive booking at Las Vegas’ Imperial Palace, where they have played five and six nights a week to sold-out crowds for the past two and a half years. Joe has been their musical director in Australia since 2005 and Las Vegas for 2009.

Here & Now Tour – 2002-2003
The Motown Show – 2006-2008
The Ultimate Celebration of the Motown Sound – Las Vegas 2009
Jukebox & Christmas – 2013 & 2015.

Now, 18 years since its conception, Dein Perry’s TAP DOGS is still taking the world by storm. Part theatre, part rock concert, part construction site, TAP DOGS continues to draw audiences with its unique theatrical performance, one that combines the strength and power of workmen with the precision and talent of tap dancing.

Musical Director since 2005 (Broadway Entertainment Group) – 2005 10th Anniversary World Tour, Novello Theatre London West End 2009, Europe, Asia, Australia, South Africa tours 2010-2015.

In 1997-2001, Joe featured in Dein Perry’s Steel City, with music by Tim Finn.  The show toured Australia and culminated in performances at New York’s Radio City Music Hall.  Joe also performed in, and co-composed Eternity, Dein’s contribution to the Sydney 2000 Olympic Opening Ceremony.