Our People

Jackie French AM is an Australian author, historian, ecologist, honorary wombat (part-time), the 2014-2015 Australian Children's Laureate and the 2015 Senior Australian of the Year. Some of Jackie’s books have sold millions of copies and won over 60 awards in Australia and internationally. Jackie is also dyslexic and a patron of literacy programmes across Australia with a wide and deep - if accidental - experience in learning differences and methods. Monkey Baa has created several award-winning productions of Jackie's most beloved books including Josephine Wants to Dance, Diary of a Wombat, Pete the Sheep and Hitler's Daughter.

Susanne Gervay holds active roles as an Ambassador for the Premier’s Reading Challenge NSW and is a committee member and role model for Books in Homes and a Writer Ambassador for Room to Read. Susanne is a former Chair of the Board of Writing NSW, former President of the Society of Women Writers NSW and is a previous Australia Day Ambassador promoting inclusion. She is the author of many books for children and young adults, including I Am Jack, which Monkey Baa adapted in to a stage show that toured Australia and the U.S.

Morris Gleitzman is a bestselling Australian children’s author. His books explore serious and sometimes confronting subjects in humorous and unexpected ways. His titles include Two Weeks with the Queen, Grace, Doubting Thomas, Bumface, Give Peas a Chance, Extra Time, Loyal Creatures, Snot Chocolate and the series Once, Then, Now, After, Soon, Maybe and Always. Morris lives in Sydney and Brisbane and his books are published in more than twenty countries. In 2003 Monkey Baa adapted and toured Gleitzman's celebrated book Worry Warts around Australia.

Professor Judith McLean is a distinguished leader in the fields of theatre, dance and education.

She has held prominent positions including QUT Chair in Arts Education and Scholar-in-Residence at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). Judith is currently the Chair of Dancenorth and has also served on several boards including the Queensland Theatre Company and the Brisbane Festival.
Her extensive experience and innovative contributions to arts education have been recognised across Australia making her an invaluable asset to Monkey Baa.

Her commitment to nurturing creative talent and fostering access to the arts for young people aligns perfectly with the mission of Monkey Baa.

Siobhán McGeown is a proud Yuin woman, she currently works as the Marketing Manager of Screen at the ABC. In her role she manages and develops multiplatform marketing campaigns and brand strategy including ABC iview and ABC TV. She holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA), awarded with distinction from University of Technology (UTS) and recently won B&T’s 30 under 30 award for Marketing.

Claudia Chidiac is a creative producer and arts worker. For twenty years, she has worked with diverse communities creating intimate and large scale experiences across Greater Sydney. Most recently she was the co-creator and co-curator of the Hive Festival, a new festival for children and families presented by the Art Gallery of NSW and Blacktown Arts. She is the creator of the Way Out West (WOW) Festival for Children held at Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre (2011-2013 and 2017-2020) Chidiac is the creator and producer of The Village by The Kids, a series of geo-located audio walks and tours of neighbourhoods, co-created by children for an intergenerational audience.

Jo Dyer is a writer, literary curator and producer of theatre and film. Most recently Director of Adelaide Writers’ Week, Jo has held leadership roles at national cultural institutions including as CEO of Sydney Writers’ Festival, Executive Producer of Sydney Theatre Company and General Manager of Bangarra Dance Theatre. Through her company Soft Tread Enterprises, Jo has produced acclaimed works that have been staged at venues including the Sydney Opera House, Brooklyn Academy of Music, the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Mumbai and the legendary Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas. Her films have won awards and screened worldwide, notably at the Berlin International Film Festival. She was a long-serving Chair of the Board of dance theatre company Force Majeure and a founding Director of Sydney’s City Recital Hall.

Csaba Fekete is the Chief Data Officer at PwC Australia, responsible for the data management capability that enables the firm's strategy through relevant, trusted, easy-to-use and protected information. He has led firm-wide data analytics programs which implemented solutions, platforms and the digital innovation marketplace in Australia and the APAC region. Csaba is a CPA certified and degree qualified finance and accounting professional with experience in management accounting and reporting. He is also passionate about theatre and has attended acting classes at NIDA and the Cronulla Arts Theatre, where he performed in plays and participated in stage management.

Lena Nahlous is an experienced CEO, producer, curator, artistic director and facilitator with a long-term commitment to racial equity in the arts, screen and creative sectors. She is currently the CEO of Diversity Arts Australia and host of The Colour Cycle podcast. She has over 20 years-experience in arts, cultural and media organisations where she has developed artist brokerage and training programs focusing on creatives from culturally and racially marginalised backgrounds and young people. In 2020, Lena won the Western Sydney Woman Leader of Change Award.

Amy Payten is the Head of Drama at St Catherine’s School and experienced Drama educator with a dynamic background in teaching and the performing arts having trained at NIDA, NYU, and UNSW. Amy has also been involved in a range of not-for-profit work over the years, including with the Sony Foundation, Macquarie Foundation and as a Director of the Robertson Foundation, with a particular interest in performing arts, education, and health. Her passion for service and community engagement drives her to engage with programs that emphasize social justice and the transformative power of theatre for children and adolescents.

Dr Wendy Were is a cultural and creative strategist with over two decades of experience in senior leadership roles including Executive Director of Advocacy and Development at the Australia Council, Executive Director Thought Leadership and Engagement at the Greater Cities Commission, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Sydney Writers' Festival, Business Advisor at the Creative Industries Innovation Centre, CEO of West Australian Music and Producer at the Perth International Arts Festival. She is currently Director Engagement, University Infrastructure at the University of Sydney. Wendy holds a PhD in Literature awarded with distinction.

Eva is the Artistic Director and co-founder of Monkey Baa Theatre Company. She graduated from Victorian College of the Arts in 1989. Most recently she directed the company’s 2022 production of Sheena Knowles Edward the Emu which toured around Australia playing to over 50 thousand young people. She also directed Jackie French and Bruce Whatley’s Diary of A Wombat which toured to 59 venues throughout Australia and won the 2017 Glug Award for Outstanding Presentation for Children. She also adapted and directed Where the Streets Had a Name based on the novel by Randa Abdel-Fattah. In 2017, Eva was awarded the Sydney Theatre Award for 20 years of Service to the Young People of Australia.

Kevin is an experienced arts executive and strategist with over 23 years of experience across the arts, film and media sectors, with a focus on leadership development, innovation and organisational sustainability. Previously, as Director of Capacity Building at the then Australia Council for the Arts, Kevin spearheaded the development of pivotal industry programs and policies. Kevin is deeply committed to making the arts more accessible, serving as a board Director of Arts Access Australia and a member of the ASSITEJ Australia committee.