State Theatre Company South Australia

He's twice directed Phantom of the Opera on Sydney Harbour and was director of the new Australasian version of its sequel, Love Never Dies.

On top of all that, he's had long stints as artistic director of both the State Theatre Company of South Australia and the Melbourne Theatre Company.

He's also the recipient of seven Green Room Awards and six Heltman Awards.

He's currently in Sydney directing The Unfriend for the Sydney Theatre Company, the debut play from popular television writer Stephen Moffat, and I'm delighted that he snuck out of rehearsals to be in conversation with me now.

But it is, a conductor can, especially in a comic opera, which there we go again, I've been asked to do quite a lot of, a conductor can make or break a comic opera because if the conductor takes it too slowly, it's...

It's lost.

Going back in time a little bit to, you had those long stints as artistic director of the State Theatre Company of South Australia, but also more importantly, or for longer, the Melbourne Theatre Company.

Did you enjoy that kind of period? Because I know that you then don't go on and do another artistic directorship.