Associate Producer Extraordinaire – Australia’s Zoe Caldwell is ripping it up in London

We caught up with Zoe Caldwell, Associate Producer of Action To The Word’s A Clockwork Orange, which opens in Sydney tonight.

After graduating from Charles Sturt University in 2002, Zoe Caldwell worked at the Ensemble Theatre as a stage manager before moving to London to pursue her career abroad.

Since 2010, she has been employed as an Associate Producer with Glynis Henderson Productions (GHP) working on countless projects around the world including the multi award-winning show STOMP and now A Clockwork Orange.

We find out what it took for this bright young Aussie to make it (big time) in London!

You have worked in many facets of the Arts industry both in Australia and abroad – where did your love for the arts begin?

In the mid 80’s I was lipsyncing to Janet Jackson like most other kids so I suppose I’ve always understood the love of performance, but I got my first taste of the magic of theatre in high school. Our year was the first allowed to choose drama as an elective so the added intrigue and excitement was immense. My love of drama through out school delivered me into the wonderful, warm & wacky world of Charles Sturt University in Bathurst where I completed my BA Communications Theatre/Media degree. This course provided invaluable insight into every element of theatre which allowed me to hone in on my areas of interest whilst learning the basic skills to get a job in any area in the arts.

As a result I’ve had some incredible experiences from community theatre workshops in Thailand to creating an english musical theatre show for school kids across Italy and most recently performing in the closing ceremony of the London Olympic Games.

From Stage manager at Ensemble Theatre in Sydney to Associate Producer of A Clockwork Orange and STOMP! – your journey with theatre has been enormous. When did you decide to move in to producing?

Like many graduates who make the move from Australia to London pursuing a career in theatre, when I first arrived in London in 2003 I settled for anything I could get. My first job was at one of the half-price ticket booths in Leicester Square where the pay was nothing to write home about but the perk was that we received free tickets to all West End shows. This fueled my determination and lead me to drop my CV into every single theatre’s Stage Door and post letters to every leading theatre company in London. I received a hell of a lot of rejection letters but I eventually landed a job working backstage at Phantom of the Opera which indirectly lead me to an assistant role at the production office of Bill Kenwright Ltd where I worked for four years before joining Glynis Henderson Productions (GHP). In this role I was working on numerous shows at once, all of which were at varying stages of development – this helped me identify that my main passion and strengths were rooted in the producing elements of nurturing shows from start to finish.

[pull_left]My main passion and strengths [are] rooted in the producing elements of nurturing shows from start to finish[/pull_left]

What advice would you give to other Australians hoping to break into the producing world?

The arts is heavily dependent on who you know, but this shouldn’t be a deterrent – it should encourage people to get out there and make the most of every opportunity. Don’t be embarrassed to introduce yourself, make yourselves known, make contacts wherever you can with whoever you can. In 2009 my friend and I (a fellow Theatre/Media graduate who was also producing in London at the time) created ‘Ladies of London Theatre’ – a networking circle for women in theatre. We’d meet in town over cocktails every few months to connect and swap stories. It grew quickly by word of mouth and there were new faces at every meet up. It proved a great & simple way to keep up to date with what was happening outside our own office & beyond our own shows. Sometimes if you feel like you’re out of the loop, you just need to make your own loop.

What is the most difficult aspect of your job?

Visas! They are a nightmare. Particularly if you have an international cast travelling to obscure places.

[pull_left]The arts it is heavily dependent on who you know, but this shouldn’t be a deterrent – it should encourage people to get out there and make the most of every opportunity[/pull_left]

How does the London (and international, if appropriate) theatre scene compare to Australia? Are there any glaring similarities or differences?

My theatre experience in Australia is quite limited as I’ve been in London for so long but from what I hear through numerous friends and contacts, there is some really interesting work coming out of Sydney in particular. I’m proud to be a product of the Australian arts scene and it excites me to know such incredible shows are being crafted in our own back yard and not just flown in. Helping these Australian shows find a world stage (e.g. Tubular Bells for Two) is one of the most rewarding parts of my job and it also allows me to keep my roots anchored in home soil.

I suppose the main similarities of the industries is that the work is scarce and shows are always a bit of a gamble, but this is even more so in Australia where the industry is smaller due to the population and scale of the arts scene (compared to the West End or Broadway.) However, if you have a strong show which really entertains & connects with people, then you’ll get bums on seats no matter where you are, regardless of the population or language – STOMP is a great example of this.

What is the next project for you? Anything in the pipeline?

We (GHP) have just discovered an exciting new show called BLAM!. It’s an explosive physical theatre piece by the Danish theatre company, Neander. It’s going to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this August and then transfers to London in October so I have my fingers crossed that it will be able to make it out to Australia soon. We’re also about to start our 4 month European tour of the Australian show Tubular Bells ‘For Two’.

For more information about Glynis Henderson Productions (GHP) visit www.ghmp.co.uk

Follow Zoe on twitter @zoecaldwell

A Clockwork Orange opens at the York Theatre, Seymour Centre tonight. To book tickets or for full Australian tour information, visit clockworkorange.com.au