Stephen Champion / Artlands 2023

Stephen Champion was the Manager of the Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre (BMEC) from 2003 to 2022. Milestones in this period included:

• The inaugural APACA (now PACA) award for best performing arts centre (2008) plus two successive nominations
• Establishment of Catapult, the national youth circus & physical theatre festival (2005 – 2016)?
• Establishment of the BMEC Local Stages program (2007 – present) with seed funding from Create NSW, the Australia Council for the Arts and Bathurst Regional Council
• Establishment of the Inland Sea of Sound festival (2010 – present)
• Establishment of the Bathurst Writers’ & Readers’ Festival (2015 - present)
• Establishment of the BARN residency project (2022 - present)

Stephen was a core member of Circus Oz in its first six years (1978 – 1984), devised his own work Suspense (1984) and performed with many groups including the Meryl Tankard Dance Theatre (1984, 1985 & 1989), the Nimrod Theatre (1987) and Sydney Theatre Company (1985 & 1987).

Stephen was an Associate Director with the Second Studio of Wroclaw, Poland (1986) and Associate Director and then Artistic Director of Jigsaw Theatre Company in Canberra (1988 – 1994). From 1995 to 2002 Stephen worked for the Sydney Festival managing the Domain concerts.

He is a former Chair of the Board of Regional Arts NSW and former Board Member of Arts on Tour and Theatre Network NSW. He has been a peer reviewer on numerous occasions for Create NSW and the Australia Council for the Arts.

Stephen is currently the Project Coordinator for the BARN (Bathurst Arts Residency NSW), a major performing arts residency space with associated accommodation being built at Chifley Dam south of Bathurst. This project is being funded by Creative Capital funding from Create NSW and major in-kind support from Bathurst Regional Council.