Melbourne Theatre Company today paid tribute to writer and director, Aidan Fennessy, who passed away on Sunday.
MTC Artistic Director & CEO Brett Sheehy AO said, ‘Aidan was a hugely respected artist, a wonderful colleague and friend to many. Above all he was a great man. He was a master storyteller, writing plays so beautifully insightful, moving and funny that to see his work performed was to be enlightened and entertained by theatre at its best. His humanity inspired all who came into his orbit, and all of us at MTC are deeply saddened by his death. He will be dearly missed, and our hearts and thoughts are with Aidan’s family and friends.’
Aidan was previously Associate Director at MTC and co-programmed the 2012 season along with Robyn Nevin and Pamela Rabe in the interim year between the end of Simon Phillips tenure as Artistic Director and Brett Sheehy’s commencement. His recent plays for MTC include The Architect, National Interest, What Rhymes With Cars and Girls and the forthcoming production of The Heartbreak Choir. His MTC directing credits include His Girl Friday, The Joy of Text, Boston Marriage, Ruby Moon, Music, Circle Mirror Transformation, and Things We Do for Love.
An award-winning writer, director and dramaturg, Aidan’s work has also been performed on stages across Australia and overseas. His plays include The House on The Lake, The Trade, Brutopia, Chilling and Killing My Annabel Lee and The Way Things Work, which he also directed. As a director his productions include Oleanna, A Mile in Her Shadow, A Pilot Version of Something to Die For, A Commercial Farce, Born From Animals and An Inconvenient Woman, amongst others.
Aidan was co-founder of Chameleon Theatre, and formerly a member of the HotHouse Theatre Directorate and Artistic Director of The Storeroom Theatre Workshop.
‘The impact of Aidan’s contribution both to Victoria’s state theatre company and the broader theatre landscape cannot be overstated. His legacy lives on through his plays, through those whose lives he touched and in the hearts and minds of all who were lucky enough to work with him or to see his work on stage,’ Brett Sheehy said.
Published on 14 September 2020
