‘Every empty seat is a missed opportunity': QPAC's new boss brings back kids' festival Out of the Box
At the age of eight she was taken by her parents to see the musical Annie at the Adelaide Festival Centre. Her mind was blown.
'I wanted to be on stage with those orphans,' she admits.
Healy's first job out of the University of South Australia was assistant editor at youth arts magazine Lowdown, where one of her earliest topics was QPAC's brand new biennial children's festival, Out of the Box.
Some 33 years later, Healy is now QPAC's chief executive, and one of her tasks has been bringing back Out of the Box after a seven-year hiatus.
'It probably should have come back in '23 or '24, but every organisation was rebuilding after COVID, including QPAC,' Healy says.
Out of the Box is a six-day event (Tuesday to Sunday, June 17-22) showcasing seven mainstage shows for kids, plus over a dozen workshops and activities, held in QPAC's theatres, event spaces, and at the State Library and QAGOMA.
Shows include adaptations of kids' books The Gruffalo and Gurril Storm Bird, while workshops cover mindfulness, dance, a Bluey Puppetry Workshop and a cooking workshop in the kitchens of QPAC's fancy restaurant, Lyrebird.
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