IMARA SAVAGE
​
​Director


Imara Savage is a theatre and opera director.  She has directed award-winning productions for Sydney Theatre Company, Belvoir Theatre, State Theatre Company of South Australia, Sydney Chamber Opera, and Griffin Theatre.

Her productions for Sydney Theatre Company (where she was resident director between 2016 – 2018) won multiple awards.  Imara is nominated for a 2019 Helpmann Award for Best Director for her acclaimed adaptation of ST JOAN which is nominated for three Helpmann Awards including Best Female Actor (Sarah Snook).  ST JOAN received four Sydney Theatre Award nominations including Best Director and Best Production.
 
Imara’s production of Caryl Churchill’s TOP GIRLS won two Sydney Theatre Awards.  AFTER DINNER won a Helpmann Award, Best Ensemble at the Sydney Theatre Awards, and was voted Best Revival by Sydney Morning Herald. MACHINAL won two Sydney Theatre Awards.  Imara also directed DINNER, THE TESTAMENT OF MARY, and HAYFEVER for the company.
 
Imara’s Helpmann Award winning production of MR BURNS for Belvoir and State Theatre Company of South Australia, received many award nominations including Sydney Theatre Award nominations for Best Director and Best Ensemble.  In 2020, Imara directed DANCE NATION for State Theatre Company of South Australia as part of the Adelaide Festival and Belvoir.
 
Other theatre includes: for Belvoir, FOOL FOR LOVE; for Bell Shakespeare, A COMEDY OF ERRORS; for Griffin Theatre, THE BROTHERS SIZE which won Best Newcomer at the Sydney Theatre Awards; for Red Stitch, ORPHANS; for NIDA, WOYZECK, the Tom Waits/Robert Wilson musical, and PUNK ROCK.
 
Her acclaimed production of Elliott Gyger’s opera FLY AWAY PETER for Sydney Chamber Opera was nominated for a Helpmann Award for Best Opera and toured to Melbourne Festival.  Other opera directing includes: Kaija Saariaho’s THE PASSION OF SIMONE (with Sydney Festival), Philip Glass' IN THE PENAL COLONY and Benjamin Britten's OWEN WINGRAVE for Sydney Chamber Opera which won Best Opera in the Time Out Awards. 
 
Imara is dramaturge for Lucas Jervies new ballet SPARTACUS for The Australian Ballet which tours to Finnish National Ballet in 2021 and is now playing on ABC.
 
Imara is a graduate of NIDA in Directing and the NIDA Playwriting Studio and holds a BA in Communications and International Studies from University of Technology Sydney. 

View Imara’s work at imarasavage.com