Since graduating with honours in Performance Studies from the University of Sydney in 2001, Augusta has worked in theatre as a playwright, director, producer, carpenter, performer, dramaturge, stage manager and musician. In 2004 she moved to Canada to work as Assistant Director on The Gifts of Time a large scale a co-production with Britain’s Claque Theatre and Canada’s Everybody’s Theatre Company. During her time in Canada, she founded the Guelph Youth Theatre, worked as a dramaturge/AD on the critically acclaimed mental health community theatre project Two Steps and A Glass of Water, wrote/directed 12 children’s plays and musicals and worked as a consultant for The Hillside Music Festival and Guelph Youth Music Centre.
Upon her return to Australia in 2006 her directing credits include: Barren for Unhinged Short Play Festival (IPAC 2006), Sexual Perversity in Prague” (People’s choice winner: Short & Sweet 2007), Cold Feet (Metamor/phases 2007), Unspoken for Art is a Weapon Season (New Theatre 2007), An Illustrated Talk (Short & Sweet 2008) Naomi in the Living Room (Mardi Gras Festival/ Hotseat Theatre 2008), Airsick for the New Directions Season (New Theatre 2008), Wolf Lullaby (Four Storeys Productions 2008), assistant director for Summer of the Seventeenth Doll (New Theatre 2009), for BSN 2009: The Return and The Bermuda Love Triangle (Brand Spanking New 2009) and in both seasons of Stories from the 428 she directed pieces by Brooke Robinson, Tahli Corin and Kit Brookman.
Her playwriting credits include: A Party (Fresh Cuts 2002), Recipe (Fresh Cuts 2003), The Question (PACT 2003), Healing All Wounds (Vacant Room 2002), The Comfort of Old Slippers (TINA 2003 and published by Affirm Press 2008), Between the Nest and the Sky (Metamor/phases 2007), Difference of Opinion (Metamor/phases 2007), Interrupting Grace (Brand Spanking New 2008) , A Letter to the Man I’ll Never Kiss (The Imagine Festival 2009), Boxed Carnation (The Colour Blind Short Play Festival 2010 & Cut & Paste). Since 2005 she is annually commissioned to write a new children’s musical for Season Singers: a theatrical choir for children based in Canada.
In the past 5 years Augusta has created programs, panels and festivals to nurture, develop and celebrate new Australian performance writing. She is the Season Artistic Director for Brand Spanking New: a celebration of Australian Writing, a festival which she developed and implemented for New Theatre in 2008, 2009 and 2010 for which she commissioned 56 emerging and award-winning/ established writers from across Australia over three years. From 2009 – 2011 she implemented and developed Off The Shelf a hothouse for new plays and and Blueprint, a mini-residency for artists interested in creating devised work at Fraser Studio Projects, managed by Queen Street Studio. Recently, Augusta was the Creative Producer of Stories From the 428 a multi-playwright project which celebrates community and sustainable travel in the inner west of Sydney, for which she is also one of the directors, which enjoyed a sold-out season in March/April at Sidetrack Theatre and as a part of The inaugural Sydney Fringe Festival, for which she was one of the curators. She is a board member of Shopfront Contemporary Arts Centre in Carlton.
Augusta regularly writes feature articles, commentary and reviews for www.sparkonline.com.au (2009) and www.australianstage.com.au (2007-2011), www.newmatilda.com (2009) and has written regular columns for www.aussietheatre.com.au (2007) and www.artshub.com.au (2007). She is a member of the Australian Writers Guild and Australian Women Playwrights Online – which she actively contributes to the discussion of issues facing writers in the production of new plays and has been quoted nationally and internationally on her outspoken observations on the status of women in positions of key creative influence in theatre.
(For more details see CV)