Lee Lewis is Queensland Theatre’s new artistic director

It was on the verge of becoming the worst kept secret in Brisbane but now Queensland Theatre’s new artistic director has been revealed.

Lee Lewis has taken up the role of artistic director of Queensland Theatre.(AAP IMAGE/ Danny Aarons

IT was on the verge of becoming one of the worst kept secrets in Brisbane but we can now confirm that respected Sydney theatre director Lee Lewis will be the new artistic director of Queensland Theatre.

The popular Sam Strong, who has taken our state company from strength to strength, announced months ago that he would be leaving.

This week rumours began swirling about his replacement.

Lee Lewis’s name was being mentioned and this morning it has been made with Strong passing her the baton during an announcement at the company’s South Brisbane premises.

Lewis flew in for the occasion and says she’s surprised the secret didn't get out.

“The theatre world leaks like a sieve” Lewis says.

“It’s hard keeping secrets in this business.”

Lewis is from Goulburn originally and spent ten years in New York and she still has an American twang to her accent.

She studied acting at Columbia University in The Big Apple and worked on and off Broadway with some of the greats including Julie Taymor of The Lion King fame.

But when she returned she moved into directing and worked with major companies including Bell Shakespeare and Griffin Theatre Company in Sydney where she is currently artistic director.

Coincidentally she took over that role from Sam Strong when he moved to Melbourne Theatre Company before coming on to Queensland Theatre.

Lewis and Strong when they worked together at Griffin Theatre Company in Sydney

Lewis has championed diversity on stage and has helmed productions such as Emerald City, the Queensland Premier’s Drama Award-winning Rice written by Michele Lee and many of Lewis’s productions have been nominated for awards including The Bleeding Tree which won three Helpmann Awards.

Strong describes Lewis as “a leader of the highest integrity and intelligence”

“I’m incredibly proud of how Queensland Theatre has transformed in the last few years and I can’t wait to see where Lee, in collaboration with executive director Amanda Jolly, take it in the future,” Strong says.

“Lee Lewis and I have shared an office, we’ve co-directed shows and we have sat together with playwrights into the early hours of the morning talking about their work and now we have passed the baton of custodianship of two great companies in Griffin and Queensland Theatre.”

Lee Lewis has directed some of our major stars including Danielle Cormack in The Misanthrope for Bell Shakespeare in partnership with Griffin Theatre Company. (AAP IMAGE/ Danny Aarons

Queensland Theatre chair Elizabeth Jameson says Lewis will help continue Strong’s idea of “leading from Queensland”.

Lewis says growing up in Goulburn she dreamt of coming to Brisbane for World Expo ‘88 but it was a dream that was never fulfilled.

“For me Brisbane was always this big shiny place in my imagination,” Lewis says. “I’ve been coming up here and I love it.

So, move to Brisbane? Lovely, thankyou very much.”

Lewis is married to Sydney freelance photographer Brett Boardman who travels a lot but the family home will now be Brisbane.

And Lewis has a brother who lives at Peregian and her stand-up paddle board will be kept at his place for weekend getaways.

She will be back and forth until permanently taking up the job in January.