A south-east Queensland initiative to counter the technical skills shortage in the Arts industry will expand its program from next year.
Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) Chief Executive Rachel Healy said the award-winning Tech Connect Queensland program would double its intake and expand its regional outreach from 2026 to 2028.
Ms Healy said a one-of-a-kind partnership between QPAC, Stage Queensland and Arts Centre Melbourne, backed with funding from Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, launched Tech Connect in 2022 to address technical skills shortages across the state and establish a sustainable training and employment pipeline for future live performance technicians in Queensland.
She said following an exodus of theatre workers from the Australian industry post-COVID, the Federal Government acknowledged the critical shortage of Lighting and Sound Technicians in its 2023 Skills Priority List, with national peak body Live Performance Australia advocating the desperate need to build capacity and capability in the sector.
“The one-year traineeship program utilises a Vocational Education and Training model, giving participants the rare opportunity of nationally accredited training in a working theatre while completing a Certificate III in Live Production and Technical Services.”
Ms Healy said since its inception, the groundbreaking program had seen 38 trainees learn and work across 15 venues, with 100 percent employee retention one year after graduation; 26 technical supervisors receiving their qualifications; and two regional partners (Empire Theatre and Redland Performing Arts Centre) gaining qualified trainers and assessors.
She said with an increase in combined funding from Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, The Ian Potter Foundation, Arts Queensland and Griffith University the 2026 to 2028 programs would see positions offered to 16 trainees, eight supervisors and two trainers and assessors per year – double the intake from the previous phase – with additional financial support given to regional participants.
“Live performance simply cannot happen without backstage staff and their high degree of specialisation and technical skills. Queensland has the best technical crews in the country, and it’s vital that we share their hard-won expertise by investing in skill sharing and skill transfer.
“Through the Tech Connect program, we do this while simultaneously creating sustainable pathways for young people in the industry, offering not only practical technical training but also mentorships and mental health support.”
Ms Healy said expressions of interest from organisations for the Tech Connect 2026 intake were open via qpac.com.au, with recruitment for traineeships set begin mid-November.
