Who is Carly Fisher?
Hi, I’m Carly. A Theatre Director, Producer, Reviewer, Travel Blogger and Marriage Celebrant. I am the Artistic and Programs Director for Qtopia Sydney and the Festival Director of Pride Fest. I absolutely love to travel and visit new places and cultures – I love to explore and am a ‘yes’ to go anywhere but NYC feels like a home away from home and Italy has my heart. My life revolves around theatre – I live it, breathe it but mostly, I just love it. I am a total sucker for a festival – I’m that ever-ready bunny at a fringe that wants to see 40 shows in a week – there is nothing better!!
What would you do differently from what you do now?
I feel really lucky to be someone who gets to say that they are living their dream. Working in the Arts full time is not easy but it is what I have always wanted and getting to create and build Pride Fest has literally been a complete dream come true. But if I had to do something different – I would love for it to be travel related and would focus on travel journalism I think.
Who inspires you and why?
I started answering this question with some of my favourite directors – Diane Paulus, Casey Nicholaw, Sam Mendes and more, and continued with some of the incredible entrepreneurs that I find inspiring like Sara Blakley and Melanie Perkins. But they are all macro level… the truth is that no one inspires me like my mum who is the kindest, most genuine and supportive person that one could dream of having in their life. To me, she is the definition of a strong, independent woman.
What would you do to make a difference in the world?
Ooohh this is such a good question! I have had the opportunity to work for a number of not for profit organisations and so I have been so inspired to see what contribution I can make. I think that we all dream of making change on a major scale but I believe it is so important to focus that grand intentions to make actionable change.
During university I volunteered for a beautiful Cambodia based organisation called Restore One whose mission is to make a real difference in one community at a time. This completely shifted my idea of what it means to make a difference in the world – none of us can change everything, but all of us can make a small contribution to real change.
I worked for Thread Together for years before coming to Qtopia Sydney and under their beautiful founder, Andie Halas saw this idea come to life as well. Again, working under our brilliant Emeritus Chair and Founding Director, David Polson, I have seen the difference a place like Qtopia Sydney can make to individual people’s lives in creating a space where people can find community and feel seen, safe and empowered.
That is my goal – to continue to make small contributions that focus on one community at a time feeling represented, feeling respected, feeling seen. As a very proud Ally, Qtopia Sydney has afforded me the opportunity to do this within the LGBTQIA+ community on a scale I couldn’t have imagined when I first came on board with the organisation 4 years ago.
Growing up in a Rainbow family, this community has always mattered deeply to me and so getting to be part of building a place like Qtopia Sydney is a dream come true and I think a great start to changing the small piece of the world I live in.
This will always be a focus for me – work with great people to build community and make small changes but constant changes… I think that is how together we all contribute to making a difference in the world. No one person can do it alone.
Favourite holiday destination and why?
This question should not be harder than ‘how will you change the world’ but it is!!! Haha. I absolutely adore New York City – the combination of some of my best friends living there and Broadway makes it absolutely impossible to beat. I adore Hawaii, am obsessed with Italy, love a little break in Bali… so many choices! I also really love going a little off the beaten track!
When friends come to town, what attraction would you take them to, and why?
Last year to mark the start of Pride Fest, our friends at Bridge Climb invited myself and some of our Artists to ascend the bridge and I have to say it was amazing!! So that will now be my go to when friends come to town. I also take everyone to the Opera House – it’s the attraction that they want to see and a reason for me to take them to a show to prove how phenomenal Aussie talent (especially our Ensembles) are!
What are you currently reading?
I’m in my historical fiction era at the moment – so obsessed! I’m about to start The Alice Network, but if you haven’t read The Women by Kristin Hannah or The Rose Code by Kate Quinn, they are my favourite recent(ish) reads.
What are you currently listening to?
Amy Poheler’s podcast.
Happiness is?
Sitting in the sun, by a beautiful pool and reading a great book. Happiness is also running through the streets of Edinburgh seeing 47 (my record) shows in a week and realising that everyone in the town is supportive of, even a lover of, independent theatre!
What does the future hold for you?
I think it holds many years of working in festivals – I love the chaos but more than that I love the creativity that is on display! So I really would love to stay in this sector – it brings me such joy!! I hope it holds lots more adventures, new personal chapters and more than anything, lots more time simply laughing with my friends and family. There is nothing in the world I enjoy more than that.
Carly is the Artistic and Programs Director for Qtopia Sydney and the Festival Director of Pride Fest – which is currently running at Qtopia Sydney until the end of June. For more information and full program, visit: www.qtopiasydney.com.au for details.
Image: Carly Fisher (supplied)