Andrew Upton and Cate Blanchett during the launch of the Sydney Theatre Company 2012 season. Picture: Alan Pryke Source: The Australian
Matthew Westwood, The Australian, reports
CATE Blanchett and Andrew Upton are to step down as artistic directors of Sydney Theatre Company at the end of next year.
STC general manager Patrick McIntyre last night confirmed to The Australian that the company has engaged a recruitment firm to appoint a new artistic leadership.
The pair have been joint directors of the company since 2008, when they succeeded Robyn Nevin.
Rumours of their intended departure gained momentum this week amid a report that Blanchett may star as Cleopatra opposite Richard Roxburgh in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra.
STC said British director Declan Donnellan had conducted workshops with company actors last week. A spokesman said that Antony and Cleopatra was one project being considered.
Blanchett has brought undeniable lustre to STC productions she appeared in, such as A Streetcar Named Desire, Uncle Vanya and The War of the Roses. Upton has written original plays and adaptations for the company, including an acclaimed Uncle Vanya.
The pair have revitalised the Wharf Theatre and are making it an environmentally sustainable building.
Unlike in previous years, Blanchett is not appearing on the Sydney stage this year. She will appear with the company in Uncle Vanya in New York and in a European tour of Gross Und Klein.
The pair's contract as co-artistic directors is through to 2013.
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