Cue to Q

Shelly Lee is the reason your favourite musicals here in Australia such as make you cry (this is my own personal description of her work). As is the nature of backstage work you may not recognise her but here in Australia she is the force behind Hadestown, Back to the Future, Beetlejuice, Phantom of the Opera (inside and outside), Miss Saigon, Anastasia, Tina the Tina Turner Musical and so many more. 
Getting to speak with Shelly on an episode has been a goal since the podcast was a concept and I am so endlessly grateful she agreed to sit down and chat. Selfishly, I wanted the chance to hear all about her career working as an associate on some of Australia's biggest musicals, her work all over the world with Phantom of the Opera, how she applied her knowledge of the show to sound design the Phantom of the Opera OUTSIDE for Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour and where a career like this starts in the beginning. 
I have been so incredibly fortunate to work very closely with Shelly for the last few years, she has been one of my greatest mentors and to get the opportunity to pick her brain not only about a job many people have such little knowledge on but how she takes something so technical and makes it an emotional keystone within the story telling of these shows was very very special. 

PLEASE NOTE: This is the first time I have taken Cue to Q out of a studio, in order to make it easier to sit down with people who may not have the time to go into a studio but who I can grab for an hour during a transfer or while in the same city. I will continue to work on improving the quality of the episodes done this way, please forgive the natural sun being my greatest enemy in this and any inconsistencies that are present because of this. 

Filmed on Wurundjeri land.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Jen Morgan has worked in many backstage departments, but found her niche in Radio Mics over thirty years ago.
Since then she has toured nationally and internationally on some of the biggest shows in Australia. So much of what I do as a radio mic tech in 2026 was established as a standard by and because of Jen. Painting methods, organisation methods, interdepartmental communication, the process of putting together and TOURING a show. If you were to start mic teching tomorrow in Australia, a large portion of what you would learn from others, came originally from Jen. I am so fortunate to have Jen as a mentor in my professional life and that she was willing to sit down and yap with me in this episode. 

 Filmed on Turrbal and Yuggera land.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Today I'm sitting down Jill & Matt, Deputy Head of Departments (Automation/SFX & Mech) who were previously tech swings. Between them they could do about 15 backstage plots on Beetlejuice. Which is insane. 

Filmed on Yuggera and Turrbal land.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Today I'm sitting down with Associate Producer Joshua Broadbent to talk about the behind the scenes, not from the wings, but from the office. We often discuss the hours and the touring involved in entertainment/theatre. But there is a whole world of jobs that fall within a more consistent schedule from your home base. 
Josh has seen both sides, and it the perfect person to give us the inside information about the differences between these lifestyles and why he took his personals off the tour truck and really made a permanent home after many years travelling as a Stage Manager. 

Josh also has his own podcast Whispers in the Wings! If you enjoy Cue to Q, you're going to love Whispers in the Wings where Josh leads his guests through some even more in depth and personal conversations around careers in theatre. 
https://whispersinthewingspodcast.com/

Recorded on Gadigal land.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Today I'm sitting down with Pretty Woman Australia Dressers (wardrobe) Liz & Zoe (who was also the pre production wardrobe assistant) to answer your questions about their work in professional musical theatre in Aus and beyond!

If you're interested in the a TAFE course like the one Zoe chats about early in the video, see more here: https://www.tafensw.edu.au/course-areas/fashion
Check out support act to learn more about the help they can offer to those in the industry: https://supportact.org.au/
And also the MEAA, the union representing those of us in Media, Entertainment & Arts: https://www.meaa.org/

Recorded on Gadigal land.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

To kick off 2026 I'm sitting down with the ENTIRE Beetlejuice Australia sound team (myself included) to answer your questions. 

Being part of such an excellent and skilled team is a great joy and privilege, so I had to share them with you. As a team we have been so fortunate to work together on other shows and that has made our work as a team on Beetlejuice something I am so very proud to be part of. Anthony, Ghio and Luke have all taught me so much and been truly great friends, I hope you love them as much as I do.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Today I'm sitting down with Beetlejuice Australia's Deputy Head of Stage Management Alex and Deputy Head of Sound/SFX Operator Ghio, to answer your questions about their work in professional musical theatre in Aus and beyond!

More to see/hear on MoniqueTech Youtube & Patreon 

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Today I'm sitting down with Beetlejuice Australia's Deputy Head of WHAM (Wigs, Hair and Makeup) Tulloulah and Deputy Head of Props/Puppets Bella, to answer your questions about their work in professional musical theatre in Aus and beyond!

More to see/hear on MoniqueTech Youtube & Patreon 

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Today I'm sitting down with Beetlejuice Australia's Head Mechanist Baino, and Head of Special Effects Tom, to answer your questions about their work in professional musical theatre in Aus and beyond!

More to see/hear on MoniqueTech Youtube & Patreon 

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.

Today I'm chatting with Anthony (Head of Sound) and Shane (Head of Lighting). Being a HOD in commercial music theatre means not only being the most senior person within your touring team responsible for a huge amount technically, but also holding a management style position in a team of people you lead as well as in dealing with other departments that are not your own. This can be incredibly challenging, especially because it isn't a feature of the job that is often advertised or acknowledged. I wanted to speak with Anthony and Shane about this, as I have been lucky enough to witness them in these roles and it is incredibly impressive. 

Welcome to Cue to Q.
An opportunity to shine a light on those who work in the dark to bring incredible stories to stages across Australia and beyond through conversations with crew members in the Australian entertainment industry.
Pulling back the curtain on the mysteries of the backstage world, what positions are, what they mean, the experiences of touring and studying and much more.