Irine is a multifaceted arts worker - a director, producer, composer, musician, sound designer, librettist and teaching artist.

Being a child of refugee and immigrant parents of mixed faiths – Muslim and Orthodox, informed an arts practice and a body of work that embodies the tensions and vitality that diverse and ghettoised voices and forms bring to the Australian arts.

She has collaborated with many of Australia’s finest performers, writers, directors and theatre companies and was a member of the founding ensemble of the seminal company Melbourne Workers Theatre.

Ruci is a musically gifted performer in gospel and soul. From a young age, Ruci, along with her twin sister Joanne, developed a passion for music through singing and performing at their local church. With Ruci on piano and vocals and Joanne on guitar and vocals, the dynamic duo captivated audiences with their soulful ballads. Ruci has featured in many Outer Urban Projects works including GRAND DIVISIONS - A MOVED URBAN CANTATA presented at Arts Centre Melbourne, Melbourne International Arts Festival; Darebin Arts & Entertainment Centre opening POETIC LICENSE, The Big Anxiety's TAKEOVER and HUME STUDIOS Residency projects, REVELATIONS recording project in URBAN STUDIO and 125BPM Concert at Melbourne Recital Centre.

Joanne is a proud Fijian-Australian. She is a vocalist and multi-instrumentalist performer – playing guitar, drums and bass. From a young age Joanne developed a passion for gospel and soul music and has performed in many seminal shows for Outer Urban Projects including GRAND DIVISIONS – A MOVED URBAN CANCATA at Arts Centre Melbourne, Melbourne Festival; POETIC LICENSE opening at Darebin Arts Centre and HUME STUDIOS at Kangan Tafe. She recorded on REVELATIONS in URBAN STUDIO, performed in the TAKEOVER residency and is a key artist on the Australian/Fijian collaboration of the transnational performance and film project, KIN - Dudi & Jojo.

Sahra graduated in art and architecture at the University of Tehran with a Bachelor of Theatre Art in 2009. Sahra was involved in many student productions as a writer, actor, costume and set designer. Her dissertation thesis was an adaptation of the short story by Raymond Carver - ‘Neighbors’.

Sahra's first professional work as an actor and writer in Australia was with Outer Urban Projects' dance theatre work, VESSEL at the Arts Centre Melbourne, Melbourne Fringe (2017). She then went on to work as a writer and actor in THE AUDITION, which premiered at La Mama in 2019 and was remounted in 2024 at La Mama Courthouse, The Bowery Theatre, and Bunjil Place.

Kush Kuiy is an independent producer, writer, and storyteller whose practice explores third-culture identity, shifting ideas of home, cultural inheritance, and belonging. Working across writing, performance, and research, she experiments with form as a way of finding the most honest and resonant way to tell a story.

Her recent work includes writing on VIGIL with Outer Urban Projects and contributing to large-scale visual outcomes for Viv’s Place, a social housing development in Melbourne’s south-east. She is currently developing a long-term research project, 'HOMECOMING', which traces personal and diasporic journeys between Australia and her family’s country of origin.

Patricia Cornelius is a founding member of Melbourne Workers Theatre. She’s a playwright, novelist, and film writer. Patricia has a fierce commitment to class and her work often examines the lives of the marginalised. Her work also includes dramaturgy and mentorship with young or new playwrights.. Patricia is the recipient of the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize, and the 2019 Green Room award for Life Achievement. She has written over 35 plays including:  'Shit', 'Big Heart', 'Savages', 'Slut, Love and The Call'. Patricia co-wrote the feature film adaptation 'Blessed', based on the play 'Who’s Afraid of the Working Class?'

Samah Sabawi is an author, playwright, and poet. She is a recipient of multiple awards both nationally and internationally, including the 2020 Green Room Award for Best Writing for Independent Theatre for 'Them', the VCE award for Best Independent Production and Best Publication for 'Tales of A City By The Sea', the 2018 Palestine Book Award for the poetry anthology 'I Remember My Name: Poetry by Samah Sabawi, Ramzy Baround and Jehan Bseiso' and the Patrick O’Neil Award for the anthology 'Double Exposure: Plays of the Jewish and Palestinian Diasporas.'

Navera Ari is a dynamic and multidisciplinary artist based in Naarm/Melbourne. With roots in Cairo, Egypt, and Sudanese & South-Sudanese heritage, they draw profound inspiration from African and African diasporic culture. Their primary mediums of acting and performance, coupled with writing, movement, creative direction and producing, expand their capacity and delivery of storytelling. Navera began their artistic journey in childhood, acting, writing and performing before officially entering the acting industry in 2018 and later beginning to share their work with a broader audience. Their work explores concepts around human nature and interaction, connection, communication, and how people act and react to stimuli.

Tara Jade Samaya is a queer eco feminist and a multidisciplinary artist that, teaches, creates and performs dance. Her engagement with Outer Urban expands from developing dance, film work and leading workshops and classes from 2018.

In 2025 Tara performed in Dancenorth's regional Australian 'Wayfinder' tour after relocating back to Australia from Europe where she rehearsal directed at Opera Ballet Vlaanderen and danced with Staatsballett Berlin under directorship of Sasha Waltz and Johannes Ohman. She is also working with artists Jefta Van Dinter, Emmanual Gat, Dasniya Summer, Jan Martens, Aoi Nakamura and Esteban Lecoq; and created production ‘I’m here now’ with Film maker Pippa Samaya for the Komische Oper Berlin.

Tamara is a proud descendant of the Biripi Peoples of the mid-New South Wales Coast. Tamara trained in classical ballet and commercial dance at leading schools in Sydney. In 2019, she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance) from the Victorian College of the Arts. Her artistry spans diverse performance and creative practices, encompassing contemporary dance, ballet, performance art, children’s theatre, circus and harness work, contact improvisation, film, puppeteering, and physical theatre.

Georgia is an independent contemporary dancer, performer and teacher originating from Aotearoa (New Zealand). She is now living and working in Naarm (Melbourne). Prior to this she was part of the creation in many works with various artists during 6 years with Dancenorth Australia under the directorship of Kyle Page and Amber Haines including; Melanie Lane, Lucy Guerin, Stephanie Lake, Alisdair MacIndoe, Gideon Obarzanek, Lee Serle, Jo Lloyd and Ross McCormack, performing and touring works at festivals nationally and internationally.

Kamarra Bell-Wykes (Yagera/Butchulla) is a theatre maker and arts specialist working across professional, academic and community arts sectors, including Queensland Theatre's current resident First Nations dramaturge, ILBIJERRI Theatre’s Education Manager and Creative Director from 2014-2019 and Malthouse Resident Artist 2020-2022. In 2022 Kamarra joined forces with Carly Sheppard as Co-Artistic Directors of A Daylight Connection, a motley crew of independent theatre-makers dedicated to smashing performance binaries; their credits include 'Chase' (Malthouse/Hot House), 'A Nightime Travesty' (Yirramboi/AsiaTOPA/Malthouse/Kia Mau) and 'Eclipse' (Rising) a collaboration with First Nation Queens Cerulean and Stone Motherless Cold.

Nyawuda Chuol is a South Sudanese-Australian actor. Nyawuda graduated from a two-year intensive acting program at the New York Film Academy, Australia with a 3-week scholarship at the New York Film Academy Los Angeles. In 2015, Nyawuda starred in the short, 'Everything We Wanted' by award-winning director Goran Stolevski which earned a BAFTA accredited premier at the London Short Film Festival and also a screened at the Tally Shorts in Florida and Los Angeles CineFest.

As a multifaceted and multi-tasking personality, Sermsah Bin Saad's name in the Indigenous community is synonymous with dance, choreography, opera, theatre, fashion and modelling as well as the festival circuit, and television. In the non-Indigenous community he is probably more known for cracking into the tough Top 14 on 2008's 'So You Think You Can Dance', overall in the Top 7 males of Australia. He also led the dancers in memorable musical numbers in the crowd-pleasing, mega hit movie 'Bran Nue Dae'. When Sermsah is not too busy setting the world on fire, he is as equally impressive on a technical level in casting direction, production management and script development.

A multi-hyphenate, Taj Aldeeb is a truly exciting performer of Syrian heritage. Motivated by her own journey, Taj explores stories through collaboration and experimentation, that demonstrate the challenges, triumphs, and diverse experiences of migration through sound, stage, screen, radio, and dance. She holds a Bachelor of Music (Piano) from Monash University and a Bachelor of Design (Digital Media) from RMIT. Taj is a radio presenter at ABC Classic, a pre-concert speaker and production assistant with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Front of House with Arts Centre Melbourne, and Head of Percussion (2024) with Melbourne Youth Orchestra.

Joshinder Chaggar is an award-winning dance theatre artist & filmmaker. She is currently in the final stages of a PhD doctorate, where her research intersects her intercultural identity with storytelling. Her solo dance work, created through the PhD, 'Dancing in Infinite Worlds', won Best in Dance & Physical Theatre, at Melbourne Fringe 2024.

Tariro is a multi-hyphenated artist, a natural born trailblazer and creative advocate for cultural equity in arts policy, purpose and practice. Most recently she co-directed The Hate Race (The Malthouse Theatre) in sell out season, 2024.

Tariro has assistant directed Fate (STAGE: Western Edge Youth Arts Inc and Massive Hip Hop Choir, 2013), and co-directed Billy Possible (STAGE: Metanoia Theatre, 2014), Scheherazade (STAGE: Western Edge Youth Arts Inc, 2014), Iago (STAGE: Western Edge Youth Arts Inc, 2014),

Natasha is fast becoming a well-known name in Melbourne’s orchestra scene. The eldest of 8 children of a musical family from Roxburgh Park, she began playing violin at 3 years of age. In 2014 Natasha was the principal 2nd violinist for the Melbourne Youth Orchestra and collaborated with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra on their tour to New Zealand. She was violin concertmaster in 2012 & 2013 for Vision Australia's Carols by Candlelight conducted by John Foreman.

Josef began playing the violin at the age of 4. Josef was raised and educated in Roxburgh Park. His past teachers include Helge Thelen, Elizabeth Sellars and Roy Theaker. Josef is currently studying under Sophie Rowell.

Josef has been a member of the Melbourne Youth Orchestra since 2012. In 2015, he was appointed the position of Concertmaster.

Karla Hanna is a Lebanese-Australian artist. She is a professional violinist with extensive experience in performance and teaching for over 20 years.

Karla has worked as a freelance musician, performing with orchestras such as the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria and the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, as well as working regularly with different Chamber groups around Australia. She studied at the Australian National Academy of Music from 2015-2017 and is currently in her final year of a Bachelor of Music.

Brett Kelly has regularly conducted the Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Tasmanian, Queensland and West Australian symphony orchestras, The Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, and Dunedin’s Southern Sinfonia.
He has conducted for Victorian Opera and been resident conductor of Chamber Made Opera. He has been featured on recordings for NAXOS, Tall Poppies, and ABC Classics with his recording of the Rodrigo Guitar Concertos featuring Slava and Leonard Grigoryan nominated for an Aria Award.

His conducting of 'The Hive' by Nicolas Vines for Chamber Made Opera was nominated for a Green Room Award as Best Conductor of Opera.

One of Australia’s foremost contemporary composers, Elena Kats-Chernin's vibrant and distinctive music across all genres has reached millions worldwide.

Among her extensive oeuvre are works in nearly all genres: instrumental solo and ensemble pieces, symphonic, chamber orchestral and concertos, for plays, ballet and musical theatre, choral and other vocal music for such organisations as Gondwana Voices, Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Australian World Orchestra, the Symphony Orchestras of Adelaide, Tasmania, Melbourne, Western Australia and Sydney,

Building working relationships with a range of emerging and diverse filmmakers in Naarm (Melbourne) led to Barış founding Near Dark, an independent production company and creative collective. He has established an independent slate of work that has engaged with national and international film festivals, as well as enabled further development and production opportunities for a diverse collective of creators and technicians.

Vahideh grew up in an artistic family with a love for arts, music and poetry. She completed high school at Tehran Music College, studied her Bachelor of Music in Tehran University of Fine Arts and pursued postgraduate studies in Master of Music at the University of Western Australia.

She has over 12 years of professional musical experience as a music performer. Playing the Kanun (a string instrument), Vahideh has performed in different ensembles in Europe, the Middle East and Australia including, Mona Foma Festival, Multicultural Music Festival Canberra, Sarv Ensemble Australian Tour and Chakam Australian Tour.

Evripides was born in Cyprus and migrated to Australia at the age of 15 years old. Since the age of 6, he has studied mandolin, piano, clarinet, saxophone, guitar and bass and completed courses in Classical and Jazz guitar and composition.

Influenced by the strong rhythms and melodies of a Mediterranean culture, the freedom of Jazz, the discipline and elegance of Classical and Flamenco styles of music, and his deep experiences as a long-term meditator, he has found his 'sound' and fulfillment in expression through his original compositions which he adapts for film, TV, DVD, video games and multimedia.

Tangata Tupou began singing at a young age. Born to a musically gifted family, Tangata's passion for music started in the family living room and at her local church. Tangata's Cook Island heritage has a huge influence on her style of music. She and sister Fakaoho have been performing together for many years. Both artists learned how to play musical instruments and sing from their dad. She is an independent vocalist, performing with sister Fakaoho and cousins, Ruci, Joanne, and Emmanuel Kaisila. Tangata is a recipient of a Hume Art Award.

Blending Māori and Pacific Islander influences with her love for Gospel and Hip Hop, Fakaoho Tupou is an asset to any concert or performance. She is a musically gifted singer with a strong following in the Pasifika and gospel community and is a recipient of a Hume Art Award. Fakaoho has featured in many Outer Urban Projects works - URBAN CHAMBER BEYOND at the Melbourne Recital Centre, the opening for POETIC LICENSE at the Darebin Arts & Entertainment Centre, LIBERIAN BOY, REVELATIONS in URBAN STUDIO, HUME STUDIOS and TAKEOVER residencies and GRAND DIVISONS – A MOVED URBAN CANTATA at Arts Centre Melbourne, Melbourne Festival.

Mary Sitarenos is a Theatre Director and Maker and the Co-Artistic Director of Liminal Theatre and Performance. Mary is an actor and director who has worked for over 20 years in alternative and mainstream theatre, film and television. Some of her theatre credits include Tes Lyssiotis' 'The Forty Lounge Cafe' and Tom Lindstrom's 'Heroic Measures' (Playbox); 'Too Young For Ghosts' (Janis Balodis) and 'Les Liaisons Dangereuses' (Melbourne Theatre Company); Jean-Pierre Mignon's 'Chekhov Trilogy' (Anthill); and 'Blood Moon' (Tes Lyssiotis), 'Song of Songs' (Robert Draffin), 'Pericles and The Idiot' (Theatreworks). She performed in and co-wrote with composer Richard Vella the contemporary opera 'Last Supper'. It toured Japan in 1995 and had seasons in Sydney, Melbourne and Tasmania.

Miguel and Meredith are partners in work and life. Multi-award winner photographer and film maker Meredith O'Shea, and musician/film maker Miguel Rios are visual story tellers. Together they create film clips, documentaries and editorial videos.

Meredith's work as a photojournalist has brought heartbreaking and inspiring stories of human struggle and triumph to the front pages of The Sunday Age for over 15 years, featuring regularly with other media outlets including Guardian Australia.

Kate brings over 40 years of professional practice across theatre, film and TV to Outer Urban Projects. She has trained and worked as an actor, writer, dramaturg, director and producer. She freelanced for many years working in Fringe, with Melbourne Workers Theatre and in TV drama and is an AFTRS screenwriting graduate. Her documentary credits include SBS/CAAMA 'Minmaku Way' (writer), ‘A Few Old Blokes' (writer/director) MIFF and the SBS, ATOM award winner and Dendy nominated 'Remembering Country' (co-writer/director).