Andrew Upton

He wrote the original play Riflemind (2007), which premiered at the Sydney Theatre Company to favourable reviews, with Hugo Weaving starring and Philip Seymour Hoffman directing the London production.

[1][2] As a playwright, Upton created adaptations of Hedda Gabler, The Cherry Orchard, Cyrano de Bergerac, Don Juan (with Marion Potts), Uncle Vanya, The Maids, Children of the Sun[3][4] and Platonov for the Sydney Theatre Company (STC) and Maxim Gorky's The Philistines for the Royal National Theatre in London.

[5] Upton's original play Riflemind opened with Hugo Weaving, playing an ageing rock star planning a comeback, at the Sydney Theatre Company on 5 October 2007, and received a favourable review in Variety.

[11][12][13][14][15][16] In 2008, Upton and wife Cate Blanchett became joint artistic directors of the Sydney Theatre Company for what became a five-year term.

[26][22] In June, 2014, Upton was recognised with the Rotary Professional Excellence Award, an award instituted "to honour a person who has demonstrated consistent professional excellence in his or her chosen vocation by contributing to the benefit of the wider community beyond their typical workplace role".