The Role: Performance Programmer

The performance programmer will bring cross-generational, satirical and primary school shows into the festival. They will work with touring and local performers, venues and grant applicants to design experiences that connect parents, kids and grandparents with wonder.

Dionysus is looking for a well-connected and compelling programmer with at least 8 years experience in presenting performance-based work in traditional and non-traditional spaces. Previous experience would include forging lasting partnerships and successfully working with at least one festival from conception through delivery for multiple cycles.

They will join a programming panel with programmers in music, stories and interactivities, a supporting coordinator and the Festival Director, as well as the event management team.

The amount of required programming is not significant, however each choice needs careful consideration and will benefit from significant experience with our target demographics. Ideally the candidate would be a parent and have an understanding of Canberra's audiences, however these are not requisites.

The position is a project-based contract envisioned to require 100-200 hours of work, mostly at times chosen by the candidate. The more connected and experienced the programmer, the less time it is likely to require. It will require weekly daytime and/or evening meetings September-December 2025, occasional check-ins once the program is finalised, and a presence at the festival from 30 March to 12 April 2026. For the right candidate, the role will be manageable alongside a pre-existing full-time position or other contracts.

Key dates

• September 2025: commence on-boarding, review the festival structure, commence programming
• October: review grant applications, reach out to key performance groups
• November: finalise grant applications with the Program Coordinator, work with the Festival Education Manager to prepare materials for school integrations
• December: finalise program and education integrations
• January - March 2026: occasional meetings to ensure the program and partnerships are on track
• 30 March - 12 April: join the festival to review the impact of the program, check-in with artists (noting stage and event managers will run the shows)
• Late April 2026: Review the festival program, analytics and make recommendations for the next year of the festival

Required Attributes

• Minimum 10 years experience curating or producing performance-based work, particularly for festivals or large-scale cultural programs
• Demonstrated ability to design programs that engage intergenerational audiences, especially children and parents
• Strong network of performers and performance companies, with experience negotiating and contracting talent
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with a proven ability to work within multidisciplinary teams and community stakeholders

Ideal Attributes

• Familiarity with Canberra’s cultural landscape and audience behaviours
• First-hand experience as a parent, educator or community arts facilitator, particularly with young people or schools

Ideally the programmer would rejoin for the 2027 festival, if everyone's loving it.

Remuneration
Contract role, $21,000 + GST including superannuation

A Simple Application
Please send a Cover Letter addressing the required and ideal skills and experience, opportunities you see for the role, and a CV including contact details for at least two referees, to dave@dionysus.place

This opportunity will close when the appropriate candidate is found, likely soon.

Dionysus is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from people of all backgrounds with a love for life.

The Role: Schools Engagement Manager

Dionysus is looking for a Schools Engagement Manager to join a new festival team in Canberra. The festival brings together loved ones – families and friends of all ages – to find wonder in the world.

The Schools Engagement Manager will lead the festival’s engagement with primary schools across the Canberra Region, building a compelling schools program with the festival team, manage excursions to festival events in the last week of Term 1, 2026, and help to develop practical classroom resources that support participation.

We’re looking for someone with a deep understanding of Canberra’s education landscape, positive relationships with leaders of schools, and a creative mind. Ideally, you are a former lead teacher or school executive who knows how to speak a school’s language. 

The position is a project-based contract between September 2025 and April 2026 (7 months including a Christmas break). It is envisioned to require 300-450 hours, mostly at times chosen by the candidate, and the more connected and experienced the candidate, the less time it will likely require. The total remuneration will be decided based on the successful applicant's experience, skills and available time, and will range between $23,000-$31,000 for 27 weeks of work, including super. The role should be manageable alongside a pre-existing position or other contracts.

Key responsibilities

• Lead school engagement for the 2026 festival, focusing on primary schools
• Work with the programmers to build an exciting program for primary school students with some public outcomes
• Work with the coordinator to manage bookings for excursions in the last week of Term 1, 2026
• Build buy-in with school leaders and educators in the Canberra Region
• Work with creatives to build practical resources that support excursion planning and curriculum outcomes
• Coordinate communications and planning across a broad range of school stakeholders
• Gather feedback and report on participation and engagement outcomes
• Identify additional opportunities for meaningful school involvement

Key dates

• Mid September 2025: meet everyone and on-board, review the festival documentation
• October-December: work with the Education directorate, schools and the festival programmers to shape a viable festival program for primary school students, prepare materials for school integrations
• January - March 2026: update stakeholders as the festival finalises all details, ensure excursion details are appropriate for the needs of schools and the festival
• 30 March - 12 April 2026: watch audiences enjoy a wonderful new world, manage key stakeholders
• Late April 2026: send thanks, de-brief and look to the future

Required Attributes

• Positive existing relationships with educational leaders across Canberra region
• Strong communication skills, and capable of building trust with principals, teachers and colleagues
• Thrive in fast-paced environments with multiple priorities
• Very organised, reliable and proactive, with instincts for what needs to happen next, and how to make it happen smoothly
• Solutions-focused mindset, able to move through problems systematically and take others on the journey
• Collaborative, kind, and excited about building something special that will impact thousands of students

Ideal Attributes

• Strong pre-existing relationships with many Canberra school leaders across different systems
• Passionate about arts and education, and experienced in connecting the two in meaningful ways

Ideally the Schools Engagement Manager would rejoin for the 2027 festival, if everyone's loving it.

Remuneration
Contract role for 27 weeks (7 months including a Christmas break), $23,000-31,000 (plus GST if registered) including superannuation.

A Simple Application
Please send a Cover Letter addressing the required and ideal skills and experience, opportunities you see for the role, and a CV including contact details for at least two referees, to dave@dionysus.place.

This opportunity will close when the appropriate candidate is found.

Dionysus is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from people of all backgrounds with a love for life.

The Role: Music Programmer

The music programmer will bring cross-generational and primary school music performances into the festival. They will work with touring and local performers, venues and grant applicants to design experiences that connect parents, kids and grandparents with wonder.

Dionysus is looking for a well-connected and compelling programmer with at least 10 years experience in presenting music in all types of environments. Previous experience would include forging lasting partnerships and successfully working with at least one festival from conception through delivery for multiple cycles.

They will join a programming panel with programmers in theatre, stories and interactivities, a supporting coordinator and the Festival Director, as well as the event management team.

The amount of required programming is not significant, however each choice needs careful consideration and will benefit from significant experience with our target demographics. Ideally the candidate would be a parent and have an understanding of Canberra's audiences, however these are not requisites.

The position is a project-based contract envisioned to require 100-200 hours of work, mostly at times chosen by the candidate. The more connected and experienced the programmer, the less time it is likely to require. It will require weekly daytime and/or evening meetings September-December 2025, occasional check-ins once the program is finalised, and a presence at the festival from 30 March to 12 April 2026. For the right candidate, the role will be manageable alongside a pre-existing full-time position or other contracts.

Key dates

• September 2025: commence on-boarding, review the festival structure, commence programming
• October: review grant applications, reach out to key musicians and music groups
• November: finalise grant applications with the Program Coordinator, develop schools collateral with the Schools Engagement Manager 
• December: finalise program and education integrations
• January - March 2026: occasional meetings to ensure the program and partnerships are on track
• 30 March - 12 April: join the festival to review the impact of the program, check-in with artists (stage and event managers will run the shows)
• Late April 2026: Review the festival program, analytics and make recommendations for the next year of the festival

Required Attributes

• At least 10 years experience programming or producing live music across multiple genres and age groups
• Proven track record in designing music experiences that resonate with both children and adults
• Strong industry networks with both emerging and established artists, agents and production teams
• Experience managing programming timelines and budgets, and contributing to the delivery of multi-day festivals or public events

Ideal Attributes

• Familiarity with Canberra’s music scene and local community/audience behaviours
• A personal or professional understanding of what musically engages both children and families, such as through teaching, parenting or youth-focused programming 

Ideally the programmer would rejoin for the 2027 festival, if everyone's loving it.

Remuneration
Contract role, $21,000 + GST including superannuation

A Simple Application
Please send a Cover Letter addressing the required and ideal skills and experience, opportunities you see for the role, and a CV including contact details for at least two referees, to dave@dionysus.place.

This opportunity will close when the appropriate candidate is found, likely soon.

Dionysus is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from people of all backgrounds with a love for life.

The Role: Program Coordinator

Dionysus is searching for a savvy and dedicated coordinator to wrangle artists, programmers, designers and event experts to make a new festival for Canberra. The festival brings together loved ones – families and friends of all ages – to find wonder in the world.

A panel of experienced programmers will guide the festival content and this coordination role will help to bring their vision to life. You will work closely with the programming panel, artists and arts companies, venues and grant applicants to connect kids, parents and grandparents with an uplifting program of theatre, music, interactivities and stories.

Dionysus is looking for a positive and efficient coordinator with some experience in helping to present performance or music in formal and non-traditional contexts. Most importantly, they will be excellent with all types of people and a weapon with software including Google-Suite, website backends and project management programs.

The position is a project-based contract envisioned to be between 18 and 30 hours a week, between late September 2025 and April 2026 (7 months including a Christmas break). The total renumeration will be decided based on the successful applicant's experience, skills and available time, and will range between $25,000-$36,000 for about 27 weeks of work, including super.

The role will likely include supporting other cultural projects run by Dionysus in Canberra City, depending on the applicants experience.

This is a growth role, meaning the applicant may be offered a long-term position in Dionysus, and the applicant will finish the role in a strong standing to win advanced event or coordination positions.

Key dates

• End of September 2025: meet everyone and on-board, review the festival documentation (esp spreadsheets and project plans), coordinate meetings
• October: collate grant applications, support programmers with information, respond to applicants, coordinate many meetings
• November: communicate with programmers, grant applicants, artists, venues, and the marketing team, work with the Schools Engagement Manager to prepare materials for school integrations
• December: finalise the program, issue contracts, marketing, technical and education documentation
• January - March 2026: update stakeholders as the festival finalises all details, support programmers and artists, maintain a red hot set of spreadsheets
• April 2026: run the festival with the full team (two big weeks), then wrap-up, send thanks, de-brief and look to the future

Required Attributes

• Exceptional admin skills, with proven confidence in managing emails, timelines, documentation and stakeholder comms
• Proficiency with Google Suite, website backends, Dropbox, and project management tools (ideally ClickUp, but Asana, Monday and Trello are good equivalents)
• Confident communicator across a wide range of people – artists, programmers, schools and government – with a warm and professional tone
• Unbelievably organised, with experience in managing multiple priorities with a clear, concise and confident coordination approach

Ideal Attributes

• Demonstrated experience coordinating or supporting delivery of arts or community events, ideally across multiple partners or projects
• Interest in growing into future producing or programming roles, with a keenness to learn from an experienced festival team
• Experience working in a fast-paced environment where things shift regularly (and you can shift with them without flipping the table)

Ideally the coordinator would rejoin for the 2027 festival, if everyone's loving it.

Remuneration

Contract role for 27 weeks (7 months including a Christmas break), $25,000-$36,000 (plus GST if registered) including superannuation, depending on experience and skills.

A Simple Application
Please send a Cover Letter addressing the required and ideal skills and experience, opportunities you see for the role, and a CV including contact details for at least two referees, to dave@dionysus.place.

This opportunity will close when the appropriate candidate is found.

Dionysus is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from people of all backgrounds with a love for life.