Valerie Matthews is a direct descendant of the Gungarrie People and a member of the Stolen Generation. She has been an active member of the Nanango Theatre Company since 2017, contributing in various capacities. She served as Secretary for two consecutive years and participated in productions both as an actor and director. Her acting credits include The Uncumber Man and Black Coffee, while she also directed the play Speed Dating. Valerie has successfully secured funding opportunities through grant writing, further supporting the theatre company’s initiatives. In addition to her roles within the company, Valerie founded a committee and established the first-ever Nanango Playfest, which has grown into a highly successful event now in its fourth year. The festival is part of the South East Queensland Drama Festival and offers prize money across various categories, with a particularly competitive and rapidly expanding youth section. Beyond her involvement in theatre, Valerie holds a degree in Aboriginal Affairs Policy & Management from the University of South Australia, graduating in 2004. She pursued postgraduate studies before deferring. Since 2005, she has worked closely with the Cherbourg Community in the Wide Bay region, dedicating her efforts to community engagement. Valerie retired around 2017 but remains actively involved in the arts and local initiatives.
miyagan-dhi bala Reilly-gu, Cook-gu, Ferguson-gu, Williams-gu
bala-dhu wiradyuri-giyalang
bala-dhu dyiramalbang wiradyuri yinaa
yuwin-dhu Nicole Reilly
Proudly a queer wiradyuri yinaa, Nicole Reilly’s work spans the roles of creative producer, director, performer, and teaching artist. She is the recipient of the Enoch Scholarship from the Queensland University of Technology and is the inaugural Wandima Fellow in partnership with The Brisbane Powerhouse. After graduating from an innovative practice-led post-graduate program at the University of Sunshine Coast in 2018, Nicole has produced over 65 independent productions. Highlights include a touring multicultural music conversation Songs of Gaia directed by Linsey Pollak, a theatrical EP release The Bigger Picture at both RPAC and QPAC for celebrated Quandamookan musician Sachém, and a site-specific contemporary First Nations ceremony Dawn Awakening for Horizon Festival. She has presented at Drama Queensland, Drama Territory, Drama Australia, Stage Queensland, and Newcastle’s StageCon. Nicole is now Senior Producer at BlakDance, the national industry organisation for First Nations contemporary dancers and choreographers.
Jamaine Wilesmith or also known by their artist name ‘Durriwiyn’, is a proud queer artist from Taree NSW. Jamaine has connections to both Biripi and Worimi people and has lived in Meanjin (Brisbane) for the past 7 years, connecting and collaborating with many other indigenous artists and performers. Jamaine has recently graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Arts and majoring in popular music and technology. The creative spirit within Jamaine enjoys blending genres and identity to represent the ever-changing energy of their art. This artist has many interests ranging from songwriting, concept building and creative writing. The artist explains that Durriwiyn is the product of Jamaine Wilesmith’s Jekyll and Hyde psyche. It’s born of an artistic alliance between Wilesmith’s obedient and grounded self and his darker, more disruptive, daring self. Durriwiyn is fueled by intuition and a vivid inner life which manifests through his sound and performance. Audiences can expect an image that mirrors the duality and diversity – the conflict and the collaboration – of the creators’ two sides.
Bianca Valentino is a Blak writer, editor, and artist living on Yugambeh Country. Since her teens, she has been interviewing creatives and writing about music, arts, and culture. Storytelling is at the heart of everything she does. Bianca was part of the black&write! Indigenous Writing & Editing Fellowships team from 2021 to 2023. She now works as a freelance editor for both major and independent publishing houses and has served as a commissioning editor for literary journals Meanjin and Kill Your Darlings as their First Nations Editor in Residence. From 2023 to 2024, Bianca was Wikipedia’s First Nations Wikipedian in Residence, improving the representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians. Her writing has been published nationally and internationally, in Griffith Review, Rolling Stone, Rookie, The Big Issue, and more. Bianca is the publisher and editor of Australia’s independent cult music zine, Gimmie. In 2024, Bianca served on the Queensland Literary Awards and Young Writers Awards teams, while also releasing her debut book, Conversations with Punx, an in-depth exploration of creativity, life, and spirituality. Her acceptance into the 2025 Sparks program will help her achieve the dream of bringing her work from page to stage.
