Black Swan State Theatre Company (formerly The Black Swan Theatre Company) is Western Australia's state theatre company. It runs an annual subscription season in Perth at the State Theatre Centre of Western Australia, tours its productions regionally and interstate, and screens live broadcasts around the state. Black Swan's Artistic Director is Clare Watson; past artistic directors include Kate Cherry, Andrew Ross and Tom Gutteridge. History Black Swan's inaugural production was Twelfth Night in 1991. The Australian’s Alison Farmer claimed that the new company "soared triumphant", and that "at last West Australian theatre can be said to have found its own unique way of dealing with the Bard". Black Swan's founding Artistic Director was Andrew Ross; he held the position until 2003. Black Swan's office and rehearsal room was located at the Old Masonic Hall in Nedlands, and its productions were performed in various theatres around Perth. Some of its productions from this period include Bran Nue Dae, Sistergirl, Tourmaline, Corrugation Road (winner of The Age Critics’ Award), The Merry-Go-Round in the Sea, Cloudstreet and The Odyssey. Following Ross’ departure in 2003, Peter Kingston was engaged as Black Swan's acting Artistic Director until the appointment of Tom Gutteridge in 2004. In 2008, Black Swan was rebranded Black Swan State Theatre Company, an event which coincided with the appointment of Kate Cherry as the company's Artistic Director. In 2011, Black Swan became a Resident Company in the new State Theatre Centre of WA, performing in the Heath Ledger Theatre or the Studio Underground. In its first year at the State Theatre Centre, Black Swan presented the world premiere of Rising Water, the first piece written by Western Australian novelist Tim Winton specifically for the stage. In the same year, Black Swan was the first Australian theatre company to broadcast a live stage performance, when Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by Kate Cherry, was broadcast in real time to audiences across regional Western Australia. In 2017, Clare Watson took over as the company's new Artistic Director. In 2022, Kate Champion was announced as the company's Artistic Director. Commissions, programs and past ensembles Rio Tinto Black Swan Commissions Black Swan commissions new productions in partnership with the Rio Tinto Group. This partnership has so far produced four mainstage works: Aidan Fennessy’s National Interest (2012), Hilary Bell’s The White Divers of Broome (2012), Hannie Rayson's The Swimming Club (2010) and Kate Mulvany's The Web