Creative Australia acknowledges the sad passing of award-winning and pioneering musical and theatrical producer Toby Simkin and recognises his incredible achievements in the production of commercial theatre in Australia, on Broadway, in London’s West End, and globally.

Toby Simkin was a theatrical producer whose career spanned more than 40 award-winning years, but it all began at the age of 16 when he was awarded the Elizabeth Bequest Scholarship, which propelled him to work on many shows for the Queensland Theatre Company, TN Theatre Company, The Lyric Opera, Queensland Marionette Theatre, The Queensland Ballet, The Australian Opera and Melbourne Theatre Company.

^{Toby Simkin. Creative Commons}After working in theatre in Sydney and Brisbane, Mr Simkin moved to Broadway and would go on to great success with the Tony Award-winning productions of I Am My Own Wife, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, Death of a Salesman, and the Tony-nominated productions of The Crucible and The Price.

Toby Simkin is credited with leading the Broadway theatre industry onto the internet in the early 1990s, and devised, designed, and implemented the world’s first online ticketing system.

In the past twenty years Mr Simkin lived and worked in China, producing Australasian touring productions of Jekyll and Hyde, The Rocky Horror Show, La Nova Cirque at the Birds Nest (National Stadium) in Beijing and leading the China touring productions 42nd Street; Elton John & Tim Rice’s AIDA, LUMA, Fame (including a Mandarin production). He has also managed theatres in Taiwan, Istanbul and Xi’an.

Creative Australia CEO Adrian Collette AM said:

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by the passing of Toby Simkin; a leader in every sense of the word in theatre and across the arts. Mr Simkin’s loss will be felt in every corner of the world, where he made a mark not just with incredible talent but also with his generosity.”

Creative Australia extends its deepest sympathies to Toby Simkin’s friends and family.

Vale
Toby Simkin
1964-2024