After a two-year hiatus, Bernie Tan-Hayes is very proud this year to be lighting his tenth Pinchgut Opera, after nine previous attempts to tame the City Recital Hall, with Semele, The Fairy Queen, Orfeo, Dardanus, Idomeneo, Juditha Triumphans, David & Jonathan, Ormindo and L’anima del filosofo.

During his two-year absence, Bernie became Director of the architectural lighting and audiovisual practice Point of View Design. In this role he has been responsible for designs across Australia and around the globe in multiple sectors.

Bernie’s other opera credits include: Miracle in Brisbane (Brisbane Festival), La bohème and Eugene Onegin (New Zealand Opera), Die Fledermaus, Dialogues of the Carmelites and The Pirates of Penzance (Sydney Conservatorium of Music) and, for Opera Australia, the Opening Ceremony of the Meet in Beijing Arts Festival, Opera in the Bowl, and the Indigenous community event Yarrabah! The Musical.

His many theatre credits include Quack, Strange Attractor, October, King Tide, Modern International Dead and Tiger Country (Griffin Theatre Company); Macbeth and Travesties (Sydney Theatre Company); God of Carnage (Queensland Theatre Company); Are You There?, Brooklyn Boy, Ninety, The Busy World is Hushed, Derrida in Love and The Little Dog Laughed and the Cow Jumped over the Moon (Ensemble Theatre Company); Amigos (La Boite, Queensland); Mr BBQ and The Flood (NORPA); Bob Cats Dancing and Charters Towers – The Musical (Queensland Music Festival); The Nargun and the Stars and Gondwana (Erth Visual and Physical); and Steel Magnolias (Black Bird Productions).

Bernie was the lighting designer for Semele (2002), The Fairy Queen (2003), Orfeo (2004), Dardanus (2005), Idomeneo (2006), Juditha Triumphans (2007), David & Jonathan (2008), Ormindo (2009), L’anima del filosofo (2010) and Giasone (2013).

This bio taken from the last program in which Bernie appeared.