Welcome to two new RAV Board Members

Debra Jefferies

The arts and creative industries are a major part of Debra’s life. She is an experienced arts manager and consultant working across government and non-government sectors for forty years. Debra joined Arts Victoria in 1993, holding senior management roles there and later at Creative Victoria, before retiring from the Victorian Public Service in late 2021. Her drive to expand support through government policies and programs for the Victorian contemporary arts sector saw her leading the co-design and implementation of new investment programs for independent artists, producers and small to medium companies plus a range of initiatives directed at regional and international development. She has been an advocate for the Victorian arts sector at major festivals and events in many parts of Australia and the world.

Growing up in Melbourne’s southern beachside suburbs on the traditional lands of the Boonwurrung people, Debra moved to London in the late 1970s and worked in theatre administration for five years. She is a graduate of Monash University where she balanced a scholarly interest in literature with an enthusiasm for Student Theatre and later studied Arts Management at the University of South Australia.  Now, as well as working as an independent consultant, she’s also a board member at Chamber Made and was Project Manager with Australian Print Workshop from 2023 to 2025. 

Kendra Reid

Kendra has spent her life working in theatre and live entertainment, both in Australia and around the world. After graduating from Edith Cowan University with a Bachelor of Arts in Media and Public Relations, her roles have included publicist for the legendary Suzie Howie; Head of Marketing and Press for theatre impresario Cameron Mackintosh; Managing Director of the theatrical marketing agency Aka Australia and Marketing Director for the record-breaking season of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Global Creature’s Moulin Rouge! The Musical in Australia.

In 2015 she set up KLR Consulting, working as a Strategic Consultant for White Night Melbourne, Marriner Theatre Group and Found Entertainment plus large-scale musical theatre productions such as Kinky Boots the Musical, Disney’s Aladdin the Musical, Frozen the Musical, and Beauty and the Beast. She was an ambassador for Entertainment Assist and Arts Centre Melbourne’s Arts Wellbeing Collective both of which support Mental Health within the Entertainment industry.