Sydney Pr Specialising In Music | Emma Collison Publicity

about

"What a publicist” "To be in such safe hands is truly delightful."

Suzie Miller, Playwright

Emma Collison Publicity is a PR consultancy specialising in the performing arts - dance, music, theatre, circus, musicals, film and visual arts.

With over 37 years in the industry, ECP's track record speaks for itself.

After completing a BA in Dance, Emma decided to dive head-first into PR. Her aim was to fill theatres with audiences by enticing Australian media to sthe magic of the performing arts with the

Her first stop was the '1988 Adelaide Festival, Artistic Director Lord Harewood. What a place to learn, artists included Twyla Tharp Dance, Sarah Vaughan and Peter Brook’s Mahabharata at the Quarry.

In '89 Emma was the first full-time Publicist Sydney Dance Company appointed, selected from 100 applications. It was a publicist’s’ dream, a creative minefield, promoting the work of legends Graeme Murphy and Janet Vernon, and to be guided by marketing dynamo Janine Kyle.

The job introduced Emma to the national media landscape, planning and implementing national SDC tour campaigns. The international tours were an added bonus and Emma travelled with the company to Colombia and Venezuela for a very memorable tour! The Some Rooms set went missing in action for part of the tour when a drug dealer hijacked the aircraft which was transporting the set! Armed with media and client contacts in 1995 Emma departed SDC and established her own PR consultancy Emma Collison Publicity.

80s Flashback - Emma setting up a PR photoshoot with Paul Mercurio for Sydney Dance Company

Clients have included

Sydney Opera House, Creative Australia, WOMADelaide, House of Oz, Sydney Dance Company, Bangarra, Sydney Film Festival, Adelaide Festival, NZ International arts festival, APRA AMCOS, Concourse Theatre Chatswood, MCA, Biennale of Sydney, Arts Projects Australia, MG Presents,, Sydney Theatre Company, Griffin Theatre, Bell Shakespeare, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, SIMA, Ensemble Offspring, Australian String Quartet, Canberra International Music Festival, and Piano Plus. (formerly Sydney International Piano Competition).

"From radio to print to TV you have me moving around, have kept me in the know through texts, emails and calls - to be in such safe hands is truly delightful. What a publicist."

In 2023 GARRIJIMANHA engaged ECP to publicize The Last Post Winds of Change representing the unity that existed between First Nation and Australian Diggers on the battlefield. It was developed over two years by First Nations arts company Garrijimanha, performed by Mark Atkins on didgeridoo and James Morrison on bugle, filmed on the sails of the Sydney Opera House.

Cultural Launches

Creative Australia’s $7.8 investment Creative Futures Fund - Australian Publicist 2025
APRA AMCOS Art Music Awards - 2023 Australian Publicist
SOCOG - Cultural Olympiad – Festival of the Dreaming - Publicity Consultant - 1996
ISPA International Congress – June 2001 Sydney Opera House

Key organisations and Festivals

Sydney Opera House – Consultant Sydney Publicist for 10 years
Adelaide Festival 1988, 1996, 1998 & 2000 - National Publicist
Sydney Fringe Festival Publicist 2020
WOMDelaide - National Publicist and on site media - 1995 to 2007
Message Sticks Film Festival - Sydney Opera House – 2010 - 2012
Sydney Film Festival Publicist - 2011

Events for children and families

CoLABS KIDS ART AND SCIENCE OUTDOOR EVENT Bungarribee Park, Western Sydney Parklands - 2007

Exhibitions

Gallipoli Art Prize responsible for publicising the prize in Australia and New Zealand - 2009
Museum of Contemporary Art (2000 and 20022 including Andy Warhol, Robert Mapplethorpe and Jeff Koons Puppy.)
Biennale of Sydney (Publicist for the 12th and 13th)
British Council – Great Expectations, British Design Show, Melbourne and Sydney exhibitions (2003) and Import Export and Global Local Exhibitions – Object Gallery, Sydney Festival, 2004
Sydney Art on Paper Fair – Fox Studios - A national art fair dedicated to works on paper - 2003 and 2005
Martin Browne Fine Art, all exhibitions, Sydney and Melbourne - National Publicist 2005
THE GOLD PROJECT Bathurst Regional Art Gallery - 2001
The Unflinching Gaze exhibition - Bathurst Regional Art Gallery 2017

Dance

Sydney Dance Company Resident Publicist - 1989 to 1995
Bangarra Dance Theatre consultant - 2000 to 2008
Critical Path turns 20 weekend events - 2025
NAISDA
English National Ballet - Concourse Theatre - 2012
Eifman Ballet (Russia) - 2012
Victorian State Ballet - 2022, 2023
Form Dance Dance Projects - 2022, 2023
Pilobolous Andrew Kay and Associates - 2009

Theatre, comedy and musicals

Moira Blumenthal Productions 2023 and 2024
Bell Shakespeare's Richard III with Kate Mulvaney (national tour 2017 )
Kneehigh Theatre UK Brief Encounter UK (Arts Projects Australia national tour 2015).
Sydney Theatre Company - national publicist 2010
Griffin Theatre Company Resident Publicist (2014 & 2015)
Lenny Henry (national tours Maggie Gerrand Productions 1996 & 1998)
The Boy from Oz with Hugh Jackman (Pollack Consulting 2016)
Priscilla (Back Row Productions and Bridges PR 2017)
La Fura Del Baus XXX - 2003 Andrew Kay

Music

Joshua Fields and Academy of St Martin in the Fields (Sydney Opera House)
Burt Bacharach, Michael Parkinson and the Whitlams (Sydney Opera House Sydney Symphony Orchestra 2007)
Buena Vista Social Club’s Adios (national tour MG Presents 2015)
Ludovico Einaudi, Original Gypsies, Angélique Kidjo (Arts Projects Australia)
Enemble Offspring - Music Machine - April 2025 - new music triumph
Queensland Biennial Festival of Music – 2001
Sydney Con Jazz Festival - 2021, 2022, 2024 and 2026
Canberra International Music Festival - 2024

Thank you to my mentors to

Bruce Pollack who kindly contracted me to work on block-buster musicals Priscilla and Boy from Oz.,

Janine Kyle, former SDC Marketing Manager, for guiding me through my early years.

Graeme Murphy for being the most creative and funniest person ever!

Barrie Kosky for setting Adelaide on fire in 1996 with his Hills Hoist Adelaide Festival.

Former Sydney Opera House producers Wendy Martin, Greg Clarke, & Maggie Gerrand of MGPresents for being such

supportive and creative producers and connecting me with so many wonderful projects.

Stephen Page for welcoming me into the Bangarra family and for keeping those fires burning so brightly through good and bad times.

Ian Scobie and Rob Brookman I worked with them on many great projects, tours and festivals in Adelaide, such great leaders in the arts.

media

testimonials

"From radio to print to TV you have me moving around, have kept me in the know through texts, emails and calls - to be in such safe hands is truly delightful.

What a publicist."

Suzie Miller, Playwright

"Emma Collison is more than an arts publicist. During her time as publicist with the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Emma achieved wide ranging publicity across arts, lifestyle, design, fashion, and news and current affairs for a number of high profile projects including Jeff Koons Puppy, exhibitions on the work of Robert Mapplethorpe and Andy Warhol, as well as John Kaldor Art Projects and the Biennale of Sydney.

Emma has an extensive network of media contacts and is proactive in her approach to securing publicity for her clients."

Christopher Snelling, Head of Marketing and Sponsorship

Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney

"Emma is one of the leading lights of Sydney's performing arts scene, she has worked for most of the major companies and artists. She is a sparkling and rewarding fixture in the industry."

Diana Simmonds, Sydney Media Commentator