Vanessa Scammell
MEET
Vanessa Scammell is a conductor and musician who enjoys a diverse portfolio of work as a conductor of ballet, musical theatre, concert repertoire and opera.
Vanessa’s postgraduate study included a Masters in Conducting; she has been the recipient of the Brian Stacey Award and the Robert and Elizabeth Albert Conducting Fellowship for The Australian Ballet.
Find out more about Vanessa and her amazing list of performances.
upcoming performances
The Merry Widow Presented by Opera Australia
8 July – 18 August 2026
Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Sway, smile and swoon your way through The Merry Widow.
It’s an opulent party, all glitz and glamour and Parisian charm. It’s an old-fashioned romance, flirty and funny and fabulous. It’s a Viennese waltz and you know all the steps.
The Merry Widow is a “shimmering all-singing, all-dancing Broadway-style show” (The Sydney Morning Herald), a frothy comedy packed with familiar waltzes and tuneful melodies.
From the sumptuous Art Deco era costumes to the glamourous, geometric sets, the show is “visually stunning … sometimes you simply don’t know where to look” (The Sydney Morning Herald).
New Zealand-born international opera star Emma Pearson and beloved Australian soprano Julie Lea Goodwin share the role of Hanna, bringing their own unique energies to the iconic role. Graeme Murphy brings his signature brand of lively choreography and deft direction to the dance-packed score.
BBC Planet Earth III Live in Concert
4 September 2026 (Fri) 7:30 pm
5 September 2026 (Sat) 3:00 pm
5 September 2026 (Sat) 7:30 pm
Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall
Celebration of the Natural World
Planet Earth III brings the wonders of our planet to the stage with breathtaking footage from the acclaimed BBC Studios series, accompanied by the powerful score from Oscar winner Hans Zimmer, Jacob Shea, and Sara Barone, performed by the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra under Vanessa Scammell with vocalist Michelle John and presenter George Lacey.
Audiences will journey across deserts, forests, coastlines, and oceans to witness extraordinary animal dramas – thrilling, funny, and heart-breaking – revealing how wildlife adapts to new challenges in a world where humans play a pivotal role, in a series filmed over 1,904 days across 43 countries and six continents.
