Laila Thaker

Associate Producer - ILBIJERRI Theatre

Born on Yidinji country (Cairns), Laila Thaker is a fearless Torres Strait Islander (Meriam Mir/Badulaig woman) on her mother’s side, and Indian (Singaporean) on her father’s side. As a First Nations Performer, Writer and Producer, Laila has over thirteen years experience in the Creative Industries. Since graduating from JCU in 2009, she has been cast in various roles from Shakespeare to Sarah Kane. Most notably NITV/ABC’s “The Queen and I” and Channel 10’s “My Life is Murder”. Inevitably, Laila began creating and producing her own work under “Black Shell” – an arts collective made up of Blak women and NBPOC. In 2017, Laila’s role as Producer at Melbourne Fringe changed the game completely – with a record breaking flourish of First Nations and POC work being presented. Currently Associate Producer at ILBIJERRI Theatre, Laila continues to advocate for and platform First Nations voices and storytelling in the Arts.

Laila attended her first WAA conference last year as a delegate as well as being part of the panel “Blaking Out White Spaces: First Nations Perspectives