LEE-ANNE (LEE) HARRISON

Leadership Snapshot:

Visionary arts and business leader with over two decades of expertise in national arts management, community development, education governance, and social enterprise growth. Founder of the Adult Ballet Centre® and Dircetor for the Australasian Adult Ballet Competition (AABC) Festival, Lee is renowned for creating inclusive, sustainable, and impactful arts communities.

Biography:

Lee-Anne (Lee) Harrison is a distinguished figure in the Australian arts landscape, celebrated for her dynamic leadership, strategic foresight, and unwavering commitment to making ballet and dance accessible to all. Her career seamlessly integrates creative excellence with strategic business innovation, driving growth, sustainability, and meaningful impact across numerous arts, education, and community organisations.

With a Fine Arts background in sculpture and photography, Lee’s early success as an award-winning stylist in Melbourne's elite suburbs—including Kooyong, Camberwell, Brighton, and Elwood—established her reputation for excellence in creative leadership. She led educational programs, fashion shoots, and apprentice training, laying the foundation for her future in large-scale community and arts management.

Lee’s governance expertise was shaped through six years as President of School Council, where she spearheaded a $6 million redevelopment project and integrated Reggio Emilia educational principlesin the design. Her leadership continued as President of the School Council at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School (VCASS), overseeing strategic expansion of select-entry Fine Arts programs alongside Dance and Music specialisations, future budget projections, and policy reform.

Her impact within the ballet sector expanded nationally through her role as Tour Manager for International Ballet Workshops, collaborating with elite artists from the Paris Opera Ballet and the Conservatoire de Lyon. Lee also served as Australian National Tour Manager for Isabella McGuire Mayes, Founder of the Australasian Adult Ballet Competition (AABC) Festival, where she led high-profile masterclass tours across Australia, supporting the professionalisation and celebration of adult ballet.

At Melbourne City Ballet, Lee developed the MICA (Melbourne International Classical Academy) program in partnership with Coburg Secondary College, led the company’s annual gala events, and secured key strategic partnerships to enhance the company's educational footprint. Her work at the National Theatre Ballet School further demonstrated her expertise in community engagement, SEO strategy, national audition tours, and bespoke marketing initiatives.

Today, Lee’s greatest passion is realised through the Adult Ballet Centre®—a thriving social enterprise she founded to create an inclusive, inspiring, and artistically rich ballet community. Her vision ensures that ballet and dance are accessible to all, free of exclusion and judgment, while maintaining the highest standards of artistry, wellness, and education.

The Adult Ballet Centre® is now home to a diverse, elite teaching faculty, and partnerships focused on adults—comprising former professional ballet dancers, RAD and Cecchetti exam high-achievers, and experts in contemporary dance, elite training, sports science, biomechanics and function, dietetics, psychology, pilates and yoga. This diversity fuels a deeply nurturing environment where adults of every background can explore and elevate their artistic and personal potential.

Driven by a core belief that dance is a universal language of belonging, healing, and lifelong joy, Lee’s leadership continues to transform the cultural landscape for adult dancers, shaping a future where ballet truly belongs to everyone.