Guest Tutors | Coaches – Musical Theatre Programmes

Jason Carr

MUSICAL DIRECTOR | COMPOSER | ORCHESTRATOR

Graeme Danby

INTERNATIONAL OPERA SINGER | SINGING TEACHER

Magnus Gilljam

MUSICAL DIRECTOR | REPETITEUR | CONDUCTOR

Mitch Leow

ACTOR | AERIALIST | MUSICAL THEATRE PERFORMER

Nigel Planer

ACTOR | COMEDIAN | NOVELIST | PLAYWRIGHT

Guest Tutors | Acting

Other Guests

The Rev’d Simon Grigg

Rector of the Actor’s Church

David Grindrod

Casting Director

Michael Harris

Head of Production – Bill Kenwright Ltd

Barbara Windsor MBE

Actress

Peter Huntly

Producer

Rosiland Plowright Headshot

Rosalind Plowright is one of the most celebrated artists of our time. Her career spans more than 35 years. She was acclaimed as one of the world’s great spinto sopranos

specialising in roles such as Medée, Alceste and Norma as well as the great Verdi and Puccini heroines. Rosalind Plowright has sung at nearly all the international opera houses such as the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the Paris Opera, Vienna State Opera, Bavarian State Opera in Munich, the Grand Theatre de Genève, and at the Arena di Verona. Her colleagues include all the most praised operatic stars of the time. Her American debut was alongside Jose Carreras in a concert at the Philadelphia Orchestra under Riccardo Muti and they also sang Andrea Chenier at Covent Garden and recorded La Forza del Destino for Deutsche Grammophon (which won best opera recording from Gramophone). With Placido Domingo she has performed Il Trovatore at Covent Garden and recorded the opera with him for Deutsche Grammophon for which she was personally awarded the Prix Fondation Fanny Heldy. With Luciano Pavarotti she performed Aida at Covent Garden and a gala concert for 25,000 at the Arena of Verona. Among the many conductors with whom she has worked are Giulini, Gavazzeni, Patane, Muti, Abbado, Mehta, Sinopli, Sawallisch, Haitink, Pappano, Ozawa and Bychkov.

Rosalind Plowright entered the dramatic mezzo repertoire in 1999 with roles such as Amneris in Aida, the Principessa in Adriana Lecouvreur, La Zia Principessa in Suor Angelica and Klytämnestra in Elektra Madame de Croissy in Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmelites. Plowright won special praise as the Kostelnicka in Janacek’s Jenufa. She made her Metropolitan Opera debut in this role. Her many recordings also include Mary Stuart, Otello, Aida and Hansel & Gretel for the Opera in English series for Chandos; Elijah for Chandos, La Vestale for Orfeo, Contes d’Hoffmann for EMI and Mahler 2nd Symphony for Deutsche Grammophon. Her DVD’s include her performances of Il Trovatore from Verona, Suor Angelica from La Scala, Hansel & Gretel from the Metropolitan Opera and Not the Messiah. (He’s a very naughty boy)with the Monty Python team at the Royal Albert hall. Her forthcoming appearances are in Japan (Herodias), Covent Garden (La Contessa de Coigny and her first Kabanicha in Katya Kabanova), Lyon and Vienna (Mrs Sedley). In May 2014 she launched her first recital album, La Belle Dame Sans Merci.

Rosalind Plowright was awarded the OBE in 2007 for her services to music.

Sir Tim Rice

Lyricist

Sir Tim Rice is a multi-award-winning lyricist. Although he began he professional life with the intention of being a solicitor, he harboured aspirations in the field of pop music and eventually became a management trainee at EMI.

His collaboration with Andrew Lloyd Webber is world-famous. Their first work was a piece for an annual end of term school concert – Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat which quickly began to take on a life of its own leading to subsequent stagings, additions of new material, and even a record deal.

This initial success was followed with the show that was to bring Rice and Lloyd Webber international fame and guarantee them a place in musical theatre history, Jesus Christ Superstar. Other work includes Evita with Lloyd Webber, Blondel with Stephen Oliver and Chess with Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus from the pop group ABBA

With the proven world-wide appeal of Tim Rice’s lyrics, it was not surprising when in 1991 the Disney organisation signed Tim as lyricist for The Lion King. When lyricist Howard Ashman passed away, Tim was asked to work with Alan Menken on finishing Disney’s 1992 animated film Aladdin. He was asked to collaborate with Menken again in 1994 to provide additional songs for the theatrical production of Beauty And The Beast. Tim Rice and Elton John teamed up again in 1996 when Disney asked them to do an original stage musical based on Verdi’s opera Aida.

The year 2000 also saw the release of the film The Road To Eldorado which included 5 songs by Tim and Elton. In 1986 Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber were commissioned by Prince Edward to write a piece for Queen Elizabeth II’s 60th birthday. He teamed up with pop composer John Farrar to work on a musical for Cliff Richard based upon Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights called Heathcliff. Over the years Tim has co-produced four musical productions with various partners : Blondel (1983 & 2006), Chess (1986) and Anything Goes (1989).

In addition to musicals and feature films, Tim has written countless pop songs, many of which have enjoyed chart success. His work has won him numerous awards including 12 Ivor Novello awards, 4 Tonys, and 3 Oscars.

Tim was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1999. In recognition of his work in film and theatre, Tim was inducted as a Disney Legend in 2002 at the Walt Disney Studios Park in Paris during the celebrations for the tenth anniversary of Disneyland Paris. In 2008, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. Tim was knighted 1994.

www.timrice.co.uk

Timothy West CBE was born in Bradford in 1934, the son of actor Lockwood West. Seasons in repertory in Wimbledon, Newquay, Hull, Northampton, Worthing and Salisbury, coming to the Piccadilly Theatre in the farce Caught Napping in 1959.

Since then his performances on the London stage have included Gentle Jack, The Italian Girl, Abelard and Heloise, The Homecoming, Beecham, Master Class, When we are Married, The Sneeze, It’s Ralph, Twelve Angry Men and The Birthday Party, The Old Country, The Collection and A Number.

At the National Theatre he has performed in Long Day’s Journey into Night, King Lear, and Luther; at the Royal Court in Laughter; in seasons with the RSC and at Chichester Festival; and with Prospect/Old Vic Company, for whom he played King Lear, Prospero, Shylock, Claudius and Enobarbus. At the Birmingham Rep, Galileo. For English Touring Theatre, on tour and in London he has played Falstaff in both parts of Henry IV, and Solness in Ibsen’s The Master Builder and King Lear. At the Sheffield Crucible, Caryl Churchill’s A Number. For the Rose Theatre, Kingston, and on tour The Winslow Boy and most recently a UK Tour of Quartet.

Television includes Edward VII, Churchill and the Generals, Brass, The Monocled Mutineer, The Good Doctor Bodkin Adams, What the Butler Saw, The Contractor, Blore, M.P., Beecham, Framed, Eleven Men Against Eleven, Murder in Mind, Bedtime, Bleak House, A Room with a View, Going Postal and Lewis.

Recent films: Ever After, Joan of Arc, Villa des Roses, Iris, The Fourth Angel, Beyond Borders andEndgame.

Work as Director has included, recently, HMS Pinafore for Carl Rosa Opera.

He has taken part in over 500 radio broadcasts, and recorded many Talking Books. His autobiography A Moment Towards the End of the Play, and So You Want to be an Actor (co-written with his wife Prunella Scales) are published by Nick Hern Books.

He was made CBE in 1984, and is currently President of the London Academy of Dramatic Art, and of the Society for Theatre Research

Andrew Keates

Director

Training: Brockenhurst College (Beacon College for Performing Arts), The Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts & The Guildford School of Acting (BA Hons Theatre).

West End credits include: Michael Dennis’ world premiere of Dark Sublime, starring Marina Sirtis. William M. Hoffman’s first AIDS play As Is. The critically acclaimed production of the European premiere of Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty’s new musical, Dessa Rose, starring Cynthia Erivo (Trafalgar Studios). The London revival of Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris (Charing Cross Theatre), and Martin Sherman’s Passing By (Tristan Bates Theatre).

Other credits include: the European premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish (Park Theatre). Howard Goodall and Richard Curtis’ Girlfriends (Stanwyx Theatre). Steve Furst: In Character (Museum of Comedy, Astor Theatre, Tristan Bates Theatre and Southbank Underbelly Festival 2018). Directing and developing the world premiere of the new British Musical The White Feather (Union Theatre). The controversial Ugandan tragedy The River and the Mountain by Beau Hopkins, William M. Hoffman’s first AIDS play As Is, the European premiere of Rooms: a rock romance by Paul Scott Goodman and Miriam Gordon and Passing By by Martin Sherman (Finborough Theatre). The professional world premiere of A Winter’s Tale (directed and developed by Andrew with Howard Goodall and Nick Stimson), Joe Dipietro and Jimmy Roberts’ musical The Thing About Men and the award-winning production of The Hired Man (Landor Theatre). Short Plays By Morgan Lloyd Malcolm (Soho Theatre). Conjugal Rites by Roger Hall (Courtyard Theatre). A Spotlight On… West End Cabaret Season and Series (Landor Theatre). The London revival of Stiles and Drewe’s Just So (Tabard Theatre) and Martin Sherman’s Bent (Landor and Tabard Theatre transfer production).

Awards: Andrew and his productions have received many award nominations, including Best Director for Bent, Best Director for Just So, Best Entertainment for Just So, Best Director and Best Production for The Hired Man (amongst ten other nominations), Best Director for Rooms: A Rock Romance, Best Director for Dessa Rose and Best New Production of A Musical for The White Feather in the BroadwayWorld UK Awards and a special mention in the Critics Circle Awards. In 2012 Andrew’s production of The Hired Man won Best Musical Production and in 2013 his production of A Winter’s Tale won Best New Musical in The OffWestEnd.com Awards. In 2018 the Vice Chancellor of Surrey University awarded Andrew the Young Achiever of the Year Award for his significant contribution to theatre, championing BAME artists and raising awareness of HIV stigma.

Andrew co-ran the Landor Theatre for three years working on many productions as a Producer, Casting Director and Director. In 2012 he left the Landor to form his own production company, Arion Productions Ltd of which he is the current Artistic Director that give opportunities to theatremakers and in 2017 they launched the Show People Podcast which Andrew hosts. To listen to the Show People Podcast and to find out more about Arion Productions, please visit www.arion-productions.com

William Vann is establishing himself at the forefront of the current generation of young British accompanists. He was born and brought up in Bedford before reading law and taking up a choral scholarship at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he was taught the piano by Peter Uppard. He then studied as a pianist at the Royal Academy of Music with Malcolm Martineau and Colin Stone, graduating with distinction; in 2008 he won the Gerald Moore award for young accompanists and in October 2010 won the Great Elm Awards Accompanist Prize. He is also a past winner of the Sir Henry Richardson Scholarship, is supported by the Geoffrey Parsons Memorial Trust and held the Hodgson Fellowship in piano accompaniment at the RAM.

Recent performances have included several appearances at Wigmore Hall including the Samling Foundation’s fifteenth anniversary with Sir Thomas Allen, Malcolm Martineau, Jennifer France, Kitty Whately and Njabulo Madlala, concerts at the Aldeburgh Festival, the Sage, Gateshead, St John’s, Smith Square, Winterreise at The Forge, Camden and in Lagos, Nigeria and Lund, Sweden. He has given guest recitals for the Lennox Berkeley, Finzi and Gurney Societies, performed the music of Judith Weir at the RAM in the presence of the composer and toured a programme Dvorak and Brahms’ chamber music with the Nephele Ensemble at St David’s, Cardiff and in the Rhyl and Carlisle festivals. Forthcoming appearances include four concerts in the 2012 London English Song Festival, including a recital with James Gilchrist, a recital in the Oxford Lieder Festival, a guest recital for the John Ireland Society to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the composer’s death and several concerts across the country with mezzo-soprano Katie Bray.

In addition to his performances of standard song repertoire, he has also either commissioned or given the first performance of new English songs and song cycles by several English composers, including Christian Alexander, Joseph Atkins, Martin Eastwood, Johnny Herford, David Nield and Graham Ross (the latter two at Wigmore Hall).

He is a Samling Scholar, a Yeoman of the Worshipful Company of Musicians, a Young Songmaker and a Britten-Pears Young Artist. He also works as a conductor and repetiteur and was the assistant conductor for Bury Court Opera’s 2011 and 2012 productions of Rigoletto and La Cenerentola in association with Southbank Sinfonia. He is a coach on the Oxenfoord Summer School and in May will take up the position of Director of Music at the Royal Hospital, Chelsea.

Andrew Watts was born in Middlesex and studied at the Royal Academy of Music with Geoffrey Mitchell, and currently with Russell Smythe.

Andrew Watts’ operatic engagements include appearances with the Royal Opera Covent Garden, English National Opera, Glyndebourne Festival and Touring Operas, the Aldeburgh and Almeida Festivals and BBC Proms. Foreign engagements include Staatsoper Berlin, Komische Oper Berlin, Hamburgische Staatsoper, Bayerische Staatsoper, Theater an der Wien, Teatro La Fenice, Opéra National du Rhin, Teatro Real Madrid, Teatro Sao Carlos Lisbon, Grand Theatre de Genève, De Vlaamse Opera, Graz Opera, Stadttheater Klagenfurt, RIAS Kammerchor Berlin, Bielefeld, Australia, Canada and Mexico and the Vienna, Dresden, Bregenz, Batignano and Montepulciano Festivals. His repertoire includes Gluck’s ORPHÉE ET EURYDICE, Arsamenes XERXES, title role ORLANDO, Athamas SEMELE, Andronico TAMERLANO, title role in Leonardo Vinci’s ARTASERSE Sorceress and Second Witch DIDO AND AENEAS, Grace VENUS AND ADONIS, Ottone AGRIPPINA, Nero and Nutrice L’INCORONAZIONE DI POPPEA, Oberon A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, Orlofsky DIE FLEDERMAUS, Adschib in Henze’s L’UPUPA, Omar DEATH OF KLINGHOFFER, Bishop Baldwin GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT, Prince Go-Go LE GRAND MACABRE and Pleasure in Gerald Barry’s TRIUMPH OF BEAUTY. He has taken part in many world premieres including Olga Neuwirth’s BÄHLAMMS FEST and LOST HIGHWAY, James in Birtwistle’s THE LAST SUPPER and Snake Priestess THE MINOTAUR, White Rabbit and March Hare in Unsuk Chin’s ALICE IN WONDERLAND, Nuñez’ MÄRCHEN, Liza Lim’s THE NAVIGATOR, Ian McQueen’s LINE OF TERROR, Guarnieri’s MEDEA, LOST OBJECTS for Bang on a Can, Dimitri Smirnov’s THE LAMENTATIONS OF THEL, Raymond Yiu’s THE ORIGINAL CHINESE CONJUROR, Camille in Michael Finnissey’s THÉRÈSE RAQUIN, Judith Weir’s MISS FORTUNE and Ferdinand in Torsten Rasch’s THE DUCHESS OF MALFI .

Andrew Watts’ concert engagements include appearances with BBC Symphony Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, Los Angeles and Cleveland Philharmonic Orchestras, Niew Ensemble, Klangforum, at the Salzburg, Lucerne, Lausanne, Cernier and Edinburgh Festivals, Vienna, New York, Budapest, Seville, Cologne, Brussels, France, Australia and Italy. Repertoire includes JUDAS MACCABEUS, JEPHTHA, SOLOMON., MESSIAH, ST. JOHN PASSION, Bach MAGNIFICAT, THE INDIAN QUEEN, Charpentier TE DEUM the world premieres of Unsuk Chin’s CANTATRIX SOPRANICA, Birtwistle’s ORPHEUS ELEGIES and THE SHADOW OF NIGHT and works by Guarnieri and Manzoni, Olga Neuwirth’s LA VIE…ULCERANT and FIVE DAILY MINIATURES. He features on recordings for ASV of Boyce’s ODE FOR ST CECILIA’S DAY and DAVID’S LAMENTATION with the Hanover Band and was heard in Sally Potter’s film ORLANDO. He broadcasts regularly and television appearances include a cameo as Kathleen Ferrier in WILLIAM AND MARY.

Engagements in the 2011/12 season include LEAR for the Hamburg Staatsoper, the world premiere of Olga Neuwirth’s THE OUTCAST in Mannheim, Judith Weir’s MISS FORTUNE for the Royal Opera, Covent Garden and concerts throughout the UK and Europe. Subsequent engagements include performances for the Komishe Oper, Berlin, La Scala, Milan and returns to Mannheim and the Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

Justin Way enjoys a reputation as a young director of significant talent and accomplishment. In his short, prolific career, he has staged 35 operas and concerts and has assisted in the direction of 48 productions in Europe, Australia and the US. He has worked with the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the English Touring Opera, Opera Australia, Fundació del Gran Teatre del Liceu, Gran Téâtre de Genève, Covent Garden Festival, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Pinchgut Opera, Festival Les Azuriales, Czech National Opera, Opera Fountainbleau, Rome Opera, Clerkenwell Music Festival, Bregenzer Festspiele, Chicago Opera Theater, Central City Opera, Canadian Opera Company, the Minnesota Opera and Washington National Opera.

Invited to join The Royal Opera House Covent Garden for its re-opening in 1999, Mr. Way has since directed major revivals and assisted in the direction of numerous new productions for the company culminating in his ROH debut directing a new production of The Beggars Opera for the company. Recently appointed Deputy Head of Stage Directors, Mr. Way has revived Madama Butterfly (Leiser & Caurier), Il barbiere di Siviglia (Lowery), and La Cenerentola (Leiser & Caurier), he has directed several casts in La traviata for the company’s Education Department, and has directed scenework for the Royal College of Music. Productions for which he has acted as assistant director for the company include Billy Budd (Zambello), The Tempest (Cairns), Duke Bluebeard’s Castle/Erwartung (Willy Decker), Wozzeck (Warner) and Greek Passion (Poutney) which both won Olivier Awards for Best Opera Production, Don Giovanni (Zambello), Pique Dame (Zambello), Tosca (Cox/Zeffirelli), Falstaff (Vick), Il trovatore (Moshinsky), Otello (Moshinsky), Rigoletto (Metcalfe), Ariadne auf Naxos (Loy), Der Fliegende Holländer (Judge), Die Meistersinger (Vick), and Parsifal (Gruber).

Mr. Way consistently adds new productions to his directorial repertoire. Recent new projects for Mr. Way include The Beggars Opera for the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden at The Linbury Theatre and a return to Chicago Opera Theater where he will stage Cavalli’s Giasone. Company debuts in the season include The Minnesota Opera in a production of La bohème, Canadian Opera Company for Carmen and Seoul Opera for Così fan tutte.

Additional new productions include his highly acclaimed production of Die Entführung aus dem Serail and Orlando for Chicago Opera Theater, his celebrated new production of Alcina for Opera Australia – staged in both Sydney and Melbourne followed by Orlando, also for Opera Australia and his much admired new production of La Traviata created for the 75th anniversary celebration of Central City Opera in the US. Other work in recent seasons includes revivals of Madama Butterfly (Leiser & Caurier) which he directed for Fundació del Gran Teatre del Liceu, Ariadne auf Naxos which he directed for Gran Téâtre de Genève, Le nozze di Figaro (McVicar) and Das Rheingold (Warner) as part of 3 cycles of The Ring directed for the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.

Assignments throughout his career have taken Mr. Way to his native Australia and Pinchgut Opera where he has staged enthusiastically celebrated new productions of Dardanus, Semele and The Fairy Queen. Other projects undertaken for ROH comprise Otello, Il trovatore and Greek Passion, new productions of Il turco in Italia (Leiser & Caurier), Das Rheingold/Die Walküre (Warner) and Faust (McVicar) on which he assisted, and a revival of Madama Butterfly (Leiser & Caurier) which he directed for the company.

Mr. Way’s early career also included new productions of Bizet’s Djamileh, performed in the round for the Festival Les Azuriales at Cap-Ferrat and at the Linbury Theatre at Covent Garden, two productions of Le nozze di Figaro: one for Opera Theatre of Lucca and the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, and the other on tour in France and Switzerland, all in addition to The Impressario and Odalisque which he directed for Opera Fountainbleau. Mr. Way enjoyed the additional privilege of directing the Covent Garden Festival’s Stephen Sondheim’s 70th birthday concert, The Remarkable Life of Mr. Kelly and Les Soirées Italiennes along with scenes for Bernard Haitink’s Farewell Gala for ROH.

Mr. Way has trained in theatre and opera houses throughout the world. He was appointed Affiliate Director of Sydney Theatre Company in 1996 and his early training includes work at the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg and the Kirov, as well as, The Australian Opera. He has acted for Vortex, Australian Theatre for Young People and Sydney University Drama Society. He holds degrees in dramatic arts from the National Institute of Dramatic Art and the University of Sydney. Mr. Way is fluent in Italian, French, and German, in addition to his native English.

Dominic Cooke has been Artistic Director of the Royal Court since 2007. He was Associate Director of the Royal Court 1999–2002, Associate Director of the RSC 2002–2006 and Assistant Director of the RSC 1992–1993.

FOR THE ROYAL COURT Aunt Dan and Lemon and The Fever by Wallace Shawn; Seven Jewish Children by Caryl Churchill; Wig Out! by Tarell Alvin McCraney; Now or Later by Christopher Shinn; War and Peace and Fear and Misery by Mark Ravenhill; Rhinoceros by Eugene Ionesco; The Pain and The Itch by Bruce Norris; Other People by Christopher Shinn; Fireface by Marius von Mayenburg; Spinning into Butter by Rebecca Gilman; Redundant by Leo Butler; F***ing Games by Grae Cleugh; Plasticine by Vassily Sigarev; The People are Friendly by Michael Wynne; This is a Chairand Identical Twins by Caryl Churchill.

OTHER THEATRE INCLUDES For the RSC: Arabian Nights (also Young Vic / UK and world tours / New Victory Theatre, New York); Pericles, The Winter’s Tale, As You Like It, Macbeth and Cymbeline by William Shakespeare; The Crucible by Arthur Miller; Postcards from America by David Adjmi and Brett Neveu; The Malcontent by John Marston. Also, By the Bog of Cats by Marina Carr (Wyndham’s); The Eccentricities of a Nightingaleby Tennessee Williams (Gate / Dublin); The Weavers by Gerhart Hauptmann; Hunting Scenes From Lower Bavaria by Martin Sperr (both Gate); The Bullet by Joe Penhall (Donmar); Afore Night Come by David Rudkin; Entertaining Mr Sloane by Joe Orton (both Clwyd); The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde (Atlantic Theatre Festival, Canada); My Mother Said I Never Should by Charlotte Keatley (Oxford Stage Co./Young Vic); Kiss of the Spider Woman by Manuel Puig (Bolton Octagon); Of Mice and Men adapted from John Steinbeck’s novel, (Nottingham Playhouse); Autogeddon by Heathcote Williams (Assembly Rooms).

OPERA INCLUDES The Magic Flute by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (WNO); I Capuleti E I Montecchi by Vincenzo Bellini; La Bohème by Giacomo Puccini (both Grange Park Opera).

AWARDS 2007 Laurence Olivier awards for Best Director and Best Revival for The Crucible; 2000 TMA award for Arabian Nights; 1991 Fringe First award for Autogeddon.

Sir Richard Eyre was Associate Director at the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh from 1967 to 1972. He won STV Awards for the Best Production in Scotland in 1969, 1970 and 1971. He was artistic director of Nottingham Playhouse from 1973-78 where he commissioned and directed many new plays, including Trevor Griffith’s Comedians.

Eyre was director of the National Theatre (which became the Royal National Theatre during his time there) between 1987 and 1997, having previously directed a noted revival of Guys and Dolls for the venue in 1982 with Olivier Award-winner Julia McKenzie and Bob Hoskins. He repeated this production in 1996 with Imelda Staunton and Joanna Riding. His diaries during this time have been published as National Service and won the 2003 Theatre Book Prize.

Other than Guys and Dolls, his most noted theatre productions are of Hamlet (twice), with Jonathan Pryce at the Royal Court in 1980 and Daniel Day-Lewis in 1989; Richard III with Ian McKellen; King Lear with Ian Holm; Tennessee Williams’ Night of the Iguana and Sweet Bird of Youth; Eduardo Di Filippo’s Napoli Milionaria and Le Grande Magia; John Gabriel Borkman with Paul Scofield, Vanessa Redgrave and Eileen Atkins; Hedda Gabler with Eve Best, and numerous new plays by David Hare, Tom Stoppard, Trevor Griffiths, Howard Brenton, Alan Bennett, Christopher Hampton and Nicholas Wright.

Sir Richard Eyre has also directed operas. His debut was the 1994 production of La Traviata at the Royal Opera House which starred Angela Gheorghiu and was conducted by Sir Georg Solti. This production was televised and has subsequently been released on video and DVD.

He directed the musical Mary Poppins in London and on Broadway. On 14 February 2007, Eyre’s production of Nicholas Wright’s The Reporter premiered at the Royal National Theatre, London. The play explores the social climate in the years before James Mossman’s death as well as the reasons for the death itself.

Eyre directed a new production of Bizet’s opera Carmen for the Metropolitan Opera’s 2009-2010 season, starring Latvian mezzo soprano Elina Garanca and Roberto Alagna.

Eyre was planning to direct Jon Robin Baitz’s stage adaptation of Hollywood legend Robert Evans’ memoirs The Kid Stays in the Picture and its sequel, The Fat Lady Sang, but the project was cancelled by the producer.[2]

His production of Noël Coward’s Private Lives starring Kim Cattrall and Paul Gross opened on Broadway in November 2011 following a run in Toronto.

Eyre worked as both a director and one of the producers of BBC’s Play for Today between 1978 and 1980. He returned to the BBC in 1988 to direct the Falklands War story Tumbledown (starring Colin Firth), which won him the BAFTA Award for Best Director and the Prix Italia. Eyre served on the board of Governors of the BBC between 1995 and 2003. Eyre will direct Henry IV, Part 1 and Henry IV, Part 2 for BBC2?s Shakespeare Season in 2012.

For film, he directed The Ploughman’s Lunch (written by Ian McEwan) in 1982, which won the Evening Standard Award for Best Film, Iris, a biopic of writer and philosopher Iris Murdoch (starring Judi Dench, Kate Winslet and Jim Broadbent), and Stage Beauty. Most recently, he directed Notes on a Scandal, the film adaptation of the Man Booker Prize-nominated novel by Zoë Heller, and in 2008, The Other Man, an adaptation of a short story by Bernhard Schlink, starring Liam Neeson, Antonio Banderas and Laura Linney.

Eyre has written adaptations of Hedda Gabler and of Sartre’s Les Mains Sales as The Novice for the Almeida Theatre. A friend of Ian Charleson, whom he directed in acclaimed performances of Guys and Dolls and Hamlet, Eyre contributed a chapter to the 1990 book, For Ian Charleson: A Tribute.

He has been the recipient of numerous directing awards including five Olivier Awards. In 1982 he won the Evening Standard Award for Best Director, for Guys and Dolls, and in 1997 for King Lear and Tom Stoppard’s Invention of Love. In 1997 he won an Olivier Lifetime Achievement Award, and awards from The Directors’ Guild of Great Britain, The South Bank Show, The Evening Standard and The Critics’ Circle. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1992 New Year Honours, and knighted in the 1997 New Year Honours, receiving the honour on 4 March 1997. He became a Patron of the Alzheimer’s Research Trust in 2001 He was made an Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1998, and was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Letters (honoris causa) by the University of Nottingham on 10 July 2008.

Natalie Burt

Director | Actor | Writer | Author

Natalie Burt is an actor, author, writer and director. Her most recent acting credit was playing Lily in As Is at Trafalgar Studios. In the ten years since graduating from Guildford School of Acting with a First Class BA Hons, her career has been varied and challenging. Her credits include:

(Television): Cressida in Channel 4’s Scrotal Recall, Pandora in BBC1’s Blandings opposite Jennifer Saunders and Timothy Spall, Marion Bent in the BBC film United directed and written by Broadchurch’s James Strong and Chris Chibnall, Jenny in ITV’s Breathless and numerous guest appearances in shows such as Toby Whithouse’s Being Human as well as Holby, Channel 4’s Coming Up and Doctors.

Since her professional theatrical debut in 2006 in The Deep Blue Sea at Exeter’s Northcott theatre she has enjoyed many theatre projects including: Elspie in The Glass Cage, Jenny in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz – all at Northampton Royal & Derngate, Sasha in Alan Ayckbourn’s Sugar Daddies, Irene in Richard Bean’s Honeymoon Suite, Caroline Bingley in the Theatre Royal Bath’s tour of Pride and Prejudice, Merry in First Light – which played at the Edinburgh Festival and later transferred to the Kings Head in London – and Lady Anne in Richard III at Nottingham Playhouse. She also works in voiceovers and, amongst numerous other projects, has created the role of Dr Sally Armstrong for Big Finish’s audio series Doctor Who: Dark Eyes opposite Paul McGann’s Doctor. As well as being an actor Natalie is also an author – her first book Acting: Cut the Crap, Cue the Truth was published by Oberon Books in 2014 and her second title To Be Or Not To Be An Actor is due for publication in the autumn of 2016. She also writes and makes film and after recently completing a part time course with Met Film School at Ealing Studios, she has now completed her first short, Loose Ends, which is set for the festival circuit.

Cressida Carre

Movement and Dance Coach

Cressida Carre’s choreographic and staging credits include: Marguerite – The Tabard, Cats – Centrepoint Theatre, Dubai, The Thing About Men – Landor Theatre, Our House – BGArts Centre, Songs Of My Life – An Evening With Peter Polycarpou – Garrick Theatre,The Wedding Singer – BGArts Centre, The Lost Christmas – Waterloo East Theatre, Burlesque – Jermyn St Theatre, Britain’s Got Bhangra – Palace Theatre, Watford & UK Tour, FRESHER The Musical – Edinburgh Festival, The Hired Man – Landor Theatre, Merlin And The Woods Of Time & As You Like It – Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre, Spring Awakening – UK Tour, The Great British Musical – Criterion Theatre, Great Expectations – Palace Theatre, Watford & UK tour, Cinderella – Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne, Wind In The Willows – Derby Live, Departure Lounge – Waterloo East Theatre, Elegies For Angels Punks And Raging Queens – The Black Box, Belfast, A My Name Is Alice – Charing Cross Theatre, A Chorus Line – BAC, Steel Pier – Chelsea Theatre, Songs For A New World – Old Finsbury Town Hall, Jack And The Beanstalk – Theatre Royal,Bury St Edmunds, The Fix – Albany Theatre, Into The Woods – Greenwich Theatre, Before The Night Is Through – Millfield Theatre, Departure Lounge – Edinburgh Festival, The Witches Of Eastwick – Albany Theatre, Blues Brothers Unlimited – Centrepoint Theatre, Dubai, Hot Mikado – Chelsea Theatre, Have A Nice Life – Edinburgh Festival, West Side Story – BAC, Lucky Stiff – New Wimbledon Studio Theatre, Peter Pan – Millfield Theatre, The Diary Of Me – Harlow Playhouse, Passage Of Dreams – Bridewell Theatre, Closer Than Ever – Judi Dench Theatre, Godspell – BAC, Kids From Shame – Upstairs At The Gatehouse, Jesus Christ Superstar – Kings Theatre, Portsmouth, Espresso Trasho – Arts Theatre, Dorian – Greenwich Theatre, The Clearing – Tramway Theatre, Glasgow, Still Life – Bridewell Theatre, Dick Whittington – Harlow Playhouse. Cressida’s directing credits include: Spear – Courtyard Theatre, Hereford, The Lost Christmas – Trafalgar Studios, Marry Me A Little – Etcetera Theatre.

Mark Heller began his career as an actor and trained at the prestigious Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, his degree was awarded to him by one of the founders of the university, Sir Paul McCartney.

After several years working both on screen and on stage Mark then started work as a director. Mark directed a number of plays in London’s West End, including the world premiere of The Diary at the Tabbard Theatre and Writers Block at the Players Theatre. Mark also work in the states and directed ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ and ‘Let it snow’ and the Beverly Hills theatre Los Angeles.

Mark Heller made his move from stage to screen as behind the Scenes director on Stephanie Daley with Oscar winners Timothy Hutton, Tilda Swinton and Melissa Leo. In the same year Mark wrote and directed his first short Film Tomorrow which starred Daniel Franzese

Mark directed his first feature film The Passage in 2006 which was produced by Lynette Howell of Silverwood Films (Half Nelson, Blue Valentine ) and Jeremy Kipp walker (Maria Full of Grace) The Passage starred Stephen Dorff and Neil Jackson and was accepted into the official selection of the discovery category at the Toronto film festival 2007. The Passage was also entered into the Durango film festival and won the Jury commendation award for best feature.

After the success of The Passage Mark went straight into directing Star Crossed a modernization of Romeo and Juliet which was filmed in Porto and had its premiere in Portugal summer 2009.

Mark’s third feature film The Mulberry tree, a drama centered on a young man working in a Rhode Island state corrections system and his relationship with a convicted murderer who is dying of AIDS, Staring Joe Morton. The Mulberry tree has won Best Narrative Feature Charlotte Film festival 2012, Best Narrative Feature Irvine International film Festival 2012, Best Director Prescott Film Festival 2011, Best feature Harlem Film Festival 2011, Best Actress Harlem Film Festival 2011, Best Actor Harlem Film Festival 2011, Best feature Jersey Shore Film festival 2011, Nominated Clint Eastwood filmmaking Award 2011.

Official section at Independent Film Festival Boston, Flicker Rhode Island Festival, Salem Film Festival, Woods Hole Film Festival, Garden State Film Festival 2011, Carmel Film festival 2011, Vail film Festival 2012, SOHO International Film Festival NYC 2012, charlotte film festival 2012.

He went on to direct a new drama for the BBC ‘Justice’ staring Robert Pugh ‘Justice’ has been Nominated for a Television Broadcast Award 2012 and a TV Choice Awards 2011.

Mark Heller has recently been teaching Masterclasses at LIPA and Central School of Speech and Drama.

Pete Gallagher

Film and TV credits include Sarah & Duck, Nuzzle & Scratch, Jesus Christ Superstar (x2!), Waking The Dead, Casualty, My Hero, The Two Of Us, Moon and Son, Bergerac and The Mrs Bradley Mysteries. He also had the character T-Bone created for him, one of the ‘rebel chefs’ in JustEat’s TV campaign.

In the theatre he has appeared most notably as Caiaphas in the arena tour of Jesus Christ Superstar (out now on DVD!), King Leontes in Howard Goodall’s A Winter’s Tale, Farley Flavors in Richard O’Brien’s Shock Treatment, as well as The Fix, Oklahoma!, Moonlight & Magnolias, The Pirates Of Penzance, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Dr Dolittle, Jesus Christ Superstar (Lyceum), The Rocky Horror Show, The Mystery Plays, Buddy, Godspell, Fields Of Ambrosia, Frankenstein, Up On The Roof, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, Lautrec, Guys And Dolls, Betrayal, and many others…

He has also directed dozens of disparate productions including Bachelor Girls (twice for different companies), the first UK tour of Spring Awakening (nominated Best Musical, Manchester Theatre Awards 2012), as well as Newley – The Fool Who Dared to Dream at Highgate, Merrily We Roll Along and Private Lives at Arts Ed, Cabaret and Lucky Stiff at GSA, a hedonistic retelling of Godspell, a gothic punk A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Man in the Moon in Chelsea, Missing Mel which transferred from Edinburgh to the Cochrane Theatre in London, and his own adaptation of The Brothers Lionheart which achieved a MUST SEE stamp at Edinburgh and was the No.1 Children’s Theatre Recommendation. He also directed the winning entry at the Kenneth Branagh Windsor New Writing Award for two years running, with The Last Laugh and Fairy Lights.He has also judged the competition twice.

At 25 he became one of the youngest Headmasters ever when he took charge of the Corona Academy of Theatre Arts in London, and since then has been Director of Musical Theatre and Head of Drama at different colleges whilst teaching for many others.

Pete is also a prolific writer, with three of his projects being showcased in 2016 – Fanny Hill, A Teenage opera and 6 Ways. His musical Chasing the Dream was featured on Britain’s Got Talent and reaching the live semi-finals. Other projects include the children’s book Gribblum Tales,musicals The Christmas Shop, Face2face (showcased at the RSAMD and in America) and The Brothers Lionheart, and plays What Goes Around, The Cryptic Lines and Tongues, while his biog of a legend, Feeling Good – The Anthony Newley Story is planning to tour soon. He is currently working on Ginger, his first feature film.

As resident drama coach on Any Dream Will Do, he trained aspiring Josephs in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s TV talent show, and was ‘the miracle worker’ who trained Gethin Jones on Strictly Come Dancing to the highest score ever! He also drama trained Sky TV’s Gladiators in preparation for their second series.

Simon Greiff

Theatre Director

Simon trained as an Actor at the Central School of Speech and Drama graduating in 1997 with a Special Commendation, and, for over 12 years, worked in award winning Theatre, BAFTA winning Television & Film and created leading roles in the West End and across the UK. He also has 10 years experience in Casting (assisting and associating for Pippa Ailion), has worked as a Dramaturg, Acting Coach, and has experience Producing.

Since focussing on his career as a Director, predominantly developing new work, his credits include Premieres of Picture Perfect (St James Studio) which he also conceived; Payback (Riverside Studios), Stand Tall A Rock Musical (45th Street Theatre New York & Landor Theatre London); A Song Cycle For Soho (Soho Theatre) which he also co-created; The Pork Crunch (Pleasance Theatre); the Off-Broadway musical Striking 12 (Waterloo East Theatre); Rumpy Pumpy! (Theatre Royal Windsor); and more recently the showcases of Stiles & Drewe’s Anything Can Happen! which he also conceived, Van Winkle (both St James Theatre), Before After (St James Studio), plus Dancing Shadows and Beowulf In Soho for the From Page To Stageseason (Landor Theatre). Recent drama school directing includes Stiles & Drewe’s Anything Can Happen!(Royal Welsh College), Veolia Songs (Royal Central School), Merrily We Roll Along, A Little Night Music (both London College Of Music), Into The Woods, Godspell (both Trinity Laban), Just The Ticket, Bad Girls(both MTA), Spring Awakening (MasterAct), plus numerous masterclasses & workshops including Royal Central School of Speech & Drama, Royal Conservatiore of Scotland, Arts Educational London, AMTA, Guildford School of Acting, and Beijing University. Development Director on Wildwood (for ATG), The Devil’s Disciple, The Five Labours Of Harvey Fish, Stand Tall, Payback, plus Sex And The Village and Barry The Penguin (for Perfect Pitch Musicals), and Home: The Scott Alan Song Cycle which he conceived. Simon is also an Associate member of Mercury Musical Developments, having directed their star studded 20th Anniversary Gala (Novello Theatre) and produced and directed The S&S Award Gala 2014 and 2015 (St James Theatre).

Simon was the Associate Director of The Rocky Horror Show UK Tour, and had the honour of directing The Rocky Horror Show ‘Live’ (Playhouse Theatre) starring the shows creator Richard O’Brien, which was also screened live in Picturehouse cinemas across Europe. Resident Directing work on Tour includes the award-winning number-one tour of We Will Rock You, the 40th anniversary production of The Rocky Horror Show, Spamalot, Funny Girl starring Sheridan Smith, and the upcoming premiere of Take That’s musical The Band (until July 2018).

Chris Guard

Musical Director | Supervisor

Chris Guard (PGDip RAM, MMath Dunelm): Chris is a young, professional musical director and supervisor currently based in London. Having recently trained at the Royal Academy of Music in Musical Direction and Coaching, he is a seasoned pianist in a variety of styles, as well as an experienced conductor, repertoire coach, and arranger.

MD/AMD credits include:

– The Book of Mormon (West End) : Sonia Friedman Productions

– Jersey Boys (UK Tour) : David Ian Productions

– Guy Fawkes (Industry Workshop) : Alan Boulter Productions

– Pure Imagination (World Premiere) : Tarento Productions

– Thoroughly Modern Millie (London Revival) : SDWC Productions

– Vote For Me: A Musical Debate (UK Premiere) : London Theatre Workshop

– The Grand Tour (European Premiere) : Tarento Productions

– The Stationmaster (Industry Workshop) : Arts Council England

– The Boy Who Fell Into A Book (World Premiere) : Stephen Joseph Theatre

Theatre orchestra credits include:

– Only The Brave (World Premiere) : Wales Millennium Centre

– Jersey Boys (West End) : Dodger Theatricals

– Sister Act (Regional) : York Stage Musicals

Cast recording credits include:

– Gypsy (2015 London Cast Recording) : Chichester Festival Theatre

– Guy Fawkes (Studio Demo Recording) : Arts Council England

Arranger credits include:

– Make Believe on Broadway 2016 (Broadway) : Only Make Believe

– Only The Brave (World Premiere) : Wales Millennium Centre

– The Last 5 Years (Regional) : New Wolsey Theatre

– Ultimate Broadway (2015 Shanghai Production) : GWB Entertainment

– Friday Night Is Music Night (Christmas Spectacular 2014) : BBC Productions

Music preparation credits include:

– Groundhog Day (World Premiere) : The Old Vic Theatre

– Travels With My Aunt (World Premiere) : Chichester Festival Theatre

– Only The Brave (World Premiere) : Wales Millennium Centre

– Miss Atomic Bomb (World Premiere) : Tanya Link Productions

– Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown (West End) : ATG Productions

– White Christmas (Regional) : West Yorkshire Playhouse

Chris is the MD is the arranger for ‘The Barricade Boys’, an international vocal group featuring a variety West End stars, as well as the musical supervisor for Sisco Entertainment.

He also regularly plays for and covers classes and repertoire coaching at ArtsEd, The Growing Studio, and The Associated Studios.

www.chrisguardmusic.co.uk

Rosiland Plowright Headshot

Rosalind Plowright is one of the most celebrated artists of our time. Her career spans more than 35 years. She was acclaimed as one of the world’s great spinto sopranos

Rosalind Plowright was awarded the OBE in 2007 for her services to music.

Leontine Hass – CEO

Founding Principal | Vocal Coach

Leontine Hass is an internationally renowned Vocal Coach and Principal of the Associated Studios London Performing Arts Academy.

Leontine Hass is currently vocal coach for Motown at The Shaftesbury Theatre London. She has served as vocal coach to Matt Henry (Lola in Kinky Boots West End), Alice Stokoe (Sophie in Mamma Mia, West End), Gloria Onitiri (Lead in The Bodyguard & Hair, West End), Claire Sweeney (Tell Me on a Sunday) and many other leads and swings in the West End, national and international tours of productions such as Thriller-Live, Oliver!, Carousel, Parade, Tell Me on a Sunday, The Lion King, The Phantom of the Opera, Witches of Eastwick, Nine, The Wizard of Oz, Ragtime, Sweeney Todd, Cats, Sister Act, We Will Rock You, Footloose, Wicked, The Sound of Music, Ghost, Hairspray, Porgy and Bess, The Bodyguard, Jesus Christ Superstar, Jersey Boys, Barnum, Miss Saigon, Book of Mormon, Mamma Mia, In the Heights, The Color Purple, Memphis, Spamalot, Les Miserables, Miss Saigon, Aladdin, Chicago, The Pyjama Game, Kinky Boots and the upcoming production of Dreamgirls.

Leontine coaches members of The Swingle Singers, Collabro, The Magnets, The Sons of Pitches and classical singers with ENO, Welsh National Opera and ROH, as well as Pop/Rock/Jazz singers. Leontine was the Vocal Coach for shows including the London premiere of Bernarda Alba the Musical, and currently the a cappella hit, ‘Gobsmacked’.

Leontine teaches workshops and lectures internationally on singing, voice and performance. She rehabilitates voices after surgery, or as surgery prevention. She has taught at leading Music & Drama Schools including GSA Conservatoire, the Oxford School of Drama, Mountview, LSMT, YMT, The Brit School, La Salle (Singapore), the Queensland Conservatorium, Centre Stage and The VCA (Melbourne).

Leontine has acted as vocal consultant to various music management/production companies, including ITV and the BBC. Leontine is vocal coach for ‘The Voice’ for BBC TV. She was featured as a mentor/vocal coach on the Gareth Malone show, ‘The Naked Choir’, for BBC2 and will also be involved with Series 2. She is a regular columnist at voicecouncil.com and for The Stage newspaper. She is a contributor to ‘The Singer’s Complete Guide to Vocal Health’ (Oxford Uni. Press), and advisor/contributor to ‘The Ultimate Guide to Singing’ published by TC Helicon in 2014.

Having originally trained as a classical singer (BA, Melb. Uni, BMus. Kings College London, Dip. RAM), Leontine has performed as a singer and actress in concert, theatre and TV.

Leontine is the CEO/Founding Principal of the Associated Studios Performing Arts Academy London, which she founded in 2007, then based at The Royal Academy of Music. Associated Studios provides full-time and part-time training and professional development in Musical Theatre and Opera (www.associatedstudios.co.uk). The Board of Directors includes Rory Bremner (Chair), Patrick Lawrence QC and Dr Christopher Stewardson. Patrons include Sir Tim Rice, Jeremy Irons, Jeremy Herrin, Timothy West and Scott Alan.

Leontine is represented by Lesley Duff at Diamond Management.

Leontine Hass – CEO

Founding Principal | Vocal Coach

Leontine Hass is an internationally renowned Vocal Coach and Principal of the Associated Studios London Performing Arts Academy.

Having originally trained as a classical singer (BA, Melb. Uni, BMus. Kings College London, Dip. RAM), Leontine has performed as a singer and actress in concert, theatre and TV.

Leontine is represented by Lesley Duff at Diamond Management.

Stuart Pedlar

Stuart Pedlar studied Organ, Composition, and Percussion at the Royal Manchester College of Music, where he was awarded the Edward Hecht Prize for composition. He was Organist and Master of the Choristers at St Mary’s Bowdon and Music Critic on the Manchester Guardian until 1972. He was Musical Director and founder member of Nucleus Opera, and joined the staff of the Royal College of Music in 1980.

Stuart was the assistant Musical Director on the original London production of A Little Night Music (1975) and the M.D. for Side by Side by Sondheim from its conception to productions in the West End, New York, Canada, Middle East, Far East, Denmark and Sweden. He has since been the M.D. for the tenth and twentieth anniversary productions (at the Donmar and Jermyn Street Theatre respectively).

Further M.D. credits include the original production of Sweeney Todd (1980, Drury Lane), the European premiere of Into the Woods (Denmark, 1989 and Sweden 1991), Scrooge (for which he also co-wrote the orchestrations and made the vocal arrangements at various theatres including the Dominion Theatre, 1996-1997, the London Palladium 2005-2006 and 2012-2013, as well as supervising other productions worldwide) and Dr. Dolittle (UK tour, 2007-2008).

He was M.D. for Cole (Hong Kong), Chicago (Edinburgh), Once Upon a Mattress (Belfast and the Watermill), Private Lives, Time and the Conways (Greenwich), A Tale of Two Cities (Windsor and Birmingham), Lend me a Tenor, Happy as a Sandbag (The Mill at Sonning), A Winter’s Tale (Watermill), and Annie (Lincoln).

Stuart was the M.D. for the National Tours of Oklahoma!, South Pacific, Ken Hill’s Phantom of the Opera, Snoopy, Happy as a Sandbag, Sherlock Holmes and of course Scrooge. He arranged and orchestrated Singin’ in the Rain for the West Yorkshire Playhouse, which transferred to the National Theatre and then toured the UK.

Stuart has also been an M.D. for various productions at RADA, The Mountview Academy of Performing Arts and The Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He was a reader for the Vivien Ellis Awards and lectured for them at London University and has also worked as M.D. for two Summer Courses at the Royal Academy of Music – as well as being Patron and honorary member of the Stephen Sondheim Society.

In the West End, Stuart has been M.D. for I’m Getting My Act Together and Taking it on the Road, Snoopy, Private Lives, Better with a Band, This Thing Called Love, Agent Provocateur, Promises Promises, Every Good Boy Deserves Favours, Dragon Variation, Same Time Next Year, The Orchestra, Blockheads, H.R.H., Jacques Brel (both National Theatre Productions), Dearly Beloved, The Gingerbread Man, Once Upon a Song, Next (a 70th birthday tribute to Sondheim), Dark Lady of the Sonnets, Playthings, and Noel and Girtie, which also went to Antibes.

Alkis Kritikos worked as an Actor at The Connaught Theatre Worthing, The Royal Court Theatre, The Half Moon Theatre, Theatro Technis, The Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, The Thorndike Theatre, The Oxford Playhouse, The Belgrade Theatre, The Library Theatre Manchester, The Sheffield Crucible, The Place Theatre, and The Shaw Theatre (West End) – where he played the lead part of Esteban Trueba in Isabelle Allende’s The House Of The Spirits.

Films include: For Your Eyes Only, A Woman for All Time, Black Sheep, Romeo of the Spirits, Red Thursday nominated as Best Supporting Actor at the Thessaloniki Film Festival), Akamas (Shown at the Venice Film Festival, and won The Best Narrative Feature award at the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival in 2007), Legend of the Golden Fish Cake, Dogs, Cats And Rats (2010-2011), and most recently Father Cyclop in Wrath Of The Titans in 3D (2012), directed by Jonathan Liebesman for Warner Bros pictures.

Alkis Kritikos has also worked extensively on Television, including: The Cuckoo Waltz, One Chance in Four, Sexton Blake, Connie, Watch All Night, The Dark Side of the Sun, Rockliffe’s Babies, Thin Air, Vote for Them, Rumpole of the Bailey, the Gingerbread Girl, and the title role in The Greek Interpreter in the series The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Most recently he played Nikitas a lead role in LIMNI (The Lake), a 45 part TV series for RIK The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (2010-2011).

He made his directing debut with Tennessee William’s in In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel at The New End Theatre, followed by Miss Julie (Sir Richard Steele), The Collector (Argonaut Theatre Company), Beckett’s Theatre I and II (British Premier and National Tour), In Other Beasts The Best (devised piece on Greek Myths, Theatro Technis), Debbie Issit’s The Woman Who Cooked Her Husband and Lee Blessing’s Two Rooms (London Repertory Company), the Musicals An Evening with Carmen Miranda by Carmen Gomez (Jermyn Street Theatre), and Sharp Practice at the Wimbledon Studio Theatre. Alkis has also directed for The National Theatre of Cyprus (THOK), Moliere’s Tartuffe in Cyprus and The Frog and The Lionfairy in the UK, and The Dinner (To Gevma) at the Skala Theatre, Cyprus. Alkis Kritikos spent a year at the Royal Court where he assisted on productions by David Hare, Stephen Frears, Athol Fugard and with Jim Sharman on the original production of The Rocky Horror Show. He has also taught at a number of Drama Schools, and has been a Tudor/Director for theatre design students at The University of the Arts, Wimbledon.

Other Directing work includes the critically acclaimed cult hit musical All Cloned Up by Mike Bennett, which enjoyed runs at the Bloomsbury and Westminster Theatres (London West End), Wimbledon Studio Theatre, The Latchmere, a 4 week season at the Edinburgh Festival, and off West End at the Kings Head Theatre. All Cloned Up was also the chosen gala performance for the Athinorama Greek Theatre Awards in Athens, also Roast Beef at the Riverside Studios in London, as part of The Greek Cultural Olympiad. He recently directed the World Premiere of the Glam Rock Musical Blok Busta (GlamBusta), at the New Players Theatre in London’s West End.

Adam Meggido founded The Sticking Place with Paul Cronin in 2001. He created Britain’s Only Festival of Horror Theatre and Grand Guignol, playing annually since 2004 (nominated Peter Brook Award 2007); co-created Showstopper! The Improvised Musical with Dylan Emery (Winner Spirit Of The Fringe Award 2009, nominated for 2 MTM Awards); created the London 50-Hour Improvathon (the only event of its kind in Europe); he also enjoyed a five-year collaboration with Ken Campbell, creating The School Of Night and In Pursuit Of Cardenio.

Adam studied drama at Birmingham University and trained as an actor at Webber Douglas – although he cites his years with Claude Chagrin (formerly of LeCoq) at the French Institute as the most important part of his training.

From 1995-1999 he was a director of Counterpoint Theatre, an innovative company which merged business with the arts. (‘Admirable verve and commitment.’ – The Observer. ‘A sound piece of enterprise.’ – The Sunday Telegraph.) With Counterpoint he performed in, directed, developed and produced a number of plays and musicals including the first uncensored revival of Willis Hall’s classic – The Long And The Short And The Tall (at the Albery, West End); Punch Junkies by Greg Hobbs (Critics’ Choice – The Scotsman); Stand-Up by Roy Smiles (Critics’ Choice – Time Out); The Streets of Dublin (Brixton Shaw); The Greenhouse Effect (Riverside Studios) and the glam-rock award-winning musical extravaganza – Saucy Jack And The Space Vixens (Queen’s Theatre, West End and UK tour.)

Directing credits include As You Like It and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Natural Perspectives, One Small Thing, Robin Hood (Creation Theatre); and as Sticking Place director – Psychogeography, The Better Half, The Lie, Dark Meaning Mouse, The End of The Sentence, Reanimator, The Premature Burial, My Favourite Murder, The Disappearance and two of his own plays – Stress and Best Men – for the Guerrilla Theatre Experiment.

He also wrote and directed of Chaos of Delight (Soho Theatre) and Teenager In Love for the National Youth Theatre’s 50th anniversary celebrations. His other plays include – Nina, Resurrection, Mr Israel, Burlesque, Misdirection and The Christening.
Adam is Head Of Foundation at The London Academy of Music And Dramatic Art and an Associate Director of The National Youth Theatre of Great Britain.

Nigel Planer

Nigel regularly teaches and runs workshops for actors, singers and writers at places as diverse as the Arvon Foundation, the Actor’s centre, the National Opera Studio, Lamda, Associated Studios and the Institute of Group Analysis. He is also an accredited Coach (NAWE). In 2011 he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Arts from Edinburgh Napier University.

As Performer;

After training at Lamda, Nigel Planer was a founding member of the Comedy Store and the Comic Strip group, and went on to star in the seminal TV series “The Young Ones” and “The Comic Strip Presents”. In the eighties, he had an international top-ten chart hit with ‘Hole in My Shoe’. Since then he has established himself as a successful actor in TV, theatre, film, and radio, most recently appearing as Matt Le Blanc’s lawyer in the hit series ‘Episodes’. He has appeared in the original West End casts of ‘Evita’, ‘Chicago’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘Wicked’, ‘Hairspray’ and in 2013 he was nominated for an Olivier award for his performance in Sam Mendes’ “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” at the theatre Royal, Drury Lane.

As a Writer;

Nigel has published novels, short stories, poetry and articles as well as the best-selling ‘A Good Enough Dad’, and (with Christopher Douglas) the spoof theatrical biography, ‘I an Actor’.

He has had two stage plays produced; the first, ‘On the Ceiling’ transferred from Birmingham Rep to the West End. And the second; ‘Death of Long Pig’ was premiered at the Finborough Theatre in London.

His TV and radio writing includes a hundred episodes of “The Magic Roundabout” for Channel 4, plus a draft of the movie of the same name for Pathe.

Currently;

N.O.W. Films hold an option on his latest screenplay “River Man”, and he is developing a musical version of Fay Weldon’s “Life and Loves of a She Devil” with Hannah Jane Fox and Andrew Holdsworth.

A special thanks to all of the wonderful singers from Associated who have helped to workshop this last project.

Sir Tim Rice

Lyricist

www.timrice.co.uk

Danielle Tarento

Producer | Casting Director

Danielle is a freelance producer and casting director. She won Best Producer at the 2012 Off West End Awards and was nominated for Producer of the Year at the Stage Awards 2015.

She is currently co-producing the 2016 season at Charing Cross Theatre which includes the hotly anticipated revival of Titanic, Radio Times, Ragtime and Death Takes A Holiday.

Theatre at Southwark Playhouse: Grey Gardens; Grand Hotel (winner: Off West End Award for Best Musical Production, nominated: WhatsOnStage Award for Best Off West End Production and 17 Broadway World UK Awards); Gods And Monsters; Dogfight (shortlisted: Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical 2014, nominated: WhatsOnStage Award for Best Off West End Production, 9 Broadway World UK Awards and 3 Off West End Awards); Three Sisters; Titanic (longlisted: Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical 2013, winner: WhatsOnStage Award for Best Off West End Production, Broadway World UK Award for Best Fringe/Regional Musical 2013 and 4 Off West End Awards including Best Musical Production); Victor/Victoria; Mack & Mabel (longlisted: Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical 2012, nominated: 13 Broadway World UK Awards and 6 Off West End Awards); Parade (longlisted: Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical 2011, nominated: WhatsOnStage Award for Best Musical Revival 2012, Off West End Award for Best Musical Production 2012); Company.

Other theatre includes: Pure Imagination (St James); Man To Man (Park); My Lifelong Love – An Evening With Georgia Stitt And Friends (Garrick); Frances Ruffelle – Paris Original (St James Studio); Evita, Grease (Ljubljana Festival, Slovenia); Taboo (Brixton Club House – winner, WhatsOnStage Award for Best Off West End Production 2013); The Pitchfork Disney (Arcola); Burlesque (Jermyn Street – winner, Off West End Award for Best New Musical 2012); Noël And Gertie (Cockpit); Spring Awakening (Rose, Kingston); Drowning On Dry Land (Jermyn Street); Legacy Falls (New Players Theatre); Grateful (Cadogan Hall); Frances Ruffelle: Beneath The Dress (Madame JoJo’s, Edinburgh Festival, Wroclaw Stage Song Review, Poland, Menier Chocolate Factory & 54 Below, NYC); Happy Savages (Edinburgh Festival).

David Allwood

Choreographer

David trained at Bird College, London and graduated with a First Class BA (Hons) degree in Dance and Theatre Performance. Prior to attending Bird College, he was a Senior Conservatoire student at the Arts Educational School in Tring.

Theatre Credits Include: Dancer in Sensual Dreams at the London Hippodrome (2015). Ensemble and resident Choreographer in Ghost the Musical, English Theatre Frankfurt (2014-2015). Prince of Wales in Starlight Express Asia Tour (2013). Swing and Turnov in Starlight Express; Bochum, Germany (2011-2013). Ensemble, cover Prince Charming and Dance Captain in Cinderella with Cilla Black at the Aylesbury Waterside Theatre (2010-2011). Dancer and Stage Fighter in Die Walkure (2010); National Reisopera, Netherlands. Dance Artist in 2Faced Dance Company’s National UK Tour of ‘Still Breathing’ (2010). Ensemble in the National UK Tour of Beauty and the Beast (2009-2010). Lucky in the UK Tour of 101 Dalmatians (1998).

TV Credits Include: Dancer in the TJ Hughes Advert 2015. Dancer on the Late Late Show ‘A Song for Eurovision’ (RTE1 2011). Dance Double for Gary Lineker in the Walkers Crisps ‘It’s Raining Ten’ advert (2010). The X Factor for Rhydian (ITV 2009)

Choreography: David has worked with choreographers such as Arlene Phillips, Bruno Tonioli, Lee Proud and Michelle Thorne. Most recently he collaborated with Joshua Pilmore and Caroline Bridges to create a piece for Move It, International Dance Exhibition at ExCel London. He directed and co-choreographed Moulin Rouge for Creative Academy at the Watermans Theatre, London (2016). He also choreographed for West End Bares in aid of Theatre MAD Trust (2015). He choreographed and directed Panem, performed at West Wing Arts Centre, Slough (2015). He has also choreographed numbers for the 25th Anniversary of the English Theatre in Frankfurt (2015) and for the Zeitlos Charity Gala for S.O.S Kinderdorf with the cast of Starlight Express in Bochum (2013). He choreographed the alternate opening number for Cinderella at Aylesbury Waterside Theatre with Cilla Black (2010).

Michael Webborn

Musical Director

Michael has worked around the UK as a Musical Director, Accompanist, Arranger and Composer.As Musical Director: For the MTA: Animus (World Premiere, Bridewell Theatre, London). For the Landor Theatre, London: The Clockmaker’s Daughter (World Premiere), Meet Me in St. Louis (UKPremiere), [title of show] (London Premiere), Next Thing You Know, Hot Mikado, Curtains (European Premiere). For Shakespeare 4 Kidz: Beauty and the Beast (International Tour), Pinocchio (International Tour), The Jungle Book (International Tour), The Snow Queen (International Tour), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (UK and International Tour), Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (DUCTAC Theatre, Dubai), Aladdin (International Tour), Macbeth (UK and International Tour), The Tempest (UK and International Tour), The Little Mermaid (International Tour).

Other production include: Aladdin (Harlequin Theatre, Redhill), Spring Awakening (Catford Broadway, London), Jack and the Beanstalk (Perth Theatre), Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens (Tron Theatre, Glasgow). He is also Musical Director for Gotta Sing! at the Phoenix Artist Club, coaching new singers on their regular courses, playing for Open Mic Nights and their West End Talent Competitions. As Musical Supervisor: Peter Pan (International Tour), Cinderella (Harlequin Theatre, Fleet), riZen (Original Concept Album and Workshops).As Assistant Musical Director: Blood Brothers (UK, No. 1 Tour). Michael returned to London after completing his MA in Musical Direction from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and holds a BMus (Hons) in Vocal Studies from Trinity College of Music, having also been awarded the Alan J Kirby Prize for Conducting and Charles Proctor Prize for Choral Conducting. In 2013 and 2015, he was nominated for Best Musical Direction in Fringe or Regional Theatre for [title of show] and The Clockmaker’s Daughter at the Landor Theatre by BroadwayWorld.com. He is the co-writer of the new musicals Animus and The Clockmaker’s Daughter, which was nominated for 3 Off West End Awards including Best Musical Production, Best Off West End Production in the West End Wilma Awards 2015, Best New Musical; and 6 BroadwayWorld.com Awards including Best New Production of a Musical (Fringe or Regions).

Jeremy Sams is a British director, writer, translator, orchestrator, musical director, film composer,and lyricist. Sams studied Music, French, and German at Magdalene College, Cambridge and piano at Guildhall School of Music. Early on he worked as a freelance pianist and coach, giving frequent recitals and tours and doing stints as a repetiteur at opera houses in Brussels and Ankara.

Sams came to prominence as a director with a revival of Michael Frayn’s farce Noises Off, which he mounted in London’s Royal National Theatre in 2000. This production then transferred to the West End, and then to Brooks Atkinson Theatre on Broadway in 2001. Among his other directing credits are the West End musicals Spend Spend Spend (1999), the story of Viv Nicholson, who squandered a fortune won in the British lottery, and a stage adaptation of the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, called simply Chitty the Musical (2002), starring Michael Ball, for both of which he received Laurence Olivier Award nominations; the 2002 Broadway production Amour, which he translated from the original French libretto by Didier Van Cauwelaert. His efforts earned him two Tony Award and two Drama Desk Award nominations. His directing credits also include Jason Carr and Gary Yershon’s musical of The Water Babies at the Chichester Festival Theatre in 2003.

He directed the Jason Robert Brown Broadway musical 13 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, on Broadway.

Sams’ many translations include plays by Botho Strauß; Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, La Boheme, The Magic Flute and Wagner’s The Ring Cycle for ENO; The Merry Widow for Covent Garden; Les Parents Terribles, The Miser and Mary Stuart for the Royal National Theatre; and The Threepenny Opera for the Donmar Warehouse. Sams’ composing credits include the BBC film of Jane Austen’s Persuasion, for which he won a BAFTA award for Best Music. Other scores include The Mother (2003) and Enduring Love (2004). Sams has written, arranged, and directed music for some 50 theatre productions, including The Wind in the Willows and Arcadia (RNT) and The Merry Wives of Windsor.

Recent films: Ever After, Joan of Arc, Villa des Roses, Iris, The Fourth Angel, Beyond Borders andEndgame.

Work as Director has included, recently, HMS Pinafore for Carl Rosa Opera.

He was made CBE in 1984, and is currently President of the London Academy of Dramatic Art, and of the Society for Theatre Research

Born in Leeds, Jason Carr attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London’s Barbican Centre, where he studied composition with Francis Shaw. After winning the 1988 Vivian Ellis Prize for young writers of musicals, Jason was invited by director Peter Hall to compose the musical Born Again (from Ionesco’s absurdist play Rhinoceros), which was produced at Chichester Festival Theatre in 1990 with Broadway and Hollywood stars Mandy Patinkin and Jose Ferrer.

From 2003-5 he was Associate Compser at the Chichester Festival Theatre where, as well as composing incidental music for six plays and hosting a sell-out series of late-night cabarets, his music and lyrics were heard in two new musicals: a main-stage adaptation of Charles Kingsley’s The Water Babies (book by Gary Yershon) directed by Jeremy Sams, starring Louise Gold and Joe McGann in 2003; and a specially-commissioned chamber musical for the Minerva: Six Pictures of Lee Miller (book by Edward Kemp) directed by Anthony van Laast, starring Anna Francolini in 2005.

Jason has composed incidental music for over 40 plays at the RNT, RSC, in the West End and on Broadway. Favourites include four by Tennessee Williams – The Glass Menagerie (directed by Sam Mendes at the Donmar), Suddenly, Last Summer (directed by Sean Mathias at the Comedy), Camino Real (RSC Swan) and Vieux Carre (both directed by Steven Pimlott). And many people seem to have fond memories of Bim! Bam! Bom! – the ‘winning’ entry in Tim Luscombe’s EuroVision (Vaudeville)!

Work as an orchestrator includes the 5 Olivier Award-winning London revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George which transferred to Broadway, winning Jason the Drama Desk Award and a Tony Award nomination for Best Orchestrations in 2008. He has also orchestrated the recent London productions of Annie Get Your Gun, La Cage Aux Folles andA Little Night Music (currently playing on Broadway with Angela Lansbury and Catherine Zeta-Jones).

Also in demand as a pianist and musical director, Jason has appeared with Elisabeth Welch, Betty Garrett, Kitty Carlisle Hart, Lorna Dallas, Maria Friedman By Special Arrangement (Donmar, Whitehall, Ambassador’s), with Michael Ball in Alone Together(Donmar), Louise Gold By Appointment (Jermyn Street), in Noel and Gertie (Duke of York’s). He is also a musical director for the Lost Musicals seasons.

The English bass, Graeme Danby, was educated at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

Graeme Danby has performed at several of the world’s leading opera houses, notably the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and the English National Opera. He is known for his strong, dramatic portrayals of characters in the basso profondo repertoire.

In 2003, his rich and resonant bass was heard to advantage in the role of Lorenzo in I Capuletti ed I Montecchi conducted by Sir Richard Bonynge. This appearance was one amongst many in major roles for English National Opera, which include Don Basilio in Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia; Dulcamara in Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore; Somnus in George Frideric Handel’s Semele; Quince in Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Collatinus in B. Britten’s Rape of Lucretia, Poo-Bah in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado; Sarastro in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte; Bartolo (Le nozze di Figaro); Sacristan in Puccini’s Tosca; Pistol in Verdi’s Falstaff and Ribbing in Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera.

Graeme Danby performs regularly at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. In Spring 2005, he sang the major role of Charrington in Lorin Maazel’s Covent Garden commission of 1984, a part written especially for him. In 2006, he sang the role of Sacristano in Covent Garden’s production of Tosca, alongside Angela Gheorghiu, Marcello Alvarez and Bryn Terfel. In 2007, he took the role of Gonzalo in Thomas Adès’ The Tempest. Further roles include the Marquis d’Obigny in La traviata, Billy Jackrabbit in La fanciulla del West and Second Armed Man in Die Zauberflöte.

Further British engagements also include Bartolo in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro for Opera North and Garsington Opera; Collatinus in B. Britten’s Rape of Lucretia at Buxton Festival; and Sacristan in Tosca, Bosun in Billy Budd, Benedict in La Vie Parisienne and Masetto in Don Giovanni for Scottish Opera. In the 2002-2003 season, Graeme Danby made his Glyndebourne debut as Antonio in Le nozze di Figaro, subsequently recording the role for Chandos Records. He also made his debut at the Gran Teatro del Liceu, Barcelona in the role of Brag in Purcell’s Fairy Queen.

European engagements have included Brag in Purcell’s The Fairy-Queen at the Gran Teatro del Liceu, Barcelona; Somnos in Semele. In 2003-2004 season, Graeme Danby made his debut at the Opera National du Rhin, Strasbourg in the role of Xuthus in Param Vir’s Ion. In 2006, he made his debut with De Vlaamse Opera in the role of Somnus. He returned to the company for their 2007-2008 season in the role of Bartolo in Le Nozze di Figaro. He sang at La Scala, Milan as Snug in B. Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Further roles in 2007 and 2008 included Sarastro, Poo-Bah, Zuniga, the Doctor in Punch and Judy and Czar Ivan in Candide with English National Opera and Billy Jackrabbit in La Fanciulla del West with the Royal Opera Covent Garden. In 2009, Graeme Danby made his debut at La Scala in the role of Snug. Further recent engagements have included Theatre Manager in The Gambler at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and Swallow in Peter Grimes with De Vlaamse Opera.

Graeme Danby appears regularly on the concert platform throughout the UK at prestigious venues, including: the Royal Albert Hall (L.v. Beethoven Sympony No. 9; Verdi Requiem), the Royal Festival Hall (Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 8) and the Bridgewater Hall Manchester (Iolanthe), and with leading orchestras including: The London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra and the Royal National Scottish Orchestra. He broadcasts regularly for the British Broadcasting Corporation.

Mike Dixon graduated from Trinity College of Music in 1979 and since then has become one of the most experienced and respected musical forces in London’s West End and on British television. His work spans all genres of music as Musical Supervisor, Musical Director, Arranger and Composer. Theatre: Hair, Zorro, Never Forget, We Will Rock You, Daddy Cool, Footloose, Grease, Jesus Christ Superstar, Aspects Of Love, Doctor Dolittle, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, La Cage Aux Folles, Bernstein’s Peter Pan, Bless The Bride, Mr Cinders, Andy Capp, Godspell, Look To The Rainbow, Dame Shirley Bassey’s The Dame is Back! (Arena Tour)

Television: Over The Rainbow, Children In Need Rocks the Albert Hall, The Electric Proms, Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, We Are Most Amused, For One Night Only, Concert for Diana, Glastonbury 2007, MusiCool, Pop Idol, The Royal Variety Show, Miss World, The British Comedy Awards, Star For a Night, Call Up The Stars, Night of a Thousand Stars, The Brian Conley Show, The Shane Ritchie Experience, Whatever You Want, Late Night with Jerry Springer, We Are The Champions; A Nation Celebrates, The Queen’s Jubilee Rock Concert, The Prince’s Trust 30th Anniversary Concert at the Tower of London, BBC Proms in the Park, Saturday Night Divas, Guilty Pleasures, An Audience with… Jimmy Tarbuck, Joan Rivers, Another Audience With… Shirley Bassey and An Audience with Lionel Richie… Live! Radio: ‘Elvis Forever’ Radio 2 Hyde Park 2010, Elbow at Abbey Road, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Birthday in the Park, Friday Night Is BOND Night, Cheltenham Jazz Festival’s The Billie Holiday Story, The Billy Strayhorn Story, Friday Night Is Music Night, BBC Radio 2 Voice of Musical Theatre Competition.

Recordings: The Performance with Dame Shirley Bassey, Zorro, Seven by Tony Banks with The London Philharmonic Orchestra, We Will Rock You, Grease, Doctor Dolittle, Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Aspects of Love, Evita (The Movie). Special Events: Welcoming The World (Project for London 2012), St Pancras International Royal Opening, Launch of Ventura, Launch of Arcadia, Wimbledon Theatre Centenary Gala

Awards: Australian Entertainment Industry Helpmann Award 2004 for Best Musical Direction.

Chorus master of Glyndebourne from 2006 to 2009, British conductor Thomas Blunt recently took up the position of Assistant Conductor to Vladimir Jurowski and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

He was born in 1977, and studied ‘cello and conducting at the Junior Royal Academy of Music before taking up an organ scholarship at Trinity College, Cambridge. After graduation he furthered his studies in orchestral conducting under Neil Thomson at the Royal College of Music in London where he prepared orchestras for visiting conductors including Bernard Haitink, Andrew Litton, Gianandrea Noseda, Roger Norrington and Vasily Petrenko.

In 2007 Thomas Blunt made his conducting debut with Glyndebourne in L’elisir d’amore for Glyndebourne on Tour, and has since conducted Falstaff and La Cenerentola for GOT. Throughout his tenure as Glyndebourne chorus master he conducted (as part of the Jerwood Chorus Development Scheme) members of the Glyndebourne Chorus in opera scenes with a chamber orchestra formed from musicians of the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

During this same period Blunt assisted conductors including Music Director Vladimir Jurowski, Maurizio Benini, Douglas Boyd, Richard Egarr, and Edward Gardner. He also collaborated with Ji?í B?lohlávek, Mark Elder, Ivàn Fischer, and Kazushi Ono.

Highlights of activities away from Glyndebourne have included the World Première of Ghosts – a Royal Opera House commissioned ballet by Dave Maric at the Linbury Studio Theatre and an invitation from Vladimir Jurowski to conduct the banda in Das klagende Lied for the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s first public performance to open their first concert season at the newly refurbished Royal Festival Hall.

Other past engagements include performances of The Rape of Lucretia and Così fan tutte at the Benjamin Britten International Opera School, having also assisted Michael Rosewell; work on The Knot Garden at the Cantiere Internazionale d’Arte di Montepulciano, and a performance of Gounod’s Romeo et Juliette for British Youth Opera. Symphonic work includes performances with the South Bank Sinfonia, Tchaikovsky Symphony No.4 with the Cambridge University Chamber Orchestra and he also worked with Ivàn Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra, in Budapest, on Mahler Symphony No.6. In 2010 he worked as an assistant conductor for Opera North on Rusalka and Così fan tutte, and conducted The Rape of Lucretia at the Arcola Theatre, London, as part of its Grimeborn Gestival.

In addition to his work with Jurowski and the LPO future engagements include Italian Girl in London by Cimarosa for Bampton Classical Opera, performances at the Buxton Festival, St John’s Smith Square, and the Queen Elizabeth Hall, a collaboration with the Old Vic, performances of Bruckner’s Mass No. 2 in E minor in Sao Paolo with the LPO and the chorus of the Sao Paolo Symphony Orchestra, a concert with the English Chamber Orchestra, and his LPO debut at the Royal Festival Hall.

Robin Bowman’s international career as an accompanist and chamber-music pianist spans more than thirty years; he has numbered Gérard Souzay, Dawn Upshaw, Henry Herford, Lynne Dawson, Penelope Mackay, Richard Jackson and Katarina Jovanovic among his many performing partnerships. His favourite press notice, for a Wigmore Hall recital with Gérard Souzay, tells of ‘Robin Bowman’s discreetly supportive and infinitely imaginative accompaniments’.

He was a coach for Glyndebourne Festival Opera, and French Consultant for the London National Opera Studio since its inception in the mid-1970s. Educated initially as a musicologist under Thurston Dart and then as a Lied-accompanist under Walther Gruner, Robin gained his unique depth of experience in French vocal repertoire from work as assistant to Pierre Bernac, the great French baritone and authority on singing in French for whom Poulenc wrote more than half of his songs. Much of this experience took place at the Académie Internationale de Musique Maurice Ravel, a summer school where latterly, during an association spanning a quarter of a century, he also organised additionally a piano accompaniment course. For twelve years he gave summer classes at the Académie Internationale d’Eté de Nice, and continues working for two British Summer Schools – the Abingdon Solo Singing School of which he is co-director, and Oxenfoord International, and has taught and performed extensively in Japan. He has experience as an international jury member, including as jury president, for competitions and concours in both vocal and keyboard fields.

Robin’s principal piano teachers were Thomas Rajna and Alan Rowlands, the latter sharing with Robin many of his insights as an enthusiast for – and later, teacher of – Alexander Technique. Robin’s own technical insights as performer and teacher draw additionally on concepts from Feldenkrais and Trager techniques, educational kinesiology, autogenics, and Inner Game principles. Often as a result of having worked with him in vocal repertoire classes, many of the Guildhall School’s postgraduate accompanying course students then chose to take some of their principal study lessons with him. He still finds time for a small number of chamber concerts with instrumentalists as well as with singers.

From 1971 until 2008 Robin Bowman taught French vocal repertoire at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, and at the London National Opera Studio from its inception a few years later. His numerous broadcasts and his discography as accompanist consist mainly of English language and French language repertoire – in particular a two-volume CD of songs by Charles Ives with the baritone Henry Herford which gained a British Music Retailers Association Award. An English song recording with Nancy Argenta and Roderick Williams was issued in 2001 and gained a five-star review in the BBC Music Magazine. Partnering Henry Herford when the latter won first prize in the International American Music Competition at Carnegie Hall, New York, opened up an extensive American dimension to Robin’s work, including recordings, broadcasts and teaching at Tanglewood. As a teacher, Robin is interested in exploring and cultivating the sources of imaginative interpretation for singers and pianists, about which he has written in the ‘style and interpretation for singing teachers’ section of the Incorporated Society of Musicians/University of Reading Music Teaching in Private Practice initiative, and also more extensively in as yet unpublished material compiled during a 2007 term of sabbatical leave granted for this purpose by the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, thus being able to give back to tomorrow’s performers the essence of his own decades of experience in imaginative musical performance.

Sally Burgess ARCM FRCM – Director, Mezzo-soprano, Teacher and Mentor.

Sally was born in Durban, South Africa and came to London in her teens. She studied at the RCM with Marion Studholme, then later privately with Josephine Veasey.

Sally’s teaching is holistically based, including work on breathing, the psychology of performance, exploring text, imagination and Alexander technique, and offering day workshops as part of her studio. She works with established singers as well as those at the beginning of their studies.

Vocal Professor at the RCM for 10 years, she also teaches stagecraft and directs opera scenes.

Sally works with singers worldwide giving masterclasses and workshops last year in Russia, South Africa, and France.
She heads the Young Singers Programme for Les Azuriales Opera Festival, Nice, and in collaboration with London Gates Education in Moscow.

She works with singers at the Royal Opera House on the Jette Parker Young Artists Programme, Co-Opera Company, and with British Youth Opera. Sally has a close relationship with Live Music Now, fronting their vocal masterclass series in the aLuMNi programme. She adjudicates and examines for all UK conservatoires and is a member of the British Voice Association.

Sally Burgess has made some of the most exciting operatic roles her own. The Sunday Times described her as “The greatest exponent of Carmen I have ever seen”. She went on to perform Carmen worldwide, first at ENO where she sang the role over a span of 20 years in several different productions, later at The Met, Berlin, Munich, Paris, Bregenz, Portland Oregon, Opera North, NZ, and in concert.

Her operatic debut was Zerlina Don Giovanni with ENO with whom she was given a solo contract aged 23. Beginning her career as a soprano, her early roles included Cherubino, Pamina, Micaela and Mimi. Later as a mezzo she sang the Composer, Octavian, Charlotte, Dido (Berlioz and Purcell) amongst others. Her years at ENO coincided with those of David Pountney and Mark Elder – a wonderfully productive period in British operatic history. She has since been a regular guest artist singing over 40 roles with the company.

She made her debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden as Siebel Faust with Alfredo Kraus, at The Metropolitan Opera, the Bayerisches Staatsoper in Munich and the Opera de Bastille, Paris as Carmen, at the Opera de Geneve, Switzerland as Fricka The Ring, and at Houston Grand Opera as Polinesso Ariodante.

Other roles include Eboli Don Carlos, Azucena Il Trovatore ,Amneris Aida, Orfeo (Gluck), Judith Bluebeard’s Castle, Kabanicha Katya Kabanova, Ottavia Poppea (also a BBC film), Dalilah Samson et Dalilah, and Herodias Salome. For the Met she has sung Carmen, Queen Isabella The Voyage by Philip Glass, and Hanna Glawari The Merry Widow.

Sally has been invited to New Zealand for 3 different productions of Carmen.

Sally has enjoyed equal success on the concert platform where she has performed with all the UK’s leading orchestras and internationally with Sir Mark Elder, Sir Charles Mackerras, Richard Hickox, Paul Daniel, Kirril Petrenko, Riccardo Chailli, Daniel Baremboim, Gerard Schwartz and Richard Farnes.

She has sung semi-staged performances of Judith Bluebeard’s Castle with the Symphony Orchestras of Bordeaux, Houston, Seattle and Porto, Portugal, as well as full scale productions for ENO and ON.

Sally played Julie Laverne Showboat in the Opera North/RSC 10 week run at the London Palladium; she was nominated for “Best Actress in a Musical” at the Olivier Awards.

She has sung a wide variety of music over a long career with numerous recording to her credit, including several with Chandos (Judith Bluebeard’s Castle, Herodias Salome, Florence Pike Albert Herring, and Sorceress Dido and Aeneas), Paul McCartney’s Liverpool Oratorio, and three jazz albums (Sally Burgess Sings Jazz, The Other Me, and Happy Talk). For TER she has recorded Show Boat, The King and I, and West Side Story.

Sally has performed and sung with the Royal Ballet L’Invitation aux Voyages, and presented a one woman show “Sally Burgess’s Women” directed by Keith Warner. A solo tour of “Something Wonderful – the life and music of Richard Rodgers” was created for Opera North. At the Barbican she sang and presented “Harold Arlen – Who?” a two week run based on his life and music, both with jazz ensemble.

She made her directorial debut with Cosi Fan Tutte for ECO at Buxton and in London 2009, followed by a new opera Sonya’s Story by Neal Thornton at the Riverside Studios 2010. She directed Il Trovatore for Dorset Opera 2012 , and will create a new Cosi to open the Dubrovnik Festival 2013.

Sally heads the Amazwi Omzansi Africa Performing Arts Internationa Festival workshops in Durban 2013.

Photo Credit – Bill Knight

Brad Cohen first came to public attention when, a year after winning the 1994 Leeds Conductor’s Competition, he conducted the world premiere of Thomas Adès’ Powder her Face. Since that auspicious beginning he has conducted a wide ranging repertoire at English National Opera, Opera Australia, Opera North, and opera companies including Luzern, Nantes/Angers, and the Nederlands Reisopera, and at festivals including Hong Kong, Edinburgh, Cheltenham, Adelaide, Rossini in Wildbad, and Porto.

Brad Cohen has conducted orchestras including the London Philharmonic, Philharmonia, Royal Philharmonic, BBC National Orchestra of Wales and BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Stuttgarter Philharmoniker, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Het Gelders Orkest, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and the City of London Sinfonia.

2007-8 engagements included Brad’s debut disc for Chandos: a highlights recording of his own critical edition of Les Pêcheurs de perles, with Simon Keenlyside, Barry Banks, Rebecca Evans, and the LPO. He recently returned to the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Victoria, as well as to Opera Australia for La Cenerentola at the Sydney Opera House.

2008-9 engagements included Brad’s second disc for Chandos: highlights of Rossini’s L’italiana in Algeri with Jennifer Larmore and the Philharmonia. He made his first disc for Deutsche Grammophon with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo and Emma Matthews, and his Swedish opera debut with the Konwitschny production of La bohème. Brad returned to Opera Holland Park for a new production of Il trovatore, and was reunited with Nelly Miricioiu and the Chelsea Opera Group for a South Bank concert performance of Verdi’s Macbeth. In addition, he appeared in the major television series, Maestro, for BBC2.

The 2009-10 season began with a new production of La Cenerentola in Malmö. In February 2010 Brad led the American premiere of Jonathan Dove’s musical tale The Enchanted Pig in New York, before travelling to Mauritius for concerts and educational projects. In April he conducted Carmen for West Australian Opera, before returning to London for a new production of Pelléas et Mélisande at Opera Holland Park in June. In July he concluded the season with a new production of Norma, with Hasmik Papian in the title role, for Opera Hedeland in Denmark.

In the 2010-11 season, Brad’s engagements include his debut for New York City Opera, conducting Jonathan Miller’s production of L’elisir d’amore, directing Schumann and Brahms at the Dartington Summer School, and return invitations to WASO (with Ronald Brautigam) and Värmlands Sinfoniettan.

As an important complement to his performing career, Brad Cohen has become an accomplished operatic editor, and, since his first critical edition of Les Pêcheurs de perles was published worldwide by Peters Edition in 2002, he has completed and published editions of Maometto secondo, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, and Norma.

Jonathan Cohen is rapidly developing a reputation as one of Britain’s finest and most versatile young musicians. A conductor, cellist and keyboardist, with a wide ranging experience of music ?from Baroque to contemporary, he is in increasing demand worldwide.

In the 2010/2011 season Jonathan conducts Monteverdi’s Poppea with Glyndebourne Touring Opera, Ulysses with English National opera and Dido & Aeneas with Dijon Opera. On the concert stage he will conduct the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris and Capella Cracoviensis. Recent highlights have included the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, the Irish Chamber Orchestra and Potsdamer Kammerakademie. For the 30th anniversary season of Les Arts Florissants, Jonathan collaborated with William Christie conducting performances of Dido and Aeneas (Netherlands Opera), Purcell’s Fairy Queen (Opéra Comique and Brooklyn Academy New York) as well as a programme of Gluck, Haydn and Mozart in London and Paris.

As assistant conductor to William Christie, Emmanuelle Haim and Harry Bicket, Jonathan has worked on numerous productions over the last few years. Highlights with Emmanuelle Haim include Monteverdi’s Orfeo (Lille Opera), Mozart’s Nozze di Figaro (Lille) and Monteverdi’s Poppea (Glyndebourne Festival). Highlights with William Christie include Rameau Les Paladins Théatre du Chatêlet), Mozart’s Idomeneo, Haydn’s Creation, Handel’s L’Allegro (Paris Opera), Monteverdi’s Ritorno di Ulisse (Teatro Real Madrid) and Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas (Wiener Festwochen and Opéra Comique).

Jonathan Cohen enjoys a close relationship with Les Arts Florissants and has recently been appointed Associate Conductor. His conducting début with them conducting Zampa at the Opéra Comique in March 2008 received great critical acclaim: “his exhilarating yet attentive baton brought out all the impetus, liveliness and flowing colours of Hérold’s score” (Opera Magazine).

After finishing his undergraduate degree at Clare College, Cambridge, Jonathan Cohen began his career establishing himself as a cellist. He performed as guest principal with many of the UK’s foremost orchestras and ensembles, such as the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and The King’s Consort. With this experience Jonathan developed a unique crossover specialism in the field of early music and an interest in period instruments. He was a founder member of the London Haydn Quartet and with them recorded two discs of Haydn Quartets on the Hyperion label. He continues to enjoy chamber music projects, collaborating regularly with violinists Daniel Hope and Barnabas Kelemen.

With counter tenor Iestyn Davies, Jonathan will début his newly founded orchestra Arcangelo with a disc for Hyperion of Porpora cantatas and a concert tour next year to celebrate the release of the CD. Other exciting artistic projects with Arcangelo are planned and Jonathan intends to focus his energies on developing Arcangelo whilst enjoying his collaboration with Les Arts Florissants and his rapidly expanding guest conducting career.

Rory Bremner

Rory Bremner is the UK’s premier award-winning comedy and Satirical Impressionist.

Born in Edinburgh in 1961 and educated at Wellington College, he went on to attend King’s College, London, where he graduated with an honours degree in French, German and imitating lecturers! King’s College made him a Fellow in 2006 and he is also a Fellow of Queen Mary College.

While still at university, he performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and began his career on the satirical radio shows News Revue (LBC) and Weekending (BBC Radio) before embarking on a seven-year spell at the BBC. Since then, he’s appeared in countless comedy shows from Have I Got News For You to Whose Line is it Anyway? including: Comic Relief, They Think It’s All Over, It’ll Be Alright on the Night, Mock the Week and QIand has been interviewed more than any other performer by both Wogan and Parkinson. Together with John Bird and John Fortune, his programmes (Rory Bremner- Who Else, Bremner, Bird and Fortune) have been a mainstay of Channel 4?s output since 1992, winning a total of four BAFTAs and three RTS awards.

Rory had seven series on the BBC, from 1986 to 1992, winning the Special Award at the Golden Rose of Montreux in 1987. He has been a frequent guest on The Andrew Marr Show (BBC1) providing a satirical review of current political events through his many characters. In 2008 he retraced his family history for Who Do You Think You Are. Elsewhere, he appeared regularly on Breakfast with Frost, and has written and performed the BBC radio series Some of Our Pilots Are Missingand writes articles and diaries for The New Statesman, The Sunday Telegraph, The Sunday Times and The London Evening Standard.Since 1999, he has translated two operas: Kurt Weill’s Der Silbersee and George Bizet’s Carmen, the latter for a cast recruited from South African townships who promptly translated the dialogue into Xhosa so Rory can’t understand it! Rory is much in demand as a Broadcaster, Actor, After-Dinner Speaker and Awards Host.

Mary King’s career has encompassed a wide range of roles, including that of performer, teacher, coach and most recently broadcaster and writer. A popular and highly experienced mezzo soprano, Mary has worked with leading conductors and numerous orchestras across the world, and has made a particular feature of the contemporary classical repertoire.

Mary King first studied English at the University of Birmingham, and after gaining a PGCE at St. Anne’s Oxford, taught Humanities and Music at Gosford Hill School in Oxford. During this time she sang with the vocal groups the Clerkes of Oxenford and Schola Cantorum. She then won a place on the postgraduate Opera Course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, becoming a pupil of Noelle Barker. Post Guildhall, Mary continued her studies with the renowned coaches Paul Hamburger, Janice Chapman and David Harper.

Mary’s versatility as a performer has allowed her career to encompass a wide range of vocal genres, from opera, oratorio, chamber music and recital through to musical theatre and straight plays.

She has had a long involvement with outreach and teaching, working with all the major companies in the UK as well as running training programmes both at home and abroad. During Mary’s long association with English National Opera, she devised and ran a highly successful performance skills course, ‘The Knack’, for eleven years, and between 2004 and 2006 she was also an Artistic Associate for the company.

In September 2006, Mary became Head of Singing at Millennium Performing Arts, now based in new premises in Woolwich, South East London. In November of the same year, she was also appointed Director of Voicelab, a new initiative at London’s Southbank Centre. From casting for professional projects (Carmen Jones, 2007), to creating and training numerous choirs and small ensembles, Mary is at the heart of vocal activity at the Southbank Centre, encouraging vocal talent in all its manifestations.

Mary is increasingly widely known through her work on television and radio. She was one of the driving forces behind Channel 4?s critically acclaimed and award-winning Operatunity, a five week television series introducing opera to the wider public. This was followed by Musicality, also on Channel 4, a five part series on music theatre. She appeared as the expert analyst for the Cardiff Singer of the World competitions in 2005 and 2007, shown extensively on BBC Television, and performed the role again for the 2009 competition. She is a regular guest presenter on BBC Radio 3, and she has been one of the judges on the 2006 and 2008 BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year competitions.

Mary is also in demand as a writer. In 2007 The Singer’s Handbook (Faber) was published, co-written with Anthony Legge. This has been followed by the first two parts (English and French repertoire) of a projected series of selected vocal repertoire collections with coaching notes, The Boosey Voice Coach (Boosey & Hawkes). The German repertoire volume is in production.

Mary King is an Honorary Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, an Honorary Fellow of Rose Bruford College and she has recently been made a Fellow of the Northern College of Music.

David Edwards works internationally as a stage director, writer and presenter collaborating with Opera Companies, Symphony Orchestras, Universities and Young Artists’ Training Programmes in the UK, USA, Europe, Japan and Singapore.

David was born in London and graduated in Classics from Cambridge University. He has directed opera around the world: in San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Portland, Houston, Minneapolis, Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington, London (where he staged ten revivals for The Royal Opera), Milan, Vienna, France, Italy, Singapore, and regularly in Tokyo at the New National Theatre where he taught on the Young Artists’ program for over a decade.

In 2016 David directed PÉLLEAS ET MÉLISANDE with the LA Philharmonic and FAITH – Stravinsky’s late religious music with the Philharmonia, both conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (Mendelssohn/ Shakespeare) in Middle Temple Hall, CARMEN for the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and TOSCA at Chiswick House, London.

Recent projects have included IL PRIGIONIERO (Dallapiccola), DIE WALKÜRE (Act 3), PÉLLEAS ET MÉLISANDE and BORIS GODUNOV (scenes) with the Philharmonia Orchestra at the RFH, London; FIDELIO, RIGOLETTO and THE MERRY WIDOW in Singapore, TOSCA, LA TRAVIATA and LES CONTES d’HOFFMANN for Diva Opera touring the U.K. and Europe, CURLEW RIVER in Japan, DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE and Roussel’s PADMAVATI in Bordeaux, DIALOGUES DES CARMÉLITES and A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (Britten) in Portland, LA RONDINE with Oberlin in Italy, DAS RHEINGOLD and DIE WALKÜRE for Secret Opera and Edward Lambert’s THE CATFISH CONUNDRUM and OPERA WITH A TITLE for the Tête-a-Tête Festival of new opera in London.

In the summer of 2013 David was Artistic Director of INSIDE THE RING, a series of special events that ran concurrently with Longborough Festival Opera’s RING cycle, and at Aldeburgh in 2014 he curated a weekend of events entitled APRES LE DÉLUGE on the theme of early 20th century music and art. His original scripts have been performed in London, Aldeburgh, Eastbourne and Presteigne (Wagner & Berlioz, Verdi in Venice, Wagner, Britten & the Sea, From Bayreuth to Busseto, Verdi’s Singers on Record, Verdi’s Trills, Wagner in Exile, Nolan and the Stage, Wagner’s Elements, Breaking The Ring, An Operatic Bestiary, Wagner and the Dream King, Bayreuth or Bust, Gluck at 300, Time Becomes Space – Act 3 of Parsifal ).

Stage director David Edwards was engaged by the Royal Opera Covent Garden as an assistant and then Staff Director. Here David had the opportunity to work with renowned directors such as Götz Friedrich, Richard Jones, Elijah Moshinsky, John Cox, Trevor Nunn and Jonathan Miller. He directed revivals and restagings at Covent Garden including Katya Kabanova, Der Rosenkavalier, Arabella, Fedora, Die Walküre, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Samson et Dalila, Simon Boccanegra, Aida, Attila and Stiffelio and guest performances in international houses such as La Scala Milan, Staatsoper Vienna, Bologna, Brussels, Los Angeles, Washington, Houston, San Francisco and Chicago. He also wrote surtitles for productions at Covent Garden of La bohème, Madama Butterfly, Rigoletto, Mitridate, Roméo et Juliette, Alcina and Barbe-bleue (Offenbach).

Since leaving Covent Garden in 1997 David has enjoyed a successful career as a freelance director on the international operatic scene.

He has a particular interest in nurturing young artists and has been active as Production Director for the Mastersingers in the UK for the past twelve years.

Debbie O’Brien is a Casting Director. West End productions include: Show Boat (Royal Albert Hall), Dancing in the Streets (Playhouse), The Rat Pack Live From Las Vegas (Savoy), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Palladium), Saturday Night Fever (Apollo Victoria), The Snowman (Peacock), Fame (Aldwych), Peter Pan and The Pirates of Penzance (Savoy), Grease (Victoria Palace), Mum’s the Word(Albery), Daisy Pulls It Off (Lyric), The King and I (Palladium), Napoleon (Shaftesbury), Madame Melville (Vaudeville), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Playhouse), La Cava (Piccadilly). Smokey Joe’s Café (Prince of Wales), The Rocky Horror Show (Queen’s, Piccadilly, Duke of York’s, Victoria Palace), Soul Train (Victoria Palace), Rent (Shaftesbury), Carmen Jones (Old Vic), Always (Victoria Palace), Steaming (Piccadilly), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Apollo), Disgracefully Yours (Comedy).

UK tours include: Thriller Live, Mahabharata, Bratz Passion for Fashion, Sweet Soul Music, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Starlight Express, Anything Goes, Grease, Saturday Night Fever, What a Feeling, Dirty Dusting, Mack and Mabel, Fame, Mum’s the Word, The King and I, The Misanthrope, The Threepenny Opera, A Chorus Line, A Tribute to the Blues Brothers, Smokey Joe’s Cafe, The Rocky Horror Show, Soul Train, Rosencrantz And Guildenstern are Dead, Othello, Trafford Tanzi. Wild Animus (UK / European tour / site specific / multimedia project).

Other productions include: Amadeus (Wilton’s Music Hall), Poison and Ain’t Misbehavin’, both at the Tricycle Theatre; Dick Whittington at Sadler’s Wells; the workshops of Artie, Gwen and Lance, Time’s Up, In the Red, Only You Can Save Mankind, Nelson, Mahabharata, Little Women and The Mikado. Specialist casting on Eugene Onegin (English National Opera) and La Bohème (Royal Albert Hall).

Recorded media: Grease Is the Word (Talkback Thames), Sky, Success! and Challenges (Pearson Education), How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? (BBC), Amahl and the Night Visitors (BBC); Planet Cook (BBC / Platinum Films), Energy (Max Media / Pearson); and the films Wonder and Harvest.

Kenn Oldfield has worked as a Performer, Choreographer, and Director in Theatre Films, TV, Commercials, Corporate and Gala events in the UK and the International Arena.

His work as a Director / Choreographer includes: Chicago, Can-Can, Candide, The Full Monty, My Fair Lady, Joseph And His Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Singing In The Rain, Barnum, Little Shop Of Horrors, Guys & Dolls, West Side Story, Grease, Call Me Madam, Mr. Cinders, The Fantasticks, Lady Be Good, Babes In Arms, Privates On Parade, Stepping Out The Musical, Cabaret, What About Luv, Closer Than Ever, The World Goes Round, The Mikado, Side By Side By Sondheim, and numerous Pantomimes starring Ronnie Corbett, Jimmy Tarbuck, Julian Clary and many stars from Theatre and Television. Kenn had a huge success with My Fair Lady, Chicago, and Guys And Dolls in Tel Aviv.

In 2006 Kenn Oldfield Directed and Choreographed Oklahoma at the Arnaud Theatre Guildford. 2007 he worked on the musical Trelawny and Just So, Working, and The Black and White Ball, Kings Head Islington.

Kenn was Movement Advisor on the Harry Potter Film The Prisoner Of Azkaban. His work has covered the spectrum from Musicals and Opera to BBC TV classics including Allo Allo, Hi De Hi, You Rang My Lord, Oh Dr. Beecham, An Audience With Ronnie Corbett., LWT, The Michael Ball Show, LWT, the National Tour, and The Musicals At Christmas, at The Royal Opera House Starring Michael Ball.

He trained at Ballet Rambert, and in New York City. He has taught at The Royal Academy Of Dramatic Art, The Guildhall School Of Music and Drama, and The Guildford School of Acting.

Kenn performed in the original productions of A Chorus Line, Chicago, and numerous musicals in London and on the International stage.

Kenn created the musical staging for The Jungle Book, and The Horrible Histories. His West End work as a Choreographer includes: Romeo And Juliet (RSC) Can Can, (with Donna McKechnie, Windy City, Stop The World I want To Get Off, Noel And Gertie, and scores of musicals including; Boys From Syracuse with Judi Dench, winning the prestigious Olivier Award.

Kenn Oldfield Directed and Choreographed Oliver at the Tel Aviv Opera House, and Belle, or The Ballad of Dr Crippen, Red Hot and Cole, Kiss Me, Kate, Fiddler on the Roof at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre Guildford, and Choreographed the 2009/10 Stepping Out UK Tour. Peter Pan the Musical in Geneva, and Barmy Britain Garrick Theatre London. The Hot Mikado Electric Theatre Guildford, Merrily We Roll Along.

Linda Hutchison studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where she won the Sydney de Vries Opera prize. As a performer, her operatic career began at the age of fourteen when she sang the role of Belinda in an open air production of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas. As a result of being heard in the finals of the Kathleen Ferrier Scholarship Competition she was offered a contract with D’Oyly Carte Opera Company. She sang with them for several years as principal soprano. In 2010 a biography of her ‘Linda Anne Hutchison, Enchantment Surely’ was published in Tony Joseph’s D’Oyly Carte Personalities series. As well as her opera and oratorio work, Linda gave many recitals, both as a soloist and as the soprano in a duo with tenor. She was also part of a piano, flute and voice trio.

In her teaching practice Linda works with a wide range of professionals from the classical, music theatre and jazz worlds. Linda was, for several years, a visiting member of staff at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now the Royal Conservatiore of Scotland) and a visiting lecturer at Birkbeck College, University of London. She created and directed a part-time course and third year degree module at the London College of Music and Media which balanced the science of the singing voice with artistic freedom. This experience she extended into organizing and directing The Fundamentals of the Singing Voice, the professional development course run jointly by the British Voice Association and the City Literary Institute, London. She is a regular visiting presenter on the Association of Teachers of Singing summer teacher training course where she presents and deals with Anatomy and Physiology, Accent Breathing and Music Theatre. She is an international guest tutor for the Irish College of Music Theatre, the first in Ireland to provide a professional qualification for music theatre.

Linda works extensively in voice, breathing and rehabilitation with a wide range of performers and teachers. She runs performance workshops and gives presentations on the Anatomy and Physiology of the Voice, the Development of the Voice, The Changing Voice, Care of the Voice and The Accent Breathing Method.

Linda’s work in voice clinics began in 1997. She was a member of the internationally renowned Sidcup Voice Clinic at Queen Mary’s Hospital for five years, then part of the team at Medway Voice Clinic, Chatham Maritime Hospital and for some years singing advisor in the voice clinics at Bart’s Hospital, London. She is now the specialist singing advisor at the Lewisham Voice clinic.

Linda has been President of the British Voice Association and for many years was a member of its Education Working Party. She has also served on the Council of the Association of Teachers of Singing.

Mikhail Shilyaev was born in 1979 in Izhevsk, Russia. He started learning the piano at the age of six and won several regional piano competitions at a young age. In 1992 he entered the Central Music School of the Moscow Conservatoire and in 1998 became a full-time student at the Moscow State Conservatoire, where he studied with Professor Olga Zhukova and Professor Elisso Virsaladze. In October 2003 he gained a DAAD scholarship which enabled him to study at the Munich Hochschule with Franz Massinger.

Mikhail is the prize-winner of many competitions, and has been supported in his studies by many awards. In 2005 he won both second prize in the Ibiza International Piano Competition and first prize in the Intercollegiate Beethoven Competition organized by the Beethoven Piano Society of Europe. In July 2006 he won second prize in the Amy Brant Piano Competition in Birmingham. He has also been awarded the Myra Hess Award from the Musicians’ Benevolent Fund, the 2006 Ricci Foundation Award and the 2006 Maisie Lewis Award.

He has performed as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Europe and in 2005–7 Mikhail studied at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester with Mark Ray, Alexander Melnikov and Nelson Goerner. He gave his Wigmore Hall debut recital in March 2007.

Mikhail has participated in masterclasses given by András Schiff, Charles Rosen, Stephen Hough, Barry Douglas and Stefano Fiuzzi and in Summer 2007 he took part in the Britten-Pears Young Artists Programme. As a soloist with orchestra, he has recently performed with the London Soloists Chamber Orchestra, with the RNCM Concert Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Trinity College of Music and the Gulbenkian Symphony Orchestra.

In July 2008 Mikhail appeared as a soloist at the Bridgewater Hall in Messiaen’s Turangalila Symphony with the RNCM Symphony Orchestra under Pascal Rophé. In 2008-2010 Mikhail was an appointed Junior Fellow in Accompaniment at the Royal College of Music. In 2009 Mikhail has received Golubovich Scholarship at the Trinity College of Music where he was working on his Master degree with professor Deniz Gelenbe. In July 2010 Mikhail won the Bronze Medal at the prestigious Vianna da Motta International Piano Competition in Lisbon.

Adam Johnson is one of the most versatile and exciting young musicians to have founded his own orchestra in recent years. The Northern Lights Symphony Orchestra, of which he is both Artistic Director and Principal Conductor, has attracted the attention of concert-goers in London since its formation in 2007 (‘Thrilling’ Classical Source 2011). Unique among the outstanding artists of his generation, Johnson is as equally at home conducting opera as he is fulfilling the role of soloist in concerto repertoire, playing chamber music, or directing his own large-scale compositions.

Winner of the Ricordi Operatic Conducting Prize whilst still studying under Sir Mark Elder, Adam Johnson was invited to assist Ari Benjamin Meyers on his multi-media contemporary theatre work Il tempo di Postino as part of the Manchester International Festival. His outstanding contribution to the production led the following year to associate conductorship of the London première of Jonathan Dove’s opera Flight with British Youth Opera under Nicholas Cleobury. His subsequent operatic successes have included direction of Karol Szymanowski’s rarely performed King Roger and Benjamin Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia for Elemental Opera, a young innovative touring company with whom he enjoys an ongoing partnership.

A former scholar at the Royal Northern College of Music with the Sema Group Contemporary Performance Prize to his credit (for his performance of Lowell Lieberman Concerto No.1 – ‘a bravura…terrific performance’ Liebermann) Adam Johnson continues his piano studies with Peter Feuchtwanger who has described him as in possession of ‘an excellent technique and full of fantasy’.

Future plans include developing an ambitious educational programme in inner London with the Northern Lights Symphony Orchestra, which enjoys a residency at St Saviour’s Church, Pimilco. When time permits Johnson enjoys playing chamber music with colleagues at the North Yorkshire Chamber Music Festival and at other prestigious events. The composer Oliver Knussen has spoken of the ‘extraordinary detail’ of his performances.

“A Revelation” – My Discovery of the Year 2009, Jonathan Pryce CBE
“Incisive and Committed” – Guardian 2010
“Thrilling” – Edward Clark, President of The Sibelius Society 2011

Aurélia Jonvaux is a French Language and Diction Teacher at the GSMD where she assists Florence Daguerre de Hurreaux. She is also a French Language Coach for the Opera Studies and Historical Performance Departments. The Guildhall School productions for which she has coached include Debussy’s L’Enfant Prodigue, Ravel’s L’Enfant et les Sortile?ges and Charpentier’s Acte?on Change? en Biche as part of the London Handel Festival 2015. Aure?lia is regularly asked to coach French opera scenes and is part of the tutoring staff at the annual GSMD Summer Course led by Dominic Wheeler in Fontainebleau, France. She was recently invited to work with the BBC Symphony Chorus on Berlioz’s Rome?o et Juliette and for the Royal Academy of Music Vocal Faculty. Since 2014 she has also been working for the Associated Studios Opera Courses.

Born in France, Aure?lia initially read psychology and musicology at the Franc?ois Rabelais University in Tours. In 2004 she joined the Guildhall School of Music & Drama studying with David Pollard and graduated in 2010 with a Guildhall Artist MMus in Vocal Performance. For this she was generously supported by the Guildhall School Trust. In 2011 she completed a Guildhall Artist Fellowship Programme which included her offering French Language classes and individual coaching. As a result of this and her passion for French elocution and declamation, Aure?lia was subsequently invited to join the Vocal Studies staff and collaborate with Gordon Stewart as a French Language and Diction Teacher.

In addition to her teaching and coaching career, Aure?lia Jonvaux is a versatile performer curious to explore diverse genres. For example, in 2010 she took part in Iain Burnside’s dramatised song performance The Lads in their Hundreds. She then made her dramatic debut as Miss Julie in a Strindberg performance project devised and directed by Polly Graham at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. Another project was also a staged version of Handel’s Cantata La Lucrezia directed by Jenny Miller.

Roles include Pamina and Papagena Die Zauberflo?te, Despina Cosi? fan tutte, Belinda Dido & Aeneas, Oscar A Masked Ball, Musetta La Bohe?me, Morgana Alcina, Che?rubin Les Noces de Figaro and Venus Venus & Adonis. Aure?lia is also at ease with the French Operetta genre and has appeared as Germaine Les Cloches de Corneville and Laurette Le Docteur Miracle. In 2016 she will be performing the title role in La Pe?richole for Ope?ra de Bauge?, France. Aure?lia was a finalist in the 11th International Singing Competition in Canari, Corsica.

On the concert platform, Aure?lia enjoys portraying the song repertoire such as Brahms’s Liebeslieder Walzer Op. 52, Spohr’s Sechs Deutsche Lieder Op. 103, Poulenc’s Fianc?ailles pour rire and Argento’s Six Elizabethan Songs. Further solo performances include Charpentier’s Te Deum, Bach’s Magnificat, Handel’s Messiah and Jephtha, Haydn’s The Creation, Mozart’s Requiem and Exsultate jubilate and Respighi’s Lauda per la Nativita? del Signore. She has also appeared twice on the BBC Radio 3 In Tune programme.

Kelvin Lim trained at the RCM and ENO, and studied with Phillip Thomas. He has worked as repetiteur for English National Opera, (Magic Flute, Salome, Madame Butterfly, Xerxes, Billy Budd) Opera Genesis/ROH2 (development Bird of Night, Assassin Tree, Letters of a Love Betrayed, Exposure), Opera Holland Park (Carmen, La Boheme, Tosca, La Traviata, Nabucco, Fanciulla del West, Madama Butterflychorus master), English Touring Opera (Eugene Onegin, L’Infedelta delusa, Teseo), Longborough (Das Rheingold, Die Walkure), Mid-Wales Opera (Falstaff, Les Contes D’Hoffman, Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Opera Project (Marriage of Figaro), Royal Academy of Music (Magic Flute cond Colin Davis), Mastersingers (Der Ring des Niblungen, Parsifal, Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg, Lohengrin), Bampton Classical (Marriage of Figaro, Le Pescatrici, Leonora, Don Giovanni, Barber of Seville, Capriccioso Correter, Jewel Box, La Vera Costanza, Falstaff), Co-Opera Co (La Boheme), Central School of Speech and Drama (Sweeney Todd), Dorset Opera (Cavelleria Rusticana, I Pagliacci, Russlan & Ludmilla), Tete-a-Tete (Push!), Broomhill (Il Trittico, dir Simon Callow), and Aldeburgh.

Kelvin Lim is Co-Director of Postgraduate Opera at Trinity College of Music, where he assisted Stueart Bedford (Albert Herring). He has also been Assistant conductor for Co-Opera Co (Albert Herring), Musical Director for: King’s Head Theatre (I Pagliacci), English Opera Singers (Macbeth), Opera Brava (Carmen, Madama Butterfly), Bampton Classical (L’Infedelta Delusa), and Central School of Speech and Drama, (Company!, Jerry Springer the Opera, Mystery of Edwin Drood). Kelvin was repetiteur for the Opera Genesis Program at Royal Opera House and for Glyndebourne. He has been Conductor for rehearsals of Magic Flute and Opera Scenes at Royal Academy of Music, official accompanist for the Wagner Society and was the first UK pianist to be awarded the Bayreuth Bursary Prize.

He has worked for John Tomlinson, Anne Evans, Mary Plazas, Anthony Rolf-Johnson, Elizabeth Connell, Sir Donald McIntyre, Jeffrey Talbot, Ludmilla Andrew, Russell Smythe, played for private coachings for Joyce DiDonato, Magdalena Koczena, Gerald Finlay and Graham Clark, and in masterclass with Antonio Pappano, John Tomlinson, Gwyneth Jones, Barry Banks, Sarah Walker, Malcolm Martineau and Diana Montague. He has regularly broadcast on BBC Radio 3, and performed at The Linbury, London Coliseum, Recital Hall Royal Academy of Music, St James Piccadilly, St John Smiths Sq, Jubilee Hall in Aldeburgh, Buxton, Warwick, Winchester and Salisbury Festivals, as well as in Jerez and Granada. Engagements in 2010: CREAR scholar (with Malcolm Martineau), Exposure for ROH2 (Linbury Theatre), repetiteur for Aldeburgh Music, accompanist for the Goodall Academy (Anne Evans, John Tomlinson), Solo recital of Liszt/Wagner transcriptions and an all-Wagner recital with Sir John Tomlinson. He was also member of the contemporary six-piano chamber group Piano Circus.

Future engagements include: Siegfried for Longborough Festival Opera, Magic Flute for Co-Opera-Co. Kelvin also has upcoming lieder and solo recitals in London and Aldeburgh, with James Rutherford (Hans Sachs for Bayreuth) for the Wagner Society and Mastersingers.

Kathy Taylor-Jones is an opera singer and singing teacher/coach; she has appeared with many companies in the UK and abroad, has given numerous recitals and concerts, and runs a private teaching studio in London. She is singing with English National Opera this season, in productions of The Passenger and Eugene Onegin.

Kathy recently sung the role of Frau Schulz in Mendelssohn’s rarely performed Heimkehr aus Der Fremde (The Homecoming) with Ryedale Festival Opera and Grimeborn Festival at the Arcola Theatre in London. She appeared as the French Mother in Yoshi Oida’s acclaimed production of Death in Venice at the Aldeburgh Festival and the Bregenz Festival, Austria, where she also sang the role of Allure in Playing Away, directed by David Pountney. Other roles include Carmen, Marchellina (The Marriage of Figaro), Berta (The Barber of Seville), Mrs Noye (Noye’s Fludde), The Mother (The Consul). With D’Oyly Carte at the Savoy Theatre in the West End, she appeared in Iolanthe, Yeoman of the Guard and HMS Pinafore. At Buxton Opera House G & S roles have included Leila (Iolanthe), Inez and Vittoria (The Gondoliers) and she has sung Pitti-Sing (The Mikado) for Carl Rosa Opera Company. In 2007-8 Kathy joined Opera North Chorus appearing in Peter Grimes, Madame Butterfly, Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet and in the premiere of Jonathon Dove’s new opera Pinocchio. In 2008-9 Kathy worked with English National Opera Chorus, for productions of Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci, Aida, The Magic Flute, La Bohème, Boris Godunov, and Dr Atomic.

In addition, Kathy has narrated A Soldier’s Tale for Hand Made Opera, and Façade for both The Opera Project and Hand Made Opera.

In addition to teaching at the Advanced Performers Studio, Kathy has taught/coached at GSA Conservatoire and other performing arts institutions; has given numerous workshops on singing and performance in the UK, and runs weekend residential classical/music theatre singing courses in the Midlands. She also has a busy private practice in London. Many of her students (past and current) have enjoyed considerable success, gaining places at major drama schools and music colleges, and appearing in west end shows and touring productions, including Joseph, Rocky Horror Show, Evita, Les Miserables, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, The Wizard of Oz, Dancing in the Streets, Hairspray, Love Never Dies, and Sweeney Todd.

English conductor Robin Newton’s rapidly developing career has seen him work with many renowned opera companies and orchestras including the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Den Nye Oper, English National Opera, Opera North, English Touring Opera, Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Northern Chamber Orchestra and the London Mozart Players.

The 2013/14 season sees Robin make his Welsh National Opera début with Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda, his concert début with the Salomon Orchestra, and returns to both the Bergen National Opera for Fidelio, and Chelsea Opera Group for Bellini’s I Capuleti e i Montecchi at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, and has further projects with Opera Rara.

Recent seasons have seen Robin make several notable débuts including Verdi’s Aida for Raymond Gubbay at the Royal Albert Hall with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, La Forza del Destino at the Queen Elizabeth Hall with Chelsea Opera Group, and Marcos Portugal’s La pazza giornata, ovvero Il matrimonio di Figaro for Bampton Classical Opera at the Buxton Festival. Further highlights includeDido&Aeneas for Opera North, the world première of Stephen McNeff’s Daughters of the Elements at the Tête á Tête Opera Festival, Rossini’s Armida with the Haydn Chamber Orchestra at St. John’s Smith Square, London with the Haydn Chamber Orchestra, Don Giovanni for Opera Della Luna, The Glory of Christmas at Watford Coliseum for Raymond Gubbay ltd., Mozart arias & Dvo?ák Symphony No.6 with Oxford Sinfonia and as assistant conductor for Opera Rara’s recordings of Donizetti’s Caterina Cornaro and Belisario with the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

Having worked on more than twenty recordings for Opera Rara, Robin has a deep understanding of the bel canto style, and an extensive knowledge of operas by Bellini, Donizetti, Mercadante andRossini, amongst others. In recent years Robin has also established an important relationship with Garsington Opera, where performance credits include Mozart’s Il Re Pastore & Die Zauberflöte and Beethoven’s Fidelio. He has also worked closely on both operatic and symphonic works with Maurizio Benini, Ji?í B?lohlávek, Yves Abel, and Andrew Litton.

Robin has a music degree with honours from Cambridge University and studied conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester where he twice received the Recordi Prize for conducing opera.

As Music Director of Preston Opera and Hampstead Garden Opera, Robin Newton has conducted many repertoire pieces including Carmen, Don Giovanni, La traviata, Nabucco, Eugene Onegin, Cavalleria rusticana, The Bartered Bride and Macbeth.

Contemporary music is a vital part of Robin’s work. He is music director of e2K, with whom he has given a number of UK and world premieres. Recently, Robin was responsible for the commission of a new opera by Philip Cashian, which was premiered in autumn 2008.

Future plans include a recording of Maria di Rohan (Opera Rara, assisting Sir Mark Elder), Alceste (chorus master, Chelsea Opera Group), Il pirata and Armida (assisting David Parry) and La bohème (Den Nye Oper, assisting Andrew Litton).

William Relton made his professional debut as an actor in 1971 in Rattigan’s “The Winslow Boy” in the West End. He went on to develop his career in television and theatre. His major roles include Cherubin (Beaumarchais’s “The Marriage of Figaro”) at the National Theatre, Bernstein’s Candide (“Candide”) and Tony (“West Side Story”), Gilbert’s/Sullivan’s Marco (“The Gondoliers”) and Ralph Rackstraw (“HMS Pinafore”), Hamlet (Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”), Wilfred Owen in the one-man play “All The Arts of Hurting”, Kenneth (Berlin’s “Call Me Madam”), etc. His operatic roles include Mozart’s Don Ottavio (“Don Giovanni”), Basilio (“Le nozze di Figaro”) and Ferrando (“Così fan tutte”) as well as Tisbe (Rossini’s “La Cenerentola”, a production that cast men in the roles of sisters). Recently he has played the Haushofmeister in R. Strauss’ “Ariadne auf Naxos” at Glyndebourne and the Frankfurt Opera. On television he appeared in many plays and series including “Clayhanger”, “Play for Today”, “The Lost Boys” and “Degrees of Error”. Film work includes “Beauty and the Beast”, “The Great Gastby” and “Slumdog Millionaire”.

In 1991 he joined Music Theatre London, an opera company that casts actors with good singing voices, as opposed to classically trained opera singers. He also worked as Executive Producer for the company over three years producing tours for the Vienna Festival, Germany, Holland and in the UK. He has been an assistant director at Opera North (1994–97) and at the English National Opera (1998–2001). For some years he worked very closely with Co-Opera Company and was in charge of Touring Operations and Education, producing tours and organising community education projects. Currently he is Artistic Director of Opera Forge, an ambitious new company with plans to mount Wagner’s “Ring des Nibelungen” over the next three years.

In 1993 he made his debut as a stage director with Mozart’s “Così fan tutte”. Since then he has directed all over the UK and Europe: English National Opera, l’Opera de Nice, Dorset Opera, Kongelige Teater, Copenhagen, Oslo Opera House, Drottingholms Slottstheater, Staatstheater Darmstadt among many others. His most recent productions include Wagner’s “Der Ring des Nibelungen” (2013), Mozart’s “Don Giovanni”, “Die Zauberflöte” and “La finta giardiniera” (all in 2012), Pergolesi’s “La serva padrona” (2012), Bizet’s “Carmen” and Humperdinck’s “Hänsel und Gretel” (both in 2011), Rossini’s “La gazza ladra” (2010), Puccini’s “La bohème”, Leoncavallo’s “Pagliacci”, Mascagni’s “Cavalleria rusticana”, Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffmann” and Händel’s “Alessandro” (all in 2009), Bizet’s “Les Pêcheurs de perles”, Stravinsky’s “The Rake’s Progress”, Haydn’s “Il mondo della luna”, Britten’s “The Rape of Lucretia” (all in 2008), etc. William Relton has spent much of his time directing and teaching in opera schools in the UK and in Scandinavia. In the UK he has directed productions and/or scenes at most of the principal opera schools, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow, Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music and National Opera Studio in London, and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff. In Scandinavia he has worked extensively at the Opera Acadamy of the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen and also at Operahogskolan in Stockholm, the Opera School in Göteborg and KHIO in Oslo.

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