People

Phil King – Playwright / Founder

After being awarded a First in International Theatre from Royal Holloway University I received a full scholarship to the David Edgar-founded playwriting Masters at the University of Birmingham.

My play House Martin was recently commission at the West Yorkshire Playhouse as part of the Northern Exposure season. For Rough Fiction I have written Killing Alan (Underbelly, Edinburgh Festival 2009), Hospitals and Other Buildings That Catch Fire (Underbelly, Edinburgh Festival 2005 / National Student Drama Festival 2006) which was also revived by The Brit School in 2009. Other plays include What’s Their Life Got? and Listening Out for The Bitesize Festival at Theatre 503 (2006), The Big Half, the small ha’f (Pleasance Theatre Islington, 2004), and After the Garden (Theatro Technis, Camden, 2005).

Simon Pittman – Director / Founder

I trained on the MFA in Theatre Directing from Birkbeck University of London, and also attended the National Theatre Studio Directors’ Course. I was resident director at the Library Theatre Manchester from 2006 – 2007. I now work as a freelance theatre director and practitioner and I am currently working as Associate Director on The Go-Between, a major new adaptation of the LP Hartley Novel co-produced by West Yorkshire Playhouse, Derby Live and Royal and Derngate Theatre Northampton. I was Movement Director on 99-100 and previously Mixter Maxter for The National Theatre of Scotland; ‘one of the finest pieces of youth project artwork Scotland has ever produced’ (Scotsman), Assistant Movement Director on 365 for the National Theatre of Scotland and have assistant directed for Paines Plough, Manchester Library Theatre and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. I have also worked Creative Learning Associate for Frantic Assembly for whom I have directed several youth productions, as a Visiting Lecturer at Royal Holloway, University of London.

Further directing credits include Not A Game For Boys by Simon Block (Library Theatre 2007) – nominated for Best Production and the cast for Best Actor at the Manchester Evening News Awards 2007, Siblings: Gate Ink (The Gate Theatre, London 2008), Peer Gynt (Bournemouth Arts Institute – 3rd Year Acting BA, 2008)Hospitals and Other Buildings That Catch Fire (Edinburgh Festival 2005 / National Student Drama Festival 2006).

Tess Denman-Cleaver – Associate Director, Ensemble Laboratory

As Director: Night City (Start Night at Hampstead Theatre, 2010), Tyneside Stories (RSC at Live Theatre, 2009), The Spinning Wheel(Forest Fringe at Edinburgh Festival 2009 and Central School of Speech and Drama), Jump! (Reading for Live Theatre, 2009), Taxi Driver’s Daughter (Live Theatre, 2009). As Assistant Director: I’m Free R&D week (Told By an Idiot, 2010), Helen (Shakespeare’s Globe, 2009), Pitmen Painters (Live Theatre, 2007 & The National Theatre, 2009), Geoff Dead: Disco For Sale (New Writing North & Live Theatre, 2008).

Tess is currently directing Ted Hughes’ Alcestis for Kingston University’s MA drama course at The Rose Theatre in July. Later in the summer she will be taking poet Kate Fox’s one woman show to The Gilded Balloon for this year’s Edinburgh Festival 2010, followed by a national tour.