We Heard a Screech

Written by Jack Thorne

Directed by Mel Hillyard

You Can't Buy Toy Soldiers

Written by Karis Halsall 

Directed by Rebecca  Adamson

Written by  Benjamin Kissel

Directed by Cathal Cleary

Waiting For Dafoe

Written by Tom Ellen

Directed by Juliane Von Sivers 

We Heard a Screech

 Director                  

Mel Hillyard

Training: Rose Bruford College (MA), University of Berkeley, California and the University of Kent (MDrama)

As director: The Spit of Me by Adam Barnard (for Nabokov's 'Present Tense' - Southwark Playhouse), WriteBites for Eyebrow Productions (8 new short plays, RADA Theatre Bar), Southgate by Will Hammond (radio play for 503/Urban Scrawl), His Face her Face by Ben Cooper and Three Is Company by Erin McMahon (King's Head Theatre), Grey Days and Loose Ends (Edinburgh Festival), Imposition (Rose), Pillars of Society (Lumley Studio), Cloud Tectonics and Play (Durham Studio Theatre, Berkeley).
As assistant: Dreaming of Fitzrovia by Matt Philips (reading for 'Write On' - County Hall), The Spanish Tragedy (Arcola Theatre), Me and My Girl (London Palladium) Cherry Docs and The Shadowmaster (King's Head), The Winter's Tale (Courtyard), Helen of Troy and The Jungle Book with Phil Willmott at the Scoop.

Mel is currently Associate Director with Nabokov on Joel Horwood's play Is Everyone OK? on it's UK tour of festivals and theatres.

She is resident Assistant Director for ATTIC Theatre Company.

Jack Thorne

Writer of the current acclaimed film The Scouting Book for Boys.  Jack's plays for stage include When You Cure Me (Bush Theatre), Stacy (Arcola and Trafalgar Studios), Fanny and Faggot (Finborough and Trafalgar Studios) and Burying Your Brother In The Pavement (NT Connections). His work for television includes episodes of Skins, Shameless, and, up-coming, Cast-Offs (Channel 4) and We Were Faces (Channel 4, co-written with Shane Meadows). He adapted When You Cure Me for radio (Radio 3), and has further written Left At The Angel (radio 4), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (adaptation with Alex Bulmer, Radio 4) and People Snogging In Public Places (radio 3). His first feature film The Scouting Book For Boys (Celador and Film Four) will be showing at the London Film Festival this year before being distributed more widely.

Leanne Davis

Darlington born Leanne graduated from The Central School of Speech & Drama in 2007 (with Distinction) and has since enjoyed playing a wide range of roles.

Theatre credits include: Spud & Moose (Old Red Lion), Democracy (BAC), Octavia (Garrick Club), Romeo & Juliet (New Players Theatre), Cinderella (Lyric Hammersmith), Hung Up (Camden People's Theatre), Not For Sale (The Pleasance, Edinburgh).

TV credits include: Bodyform commercial (Duke & Earl Productions), Knife Crime commercial (Splice TV), Gala Bingo commercial (The Engine Group), Ladbrokes commercial (Tom Boy Films), Simon Brodkin Sketch Show pilot (Avalon for BBC3), Noel's HQ (TwoFourProductions).

Film credits include: Jayne Eyre (Bayswater Communications), Rip Chord (Bayswater Communications), Charlie (Polite Company), Soho Knights (UXOX), Get Connected (Galahad Productions).

You Can't Buy Toy Soldiers

Rebecca Adamson

Rebecca trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. She previously worked as an actress in English and Welsh appearing both in TV and theatre productions across the UK. Then, following a stint working on the production side of stadium tours for Elton John, George Michael and Paul McCartney she returned to theatre where she turned her focus to directing and producing.

Rebecca also works regularly as a voice over artist and acting tutor in London.

Karis Halsall

Karis is co-artistic director of New Fangled Theatre. Karis has had her first play, The Killing Moon, produced at the legendary Roundhouse as well as winning the Ideas Tap 'Brave New Poet' competition and being part of the Royal Court's Young Writer's 'Supergroup'.

Jack Brackstone-Brown

Jack Brackstone-Brown graduated from East 15 acting school in 2007 having spent 4 years there, 1 year foundation and then 3 year acting course. In 2008 Jack was accepted onto the Old Vic new voices project having taken part in the 24hr plays in March. Since then he was invited to do a development workshop of a stage version of George Orwell's '1984' at the Old Vic. In 2009 Jack worked on a number of short films including 'Eco Warrior' a comedy about an over enthusiastic council worker in which he played the lead role, due to be completed in 2010.

Michelle Luther

Michelle trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.  Recent theatre credits include Arden of Faversham, Cheery Orchard, Night Must Fall, And Now What?, The Crucible - all at Theatre Clwyd; Ker-Ching for Frantic Assembly.  

Recent TV work includes Karina in Eastenders; Tracy Beaker "The Movie of Me"; The Bench for BBC Wales and Tales of Pleasure Beach.

Michelle also appeared in a recent Nokia commercial for TV and Cinema release.

Nicola Randall

Nicola Randall has studied at the City Lit and has appeared in many theatre productions since, such as Greek, Under Milkwood, The Doll's House, Antigone, Oedipus, Absent Friends, The Mystery Plays and the critically acclaimed site specific promenade play Dido Queen of Carthage at The House of St Barnabas. She has recently appeared at the Albany Theatre, playing the part of Sarah in Female Transport.

Annie Walker

A native of the North West, Annie trained at East 15 Acting School. Roles have included The Nurse and Tybalt (!) in Romeo & Juliet (Orange Tree Theatre), Mrs Medlock in The Secret Garden (Manoel Theatre, Malta), Mrs Hicks in Twopence to Cross the Mersey (Liverpool Empire), tours of Romeo & Juliet and The Tempest into primary schools, plus a wide variety of interesting roles in various short films and commercials, including the feature film Chemical Wedding.

 Just Chuck

Cathal Cleary

Cathal Cleary received an MA Degree in Drama & Theatre from the National University of Ireland, Galway, 2005. He is now based in London. He is artistic director of Zelig Theatre Company, and previous productions for Zelig include The Cripple of Inishmaan, Appointment in Limbo (new play by Patrick McCabe), The Donahue Sisters & A Galway Girl, and The Factory Girls.

Playwright & Actor

Benjamin Kissel

Benjamin Kissel is an Actor/Writer. Recently he has performed his one man show 'A Pohutukawa Wilts' for the Camden Fringe Festival transferring to Theatre 503 and also performs regularly with 'Improvisers Anonymous'. Past credits include Bash, Twelfth Night, Coram Boy, Marat/Sade, Three Sisters and The Laramie Project. 

 Waiting for Dafoe 

Juliane Von Sivers

Juliane was born in 1983 in Halle (Saale), Germany.

After she finished her general education she started to work as an assistant director for Thalia Theater Halle (2003 - 2006). There she directed "Perlino" by Fabrice Melquiot and "Boerse des Wissens" an interactive theatre game. Her responsibilities next to assisting and directing also included script reading and festival organisation. In 2007 she worked as an assistant director in Dublin, Ireland for Companies as Guna Nua and Pan Pan. In September 2009 she started the MFA directing Programme at East 15/Essex University in London. During her education she continued pursuing her professional career while assisting Mick Gordon with "Deep Cut" by Philip Ralph at the Traverse, Edinburgh Festival 2008. She directed "The Woman Before" by Roland Schimmelpfennig in September 2009 which transferred to the Brockley Jack Theatre for an extended 2 week run. Thereafter she directed "No idea" by Tom Ellen for the OffCut Festival at the Old Red Lion Theatre for which she won the Best Director OffCut Festival Panel Award. Most recently she co-directed the short film "Penthesilea".

Tom Ellen

Tom works as a freelance journalist and television sketch writer. He wrote the short play 'No Idea' (directed by Juliane von Sivers), which reached the final of the Off Cut Festival at the Old Red Lion Theatre in October last year. Since then, he has written two short films - 'Penthesilea' and 'Getting Out Of Bed The Wrong Side' - and will be filming a third in April this year.

Bronya Deutsch

Bronya trained with the National Youth Theatre and at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts.

Her theatre credits include When the Lights Went Out (Tara Arts, UK Tour) 'Allo 'Allo (Calibre Productions, No.1 tour) A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Tempest (Young Shakespeare Company, UK Tour), After (New End) Immaculate Conceit (Lyric Hammersmith) After Mrs Rochester (Albany, Deptford) The Big Break Festival (Hampstead Theatre).

www.1984pm.com for more information.

Jack Kelly

Jack is an Actor, Writer and Director. Jack's play "The Visitor" enjoyed a successful run at last years Edinburgh Festival and then transferred to The Hen and Chickens in London. Since then Jack has founded "The Cheeky Beggars" theatre company, their first Play "The Chaps in A Spot Of Bother" premiered earlier this year and their monthly cabaret nights at The Cavendish Arms in Stockwell are a continuing success. 

Olivia Simpson

Olivia studied at The Central School of Speech and Drama and at Arts Educational, London. Since graduating in 2008 Olivia has done a tour of Rumplestiltskin for Golden Egg productions, acted in short films Redux and My Winniepeg, performed in an outdoor production of Grimmly Ever After, playing a comical Prince Charming, and performed in a rehearsed reading of Virtue for Periwig and Monkey at Arch 468 in Brixton. Olivia entered the Cheese and Crackers cabaret competition at Leicester Square Theatre in 2009 and the won the prize. Since then she has been performing regularly in Cabaret gigs across London, the most recent being at the Southwark Playhouse. Her most memorable theatre experience was performing at the Minack Theatre at Lands End, Cornwall. When not acting, Olivia teaches Drama and has worked for companies such as NYT, Creation Theatre and Perform.

Graeme Stirling

Graeme's theatre credits include Sunset Song (dir. Kenny Ireland, No.1 Scottish tour), Like It Never Happened (Old Red Lion), and Twelfth Night (Bedlam Theatre, Edinburgh Festival). He has also starred in four new works for First Draft Theatre (all Kings Head Islington), rehearsed readings at Oval House, Theatre503 and Tristan Bates Theatres, and toured Italy twice in 'Chicago' as Billy Flynn and in 'Much Ado About Nothing'. He most recently took the lead in short film Rain for director Hannah Price) and is presently developing a new work with her about PM Gordon Brown. He trained at the Webber Douglas Academy and is a founder member of actors' company The Collective.