THE CREATIVE TEAM
Seán Ferris - Executive Producer
After studying Theatre, Film and Stage management, Seán went on to study Lighting design and Theatre Electrics. He produced a rock version of "Sweeny Todd", which had its world premiere at The Hackney Empire in November 1990. Seán then went on to produce the "Euston Festival of Arts" at The Shaw Theatre. After this Seán managed a fringe theatre in Greenwich. Whilst he was there, he produced three successful pantomimes, ‘Mother Bird's Nest Golden Christmas’, ‘Robin Hood’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast’, an Australian musical, ‘Streetwise’ and a number of musical revues and presentations. After this Seán worked with The Surrey County Youth Theatre on ‘A Mid-Summer Nights Dream’. Seán project managed the 100th Anniversary of the British Museum in association with ‘The London Philharmonic Orchestra’ and ‘The Royal National Theatre’ , back in July 2002 and with that Co-founded and managed a very successful Audio-visual Company, ‘Evolution’, supplying full design and technical support to the live and entertainment industries for the past 9 years. Recent projects include "The Evening Standard Theatre Awards", "Cancer Research UK", "The Closing of the Savoy Hotel" after 130 years, “British Grand Prix Awards” and many corporate events and shows. He has recently lit and worked with stars such as Sophie Ellis Bextor, The feeling, Michael Portillo, Clive Anderson, Al Murray and Charles Kennedy.
In 2007, Seán produced the World Premier of ‘Subtransmission’, a highly successful musical play, in London which played at the Courtyard Theatre. Seán is the original creator of the musical “1916”.
Simon Humphreys - Book/Librettist
Simon has been writing and directing for over twenty years. He studied Drama, Theatre and English at college and university, qualifying as a teacher in 1996. Simon was Head of Drama and Performing Arts in London Secondary schools for ten years. During this time, he wrote, directed and produced hundreds of shows for children, ranging from pantomimes to Theatre in Education and musicals. Simon’s first film was completed in July 2007. 'Subtransmission’, a musical play, was staged in London at the end of 2007 and enjoyed sell out audiences and 5 star reviews.
Micheal Persad - Producer
Michael Persad trained as an Event and Stage Manager. Michael First studied Chemistry, before realising his passion for the theatre. He then proceeded to work on many theatrical, corporate and entertainment productions and events, including Repertory, touring, nightclubs and International Holiday Resorts. Credits include Lear (Crucible Theatre, Sheffield), Rentaghost (Butlins), Basil Brush (Duo, UK Tour) and the forthcoming Scrooge (Esos). Michael is relishing his role as part of the '1916' production team and is passionate about adding his own personal flair.
David Christmas - Composer
David has had a passion for music from an early age. He considers much of his compositional skill to come from an early appreciation of songs written skilfully by composers who seemed to understand the importance of the music complimenting the lyrics. He has a talent for creating beautiful melodies that he can deftly build up to stirring orchestrations. His writing talents have not gone unrecognised, reaching the semi-finals of the UK Song writing Competition in 2006. David is an accomplished performer including five years as the resident pianist at a Central London restaurant, playing a wide repertoire of music.
Recent theatre projects David has worked on include Musical Director for “Subtransmission” (2007), Alan Ayckbourn’s, “A Chorus of Disapproval” (2008), where he also had an acting role as Mr Ames, and most recently arranging music for a production of Alice in Wonderland (2009).
David studied languages at university, graduated with a BA (Hons) in French and fulfilled his lifelong aim to become a teacher. It followed that his passion for music would not go unnoticed in the school curriculum!
David hopes 1916 will be the culmination of his skills to create the most memorable of tunes that pay homage to that period of Irish history and enhance its own strength of focus, determination and emotion.
Wayne Urquhart - Assistant Composer/Arranger
Wayne is a freelance Composer, Orchestrator and arranger, Audio Engineer, and Cellist specialising in Film, Television, Video and Theatre. Having been involved in numerous sound and music disciplines within Audio/Visual industry for 10 years, he has attained a rounded and flexible approach to the development and role of the soundtrack in a moving image. This successful approach has earned him the confidence of clients such as: FIVE, HSBC, Constantin Entertainment, The Ministry of Defence, Canal +, W.H Smith, Swiftcover.com, Traidcraft, and many more. He has brought his creative music and audio expertise to BBC radio plays, TV commercials, theatrical productions, corporate promotional videos, documentaries, feature films and a TV series. Wayne’s work includes Monkey, Journey To the West a”Circus Opera”, Mark Ronson (Brit Awards 2008), David Gray (White Ladder Album), Jocelyn Brown (Circles Album) plus many more.
Jamie Anderson - Vocal Coach
Jamie Anderson is one of London’s hottest young vocal coaches training young singers across the capital in pop and musical theatre. Jamie trained at Mountview and now regularly works at major drama schools East 15, Italia Conti and The Academy, as well as at Tram shed, Havering College, Oval House Theatre and John Robert Powers. Twice a year Jamie takes young singers to Los Angeles for an international showcase, where they’ve gained interest from Sony BMG and Virgin Records. His private students have appeared in Britain’s Got Talent (ITV), Buddy (West End), Dirty Dancing (West End) and Annie (UK Tour). Last year, Jamie was Musical Director for the children’s choir at the Concert for Nelson Mandela at South Africa.
Dr. Marc B Naylor - Musical Director
Since graduating from the Guildhall School of Music in 1985 where he studied clarinet with Jack Brymer OBE, saxophone with Stephen Trier, organ with Bernard Oram and conducting with Vilem Tausky and Leonard Bernstein, Dr. Marc Naylor has developed a successful career as a soloist, chamber musician and conductor. He has had many new works written for him and has several CD’s to his credit: “Espressivo, the music of John Carmichael”, Sea Changes, Clarinet Connection, Tarogato Temptation, Flights of Fancy and Sonnets & Serenades.
In 2005, Dr. Naylor was invited to represent Great Britain at the International Tarogato Congress held at Vaja, Hungary and to join the International Tarogato Ensemble on an extensive concert tour of Hungary, Romania and Transylvania, culminating with a concert in the Budapest Festival.
Dr. Naylor also works as a concert organist playing both straight and theatre organs, giving recitals internationally. He has also broadcast for the ABC in Australia, German Radio and for the BBC World Service as both soloist and presenter.
As a conductor, Marc has worked as Musical Director on many excellent productions, including Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Bugsy Malone, Oklahoma, Carousel and Sweeney Todd to mention but a few. When not performing, Marc composes and has written many new works for his instruments, which are published by Edition Lyrique.
Dr.Marc’s full title is D. Mus.; FTCL; AGSM; L. Mus.A.; Cert.GSMD(P)
Bríd Fanning - Graphic & Web Designer
Having won 5 merit awards in The Texaco National Children’s Art competition in her youth, Bríd went on to study graphic design. She has sold many paintings locally and was commissioned to produce work nationally including a piece for The Irish Emigrant Office for President Mary Robinson. She won “The most promising New Product design” award at the International Design Dimension Programme Exhibition in Belfast in 1997.
Bríd worked at BBC Advertising in Dublin, where she designed for top Irish & International brands including Columbia Tri-Star. She designed brochures for the 2000 Sydney Olympics in Australia. While gaining further international experience as a designer in the States, Bríd designed for MasterCard, New York in 2001. Since returning home Brid has being designing for one of Irelands leading international architectural firms. Bríd is passionate about Irish history and is excited about designing for the theatre.
Jen Payne - Assistant Producer
Jennifer Payne first ventured into the theatre as an actor, appearing in children's theatre with the Rubber Duck Theatre company (Fantastic Mr Fox, The Giraffe the Pelly and Me) and at the Edinburgh Fringe moving on to the rather less child friendly though highly acclaimed 4.48 Psychosis (York Theatre Royal) and Lost Soul Music (Edinburgh Fringe 2008). In 2007, she moved off stage to produce Bouncy Castle Macbeth (Strolling Theatricals Theatre Company at The Edinburgh Fringe). She currently works in stage management at The Old Red Lion in Islington.
James Bates - Assistant Producer
James graduated from the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in 2009 with a BA in professional stage management, TV and Film production. James has run his own Theatre company based in the South West and his directing credits include 'Little Shop of Horror', 'West Side Story', 'Into the Woods', 'Rent', 'Fame', 'Crazy for You' and 'Summer Holiday'.
James' other theatre credits include Assitant Stage Manager for 'A Play on Words' and 'Threepenny Opera' both at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre and Deputy Stage Manager for 'Normal' at the Alma Tavern Theatre.
TV and Film credits include Location Assistant for 'Mistresses' for the BBC, Junior Researcher/Runner for 'Young Mum's Mansion' for BBC 3 and Location runner for the film 'Never Let Me Go' due for release 2010 starring Keira Knightley. James is thrilled to be part of the 1916 production team and looks forward to making a difference to British Musical Theatre.
Mike Lees - Designer
Mike Lees graduated in Theatre Design from the Rose Bruford School of Speech and Drama, having previously worked as an actor, stage-manager, make-up and scenic artist. The range of his work incorporates community theatre, commercial tours, repertory theatre, musicals, operas and dance on varying scales, for London, Europe, America and Russia. Most recently, he has created designs for Jet Set Go, Chat!, The Great British Soap Opera (Jermyn Street Theatre); Scouts in Bondage (Kings Head Theatre) Cinderella (Harrow Playhouse) 3Squared (Wimbeldon) Burn, Knuckelball (Edinburgh festival and Uk Tours) the World and London Premieres of the musical adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities (directed by Paul Nicholas) Mathilde (directed by Simon Callow in Edinburgh and Matt Ryan at the Vaudeville; London); Alvaro’s Balcony at the Landor, London and the first musical adaptation of The Young Ones. He created the designs for A Day By The Sea at the Finborough in its first performance since 1953, in conjunction with Nicholas de Jongh/John Gielgud season; and he recently designed his first film, ThinPale4Some for MTV. Other designs include Still Life at the Penguin Café (Savoy Ballroom) The Secret Garden (Hampton Court) Holding Hands at Paschendale (Lyric Theatre Belfast and Tour) What I Heard About Iraq (Pleasance Theatre & Uk Tour) the British premiere of Myths & Hymns (Finborough Theatre) Pete & Dud Come Again (The Venue Leicester Square and Australian Tour). Gone (Ambassadors Theatre, London) Big Bruvva – The Musical, Talent, Humble Boy, Dinner and Forever Plaid (Upstairs at the Gatehouse) Forever Plaid (Kuala Lumpur) Shadowtracks, Chinca-Chancha-Cooroo, Antiphony, All in the Mind (W11 Opera original commissions at the Britten Theatre, London.) An Inspector Calls, (for which he won the Mercury Theatre Design Award) Hay fever and How the other half love. (Little Theatre, Leicester); Children of Eden, Barnum, (Forum Theatre, New York); Copacabana, Chicago, Once Upon A Mattress and Cabaret (Jack Romano, New York); Oidipus tyrannous, Lysistrata (Bloomsbury Theatre, London); Whistle down the wind (Churchill Theatre, Bromley & Tour); 3way (London Festival of Gay Drama) Assassins, On The Ceiling and the British premiere of Sondheim’s Do I hear a Waltz? (Landor, London); Making History (Riverside Studios and Irish tour) and numerous pantomimes. In the last five years, he has designed and costumed the U.K. and European tours of several operas, including: Turandot, Madame Butterfly, La Nozze Di Figaro, Don Giovanni, Lulu, La Boheme, Tosca, La Cenerentola, Der Shauspieldirektor, The Fiery Angel and a series of youth musical productions throughout the Middle East. He has produced costumes for several major West End Productions and UK Tours, been invited to work as creative consultant and concept designer on short films, exhibitions, many pieces of new writing and on varying aspects of design. Mike has lectured and advised on various forms of staging from Ancient Greek, through Shakespeare to the History of Victorian Pantomime He has toured the U.K., Asia Pacific and Australia and the Middle East, creating make-up designs and styling photographic shoots, album covers and publicity for various record companies, recording artists and for several worldwide publications.