AMELIA CARDWELL (dancer)
Graduated from Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance class of 2008. Previously she attended the Arts Educational School Chiswick, where she studied dance and musical theatre. She was part of Union Dances youth company Union Two in 2005. She has also performed in a short dance film called “snobs and chavs” choreographed and directed by Georgiana Cavendish which was also performed at the Cocran Theatre in 2007. This is Amelia’s first project with Chordelia Company and she is very excited!
GRAHAME GARDNER (lighting designer/technical director)
Born in Glasgow, Grahame studied at Queen Margaret College in Edinburgh and at the University of Rochester, New York. As Chief Electrician for Scottish Ballet, he designed lighting for many shows including Sonata In Time, Who Cares?, Prisoners, Cheri, Carmen, and Esprit. Other dance designs include The Bright-Eyed Mariner and The Winter Room for Tabula Rasa Dance Company; Song of Songs for Scottish Dance Theatre; Project Y for YDance; and Cinderella Pilot Error! for Company Chordelia. Operas include The Loving of Etain and An Turus for Paragon Ensemble, and The Magic Flute and Falstaff for AIYF Opera Garden. Other music theatre work includes Cryptic’s Black Over Red and Each…And Every Inch; and BeRIOtous, Glassworks and RITE for Paragon Ensemble. Grahame is also Associate Lighting Designer for Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake, and his work has taken him all over the world. His other interests include dowsing and geomancy, and he is a Vice-President of the British Society of Dowsers.
FREYA JEFFS (dancer)
Freya Jeffs trained at Elmhurst School for Dance and Central School of Ballet, during which time she performed with the Royal Ballet, English National Ballet and the Birmingham Royal Ballet. In 2007 Freya Toured the UK with Ballet Central, dancing works by choreographers such as Christopher Bruce, Rafael Bonachela and Will Tuckett. Since graduating with a BA Hons in Professional Dance and Performance, Freya became a founding member of Two’s Company – Dance and Music, and has performed with Scottish Ballet in Sleeping Beauty and Romeo and Juliet.
KIMBERLEY LAWRIE (dancer)
Kimberley is from Glasgow where she trained at The Dance School of Scotland before going on to Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance where she graduated with a 1st Class BA Honours Degree. Theatre credits include Scottish Ballet (The Nutcracker and La Sylphide), Harlem Ballet (Firebird), Pacific Northwest Ballet (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) and Vienna Festival Ballet with roles such as Odile in Swan Lake and Blue Bird in Sleeping Beauty. She has also performed with Scottish Opera in the recent production of Manon and The Italian Girl in Algiers. Kimberley has also worked with E4 dancing in the drama Nearly Famous and with MTV on a Samsung Ad.
LINDA DUNCAN MCLAUGHLIN (associate director/performer)
Linda trained at Guildford School of Acting, and has worked in theatre all over the UK for companies including Birds of Paradise, Citizens’ Theatre, Complete Productions, Dundee Rep, 7:84, Licketyspit, Oldham Coliseum, Oran Mor, Plymouth Theatre Royal, Reeling & Writhing, TAG, Take Two, Theatre Highland, Vanishing Point and Attic Wimbledon, among others. Her TV and film work includes: Jess the Border Collie, Still Game, Monarch of the Glen, Murder Rooms, Rab C Nesbitt and The Key (all BBC), Scrap It! (Discovery), Taggart (SMG), Burns: Alive & Kicking (Channel 4), Bumping The Odds (BBC Screen Two) and Solid Air (Solid Air/Momentum Films).
EMMA PARK (Education Artist)
In July 2007, Emma graduated from Edinburgh’s Telford College with a first class BA Hons in Dance and shortly after performing with the Edinburgh International Festival was invited to New York to train with Lynn Simonson, grand master of the Simonson Technique. Upon her return Emma undertook an apprenticeship with Company Chordelia and has since performed with Firebox Dance Theatre, Litza Bixler, Dante or Die and New Raw Soul Dance Theatre. She established Black Swan Dance Theatre in July 2008 and is part of the trinity that is working to establish Foundations Dance Collective; a Scottish platform company for new dance graduates in Scotland. Emma lectures at the Adam Smith College and teaches for Y Dance amongst other freelance employers.
KIRSTY POLLOCK (dancer)
Kirsty Pollock graduated with a distinction from the Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance in 2003; whilst at Rambert, she was privileged to work with world-renowned choreographer Robert Cohan, performing solo in his production of ‘Stabat Mater’. She has gone on to dance with Spinal Chord Projects, Company Chordelia, and Martial Dance and has toured throughout Scotland; her teaching and choreographic experience includes teaching ballet, jazz and contemporary classes at the Edinburgh Dance Academy and leading weekly dance workshops for children and choreographing a ballet performance for Benbecula Projects, Uist. Kirsty was invited to become an apprentice with David Hughes Dance in May 2009, and took on her first major role with the company in their Edinburgh Fringe Festival production of ‘The Red Room’ at the Traverse Theatre the following August. Originally from Alloa, she is now based in Glasgow. Kirsty is glad to be working again with Company Chordelia.
TOM ROGERS (Designer)
Training: Motley Theatre Design Course, 2003-2004
Tom was a finalist in the 2005 Linbury Biennial Prize for Stage Design, working with Random Dance at Sadlers Wells, and was also shortlisted for the 2005 Jocelyn Herbert Award for Theatre Design.
Opera credits: La Cenerentola for Scottish Opera, Let’s Make An Opera/ The Little Sweep at Aldeburgh, Flight for the Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama, Eugene Onegin at the Peacock Theatre for British Youth Opera, The Magic Flute & Broomstick, an opera for children at The Wigmore Hall, Alfonso Und Estrella at the Bloomsbury Theatre for UCOpera, Die Zauberflote, La Finta Semplice, The Long Christmas Dinner and A Dinner Engagement all for the Guildhall School Of Music and Drama.
Theatre credits: The Chimes at Southwark Playhouse, Death and The Maiden at The New Wolsey, Ipswich, The Man Who at The Orange Tree, Richmond, Laughing Gas at the Theatre Royal Plymouth and National tour, The Librarian’s Joke at the Pleasance London and National tour, Phaedra’s Love, Sheppey and Protection for Arts Ed, Chiswick, Letters Of War for the National Youth Theatre on board the HMS Belfast, The Winters Tale, Tale Of Two Cities, Certain Young Men, Black Comedy and The Real Inspector Hound all for the Guildhall School Of Music & Drama.
Future projects include: The Secret Marriage for Scottish Opera and City of Angels for the GSMD.
DANIEL MURFIN (Company/Stage Manager)
Daniel has worked in theatre for a number of years, in various areas of expertise ranging from Lighting Design to Stage Management. Qualifying with a BA (Hons) in Lighting Design from Rose Bruford College, Daniel has also studied Singing at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and has a particular passion for Opera, Dance and Music Theatre; having also performed in works such as Prokofiev’s Love for Three Oranges and Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In addition to his work on traditional theatre productions Daniel also has experience in corporate and outdoor events. Beyond his design skills, Daniel is also an able Stage Manager and Production Electrician. Lighting Designs include The Misanthrope, As You Like It, Sombrero Fallout and The Bucket Rider, a collaborative project with SPNM. Daniel has also worked as Production/Chief Electrician and Assistant Stage Manager on numerous productions. Daniel has operated surtitles for Opera productions including Dialogues des Carmelites and Cosí Fan Tutte. Daniel is delighted to be working with Company Chordelia on this exciting new production.
DAMIAN THANTREY (singer/performer)
Baritone Damian Thantrey trained at the RCM with Margaret Kingsley. On leaving the RCM, Damian received the Tagore Gold Medal and held the Mills Williams Junior Fellowship. He is continuing his studies with Paul Farrington. 2008 saw Damian sing Chau Lin A Night at the Chinese Opera for Scottish Opera, Gong Gong Confucius Says for the Hackney Music Development Trust and Toby The Cumnor Affair for Tete-a-Tete, as well as a major solo recital at Pollok House in Glasgow, accompanied by Malcolm Martineau. Operatic highlights for 2007 included The English Clerk Death in Venice at the Aldeburgh and Bregenz Festivals, a role he will sing again in 2009 at the Opéra de Lyon, Pastore Orfeo for Opera North, Eisenstein Die Fledermaus on tour with Scottish Opera, The Duke of Rothsay La Jolie Fille de Perth for Chelsea Opera Group, as well as a series of roles in new opera specialists Tete-a-Tete’s Blind Date. Future plans also include Maxwell Davies The Lighthouse for Psappha at the Orkney and Buxton Festivals. Damian’s other operatic roles have included Marullo Rigoletto at the Royal Opera House, Flemish Deputy Don Carlos for Welsh National Opera, the Traveller roles Death in Venice at the Theatre de Metz, Shaunard La Boheme for Scotttish Opera, and Sadik Der Stein der Weisen and Nardo La Finta Giardiniera for Garsington Opera.
SUSANNAH WAPSHOTT (pianist)
Susannah is from Shropshire and studied music at Manchester University and the Royal Northern College of Music, gaining a Masters Degree with a rare distinction in both performance and dissertation. Since graduating, she has worked as a pianist, accompanying in recitals around the UK, and as a vocal coach. Susannah now works as a repetiteur for Scottish Opera and Opera North, amongst others, and has recently branched into conducting as Music Director for Edinburgh Studio Opera.