marina caldarone
(artistic director 1992 - 1996)

Marina’s career got off to a flying start after graduating with a Drama degree from the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, as she assisted writer Howard Brenton on the first production of Bloody Poetry in 1984. A couple of years directing on the London fringe led to the National Theatre Studio, then to winning the ITV funded Regional Theatre Young Director’s award. A fantastically creative period followed as Associate Director at Theatr Clwyd, directing classics and new work, much of which toured nationally.

Freelance jobs have included working in Hong Kong, Vienna, Italy as well as Repertory productions in Britain.

Joining the Queen's Theatre as Artistic Director in 1992 has been a real highlight of her career to date. Initiating a Community Play and policy, an Education department, a Youth Theatre and Writers' Groups amongst working on some terrific productions with an incredibly able and willing team, many of whom she is delighted to note still prop the bar up, I mean still lend their talents and support!

Since leaving in 1996, Marina has been directing Radio drama for the BBC, set up a Voiceover CD production company, CRYING OUT LOUD, lectures regularly on Contemporary and Elizabethan theatre, teaches acting and playwriting at IES and Arcadia at City University, is an acting coach in television and has just had her first book on performing published here and in the States, called ACTIONS – AN ACTORS’ THESAURUS, co-written with Maggie Lloyd Williams, which is now a set text in most British and many American Drama Schools. Other publications for Nick Hern Books include THE GOOD AUDITION GUIDES - Monologues for Male and Female actors and RADIOACTIVE – a series of texts on Radio and Screen acting co-written with the extraordinary Marilyn Le Conte.

She has a continuing relationship as both tutor and guest director with East 15 Acting School, Central School of Speech and Drama, Mountview Academy and Rose Bruford College. She really enjoys working with actors in training.

Most recently she has co-written and co-directed Dick Whittington at Harlow Playhouse in December 2007 with Michael Fentiman, which has been a blast, and she still misses Panto at Hornchurch...

8.12.2007