I am a freelance creative and am passionate about providing creative opportunities for everyone. I believe that theatre can be a platform for change.
I am excited about collaborating with new people and bringing fresh ideas to life, especially co-creating with non-performers, students and young people.
01 / About
I am a trained Theatre Director and Practitioner specialising in creating, teaching, project management, arts leadership support and mentoring. I trained in Directing at East 15 Acting School and GITIS in Moscow. Having been Creative Director of Trestle Theatre Company for 7 years, I specialise in mask, physical theatre and arts on prescription programmes.
My passion is education, outreach, and providing creative opportunities for all. I am a fellow of Higher Education and have taught theatre at a variety of levels, from Primary to HE, on BA, MA, and PGCE programmes.
I am committed to developing cultural links between organisations, mentoring and training new artists, and advocating for access to the arts for all. I was an integral part of developing the Women Centre Stage festivals, championing women playwrights; sat as a cultural representative on the programming board for the Hertfordshire Year of Culture 2020; and have been a steering group member of the Hertfordshire Cultural Education Partnership.
I have been running training and professional development programmes for artists and teachers for nearly 10 years and continue to cherish my work with higher education establishments and prioritise my own professional development.
02 / Creative Producing
Create, Speak, Thrive
Sep 2022 – May 2026
I was the creative strategic lead on this 2-year research project, for which I secured over £100,000 in funding from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation as part of the 5th round of The Teacher Development Fund.
During the two-year project, I worked in partnership with eight schools across Luton and Stevenage, the Royal Opera House, the University of Hertfordshire and a speech and language specialist to explore creative approaches to speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) using drama and storytelling techniques.
I then secured £30,000 in funding from Arts Council England to develop a Toolkit of resources based on what we discovered, along with an accompanying CPDL workshop for primary teachers.
"I've really valued the opportunity to work together on Create, Speak, Thrive and the incredible journey it sent us on. The project benefited from Helen's thoughtful leadership, belief in the work and ability to bring people together around meaningful creative collaboration."
— Charlotte Wood
All About Us Festival
Oct 2022 – Mar 2023
Whilst at Trestle Theatre Company, I brought 10 local groups and organisations together to produce the All About Us Festival. The festival took place between the 1st and 9th of October in 2022 and was a celebration of all the creative work our community had been making during the Covid-19 lockdown that they hadn't been able to make public-facing. It was a festival of celebration and visibility.
In collaboration with local partners, I set up a steering group and successfully raised funding from Arts Council England to deliver a three-strand project designed for and with the community groups at Trestle Theatre Company and other local organisations focused on supporting adults with physical and learning disabilities across Herts.
The first strand was a series of free accessible workshops held at a variety of the city's most vibrant venues, including St Albans Cathedral and Trestle Arts Base. The second was a week-long festival showcasing the brilliant work of the participating groups, and the third was a month-long exhibition hosted by St Albans Museum + Gallery, featuring films and visual art produced by the festival participants.
Behind the Mask
2021
During Trestle Theatre Company's 40th year, I raised funding to deliver a year's worth of celebration. Despite the challenges that the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns gave us, we were able to deliver a 6-week exhibition at St Albans Museum, a digital archive and a schools project that brought together 4 schools and Trestle's School of Drama to make brand new mask performances, filmed and shared at an online exclusive performance event. I was the project manager and curator for all elements of the project.
Women Centre Stage
2015 and 2016 — In partnership with The Actors Centre, The National Theatre Temporary Space and Hampstead Theatre
Women Centre Stage was a festival of workshops, panel discussions and new writing, seeing Sphinx working with 49 pieces of theatre, each with a hugely diverse response to the theme of Heroines and Power, all driven to put women centre stage. Women made up 91% of the creatives involved.
Contributors included GRAEAE, KALI, Bolton Octagon, Inspector Sands, Rona Munro, Barney Norris, Timberlake Wertenbaker, Rachel Delahey, Roy Williams, April De Angelis, Gemma Whelan, David Mercatali, Brigid Larmour, Rosemary Squire OBE, Tanika Gupta, Penelope Skinner, Geoff Coleman, Angela Clerkin, Beatrix Campbell OBE, Natalie Wilson, Caz Moran, Susannah Tresillian, Alice Hamilton, Anna Ledwich, Anya Reiss, Lucy Pitman Wallace, Luke Barnes, Charlotte Josephine, Matilda Ibini, Sharmila Chauhan, Oladipo Agboluaje, Zoe Waterman, Bryony Shanahan, Hottubs and Trampolines, and Charlotte Cornwell.
"It's great to see not only the issues being raised but action taken to combat them, so leading female roles become the norm across the industry."
— Official Theatre, 31st March 2015
03 / Arts and Wellbeing
I am passionate about delivering Arts and Health projects and have worked across my career with NEET young people, young carers, adults experiencing mental health difficulties, and refugee and migrant young people.
I believe the arts can be a powerful tool for intervention, supporting people's mental health, combatting loneliness, and allowing people to express themselves. My projects in this area have often explored themes of identity, advocacy and hope, and I have partnered with organisations such as Mind In Mid Herts, Dacorum Borough Council and Spotlight Counselling support.
The use of masks in this area has proven especially interesting, particularly in relation to emotions, and I am keen to explore more opportunities to develop this work.
04 / Teaching & Education
I have led over 50 professional CPDL training sessions for close to 1000 teachers, practitioners and artists in mask, physical theatre and creative approaches to speech and language for 9 years.
In 2021, I was awarded a Fellowship of Higher Education from Middlesex University.
I led the MA in Education (Drama) pathway at Middlesex University for 3 years, including acting as a thesis supervisor and supporting the development of individual action research projects.
I taught on the PGCE Drama/Drama and English pathway at Middlesex University for 8 years.
I have taught mask practice with MA, MFA and BA students at Drama Studio London for 5 years.
I was an Associate Lecturer at Northampton University on both the Drama and Acting courses for 6 years.
"Helen kept the students really engaged throughout the session, moving through the different tasks seamlessly, meaning the students were able to apply the skills immediately, working with confidence both with and without the masks, creating some lovely moments throughout."
Read the article on Chad →
05 / Directing / Dramaturgy
How to Not Sink by Georgia Christou
Island by Emma Jowett
Welcome Home Lottery by Matilda Ibini
Doing the Beautiful by Siren Turner
Ibrahim's Present by Eileen Dillon
06 / CV
Freelance Practitioner / Creative Producer
As a freelancer, I have worked with many organisations, including Polka Theatre, The Kiln, The Bush, The Royal & Derngate, Watford Palace Theatre and Coram Shakespeare's Festival. This work has included delivering regular community projects and workshops for people of all ages, including designing, leading, and delivering intergenerational projects, school programmes, and youth theatre projects.
The core of this work has always been promoting accessible art for all, delivering high-quality opportunities for people to engage, have their voice heard and enjoy participation.
Trestle Theatre Company
April 2017 – April 2026
My role changed several times during my time at Trestle Theatre, starting as Learning and Participation Manager and ending as Creative Director. During my time at Trestle, I saw the company through a global pandemic and a merger to stabilise the organisation's future, and I spearheaded several key projects, including the development of a new mask set.
- Leading the overall artistic strategy.
- Fundraising and budget setting.
- Managing a team of employees and freelance artists.
- Designing and delivering artist training programmes.
- Designing and delivering our education programmes.
- Supporting the management of a building and the regular creative sessions delivered there, including a youth theatre and various community groups.
- Delivering large-scale projects around mask theatre, education and training nationally and internationally.
Sphinx Theatre
December 2013 – Present
I am an Artistic Associate of Sphinx Theatre and have been since 2013. My work with Sphinx involved being part of spearheading the Sphinx Test, inspired by the Bechdel Test, as well as:
- Curating and assistant producing Women Centre Stage Festival 2015 and 2016 in collaboration with the National Theatre, Hampstead Theatre and The Actors Centre.
- Assisting with the producing and directing of all other Sphinx shows and events.
- Managing marketing campaigns, running the company's online presence, including updating the website and social networking and managing the day-to-day administration of the company.
- Being involved in developing future projects and artistic vision, including working on funding applications.
Northampton University
September 2014 – April 2017
Associate Lecturer at Northampton University, working with both Acting and Drama students on community outreach modules and social enterprise.
Royal & Derngate
January 2013 – July 2013
Resident Associate Artist, including directing and assistant-directing several mainstage productions, planning and facilitating weekly community sessions, and contributing to the future development of the arts team's plans at the time.
07 /Let's make
something.
Please get in touch if you have any questions about previous projects or my current availability. I am always happy to connect and chat!