Neville Studio, Nottingham Playhouse

Friday 7th July 2023

 1:30pm-4pm

Designers are welcome to attend this workshop as well as JMK Directors. 

At the heart of a creative process is the relationship between a director and designer. In this workshop, award-winning director Matthew Xia will review his processes and techniques on working in tandem with set designers to deliver a show. He will reflect on his own experience from touring to in-house theatre and share practical ideas on the scale, as well as building a creative working relationship with a designer, supporting JMK directors to create their own tool-kit for their future productions.

Whatever stage of your directing career, you’re welcome to join and share your experience and experiences with others who are navigating similar seas

MATTHEW XIA is the award-winning Artistic Director of ATC (Actors Touring Company). He was previously Associate Artistic Director at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, (where he established OPEN EXCHANGE, an artist development scheme for over 400 next generation theatre-makers); Director-in-Residence at The Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse; and Associate Director at Theatre Royal Stratford East. He was Associate Artist at the Nottingham Playhouse alongside James Graham and Amanda Whittington.

Directing includes: HEY DUGGEE – THE LIVE THEATRE SHOW (Kenny Wax Family Entertainment/Cuffe & Taylor); the Fringe First award winning FEELING AFRAID AS IF SOMETHING TERRIBLE IS GOING TO HAPPEN (FMP/Roundabout); RICE (ATC/Orange Tree); THE WIZ (Ameena Hamid Productions/Hope Mill/BBC Big Night of Musicals), FAMILY TREE (GDIF/ATC); 846 LIVE (Theatre Royal Stratford East/GDIF); AMSTERDAM (ATC/Orange Tree/Plymouth Theatre Royal); BLOOD KNOT (Orange Tree); EDEN (Hampstead Theatre); ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI… (Nottingham Playhouse/Bristol Old Vic/HOME); INTO THE WOODS & FRANKENSTEIN (Royal Exchange Theatre); WISH LIST (Royal Exchange Theatre/Royal Court); SHEBEEN (Nottingham Playhouse/Theatre Royal Stratford East); SLEEPING BEAUTY (Theatre Royal Stratford East); DUBLIN CAROL (Sherman Theatre); BLUE/ORANGE, THE SOUND OF YELLOW (Young Vic); SIZWE BANZI IS DEAD (Genesis Future Director Award Winner – Young Vic/Eclipse); THE BLACKS (Co-Director, Theatre Royal Stratford East); I WAS LOOKING AT THE CEILING AND THEN I SAW THE SKY (Co-Director, Theatre Royal Stratford East/The Barbican); SUCKERPUNCH BOOM SUITE (The Barbican/NitroBEAT).

Matthew is a founding member of Act for Change. In 2019, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the Arts London for his efforts to make theatre universally accessible by working to promote minority groups as theatre leaders, makers and consumers.