CREATIVES

PAUL BOYD WRITER/DIRECTOR/COMPOSER

Paul Boyd is a multi award-nominated writer and composer; Pinocchio The Greatest Wonder of the Age is his 25th original stage musical to be professionally produced.

As well as his musicals which are presented in productions worldwide, Paul is the composer of original scores and soundtracks for professional theatre productions across Ireland and the UK, the co-creator and co-director of a series of internationally acclaimed water spectaculars, the writer of various plays that have toured nationally, and a stage director who has enjoyed successful collaborations with leading theatre producers.

His first production at the Lyric Theatre was Alice The Musical in 1998. The Lyric has also staged his musicals Hansel & Gretel (in 1999 and again in 2012), Red (in 2000), McCool (in 2002), and The Tale of the Beauty and the Tail of the Beast (in 2009).

Alice The Musical was commissioned by the Lyric Theatre and was revived in 2018 to mark the show’s 20th anniversary. The Lyric also commissioned Paul’s cult hit musical comedy Molly Wobbly which was presented in concert at the Lyric (in 2011 and 2012) before successful runs in Edinburgh and London’s West End. In 2019 the Lyric commissioned and presented Paul’s stage musical adaptation of Peter Pan

During lockdown in 2020 Paul wrote some of the songs for Pinocchio The Greatest Wonder of the Age and released them as a recording performed by a host of West End, TV, and musical theatre stars. The Demos album is available to download from online stores or to buy on CD from the Lyric Theatre.

In 2022 Paul will direct a new musical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz which will tour the UK, and the family musical Tickledom starring Su Pollard which opens across the UK in the spring. His new stage adaptation of Spike Milligan’s war memoir Adolf Hitler: My Part In His Downfall, postponed from 2020, will tour in the autumn.

Deborah Cook Choreographer

Deborah was born in Belfast and currently lives in New York City. She trained at The Guildford School of Acting and The Royal Academy of Music in London.

She has worked extensively in theatre and television.

Lyric Theatre credits: Peter Pan The Musical, Alice The Musical, Bah Humbug, What the Reindeer Saw, Beauty and the Beast, The Nativity, What The Donkey Saw, Gingerbread Mixup, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Pride and Prejudice the Musical, Weddings Weeins and Wakes, Forget Turkey, The Little Prince, The Painkiller, Dockers, The Tale of the Beauty and the Tail of the Beast, Howl, The Home Place, The Wizard of Oz, Dancing at Lughnasa, The Snow Queen.

Other theatre credits; Comedy of Errors the Musical, Sleeping Beauty, Jack and the Beanstalk, Aladdin, Scrooge’s Christmas, The Wizard of Oz (Ulster Theatre Company), Dancing Shoes (GBL).

Television; This Morning (ITV), The Friday Show (BBC), An Engagement with Franc (BBC), The Tractor Show (BBC), Children in Need (BBC), BBC Blast NI (BBC), EIHL Championship (Sky TV).

Advertising Campaigns; Radio Ulster Spring Trail (BBC), U105 Breakfast Show (UTV), Hughes Insurance (UTV), Coca Cola: Today’s Going To Be A Good Day (Coca Cola).

Awards: In 2009 Deborah was honoured with a Pride of Britain award for her work with young people in Northern Ireland.

Deborah is delighted to be back at the Lyric and wishes you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Stuart Marshall Set Designer

Some of Stuart’s recent designs at or for the Lyric Theatre include Dark of the Moon (Lyric Drama Studio), Ruby! (Little Willow Productions), The 39 Steps (Lyric/Bruiser Theatre Company), am Maura (Commedia of Errors), Spud! (McChill Productions) Alice The Musical (Lyric), Bah Humbug! (Lyric) and Peter Pan (Lyric).He has also designed many of Paul Boyd’s shows over the years including The Tale of the Beauty and the Tail of the Beast, Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Sinbad and Pinocchio.

Other previous Christmas shows at the Lyric include Howl! and Nativity: What the Donkey Saw by Grimes and McKee, Mistletoe and Crime, The Star Catcher, Christmas Eve Can Kill You, Seasons Greetings, The Snowman and Peter Pan.

Mary Tumlety Lighting Designer

Mary Tumelty born and lives in Belfast, graduated from Queen’s University, Belfast in 2004 with a BA in Drama Studies. She trained at the Grand Opera House, Belfast in Lighting, Sound and Stage Management for two years. In 2006 she moved to a full-time permanent position within the Brian Friel Theatre at Queen’s University as a theatre instructor/technician. Also maintaining a casual position at the GOH.

Recent credits Lighting Design, Abomination (Lyric Theatre) The Belfast Ensemble & Outburst Festival, which received an Irish Times Theatre Award for Best Opera 2020. Installation Design, Crazy Golf (Craigavon) CDM. Associate Lighting Design, Christmas for Dummies (Baby Grand, GOH) Associate Lighting Design, the revival of Shirley (Lyric Theatre) Lighting Design, Body Politics (The Mac Theatre) MACHA Productions. Lighting Design, Kindermusik (Belfast Children’s Festival) Lighting Design, Ten Plagues (Film Credit) The Belfast Ensemble. Lighting Design, Shankill/Falls Women’s Project. Lighting Design, Democracy Dances (Orchestra and Electronics collaboration) Ulster Orchestra and The Belfast Ensemble (Water Front Hall) Lighting Design, The Musician (Lyric Theatre) The Belfast Ensemble.

Lighting Installation Design, Airtastic (Abbey Centre) Lighting Design, Conversations with Friends (Lyric Theatre) CWF Productions (Element Pictures, BBC Three, Hulu) Lighting Design, The Saviour (The Everyman Theatre, Cork) Landmark Productions. Production Designer, The Car Park (Partisian Productions) Relight, The Dead: An Opera (The Gaiety Theatre, Dublin).

Pyrotechnics Design, programmer and Operator. (Zodiak Kids, CBBC) Relight, Backwards Up a Rainbow, Landmark Productions (Pavilion Theatre, Dun Laoghaire) Lighting Design, Body Politics (Brian Friel Theatre) Macha Productions. Lighting Design, A Night in November (The Mac Theatre) Soda Bread Theatre Company.

Mary is delighted to be doing Lighting Design for Pinocchio: The Greatest Wonder of the Age (The Lyric Theatre).

Gillian Lennox Costumer Designer

After graduating with BA hons in Fashion and Textiles at The University of Ulster Gillian Lennox went on to be a designer within the fashion industry.

After a spell designing for Marks & Spencer Menswear Gillian began a 14-year career working for a London based manufacturing/ design company where she progressed to Head Designer supplying companies such as on line retailer ASOS, and Southern Ireland high street stores Dunnes and A-Wear. Her designs for ASOS and A -Wear were often featured in magazine editorials.

Gillian’s work often took her overseas to Paris, Syria and Morocco where she gained insight into the entire process of textile design, garment and pattern construction.

Throughout her career Gillian also continued with her own freelance work and has been a maker and illustrator for Universal Studios when they first came to Northern Ireland with films such as Your Highness.

Gillian has assisted on the BBC Proms and Children in Need and designed and made the costumes for The Belfast Mela South Asian Dance Academy.

Before being appointed as Costume Supervisor with the Lyric Theatre in August 2017 Gillian free-lanced as a maker with the Lyric Theatre, working on various productions including Little Red Riding Hood & The Big Bad Wolf, The Gingerbread Mix Up, The 39 Steps and The Ladykillers.

For the Lyric Theatre, Gillian has supervised the costume department on all producing shows for the past four years and has been the Costume Designer for Dr Scroggy’s War, Good Vibrations, Alice: The Musical, Double Cross, Rough Girls (Arts & Business Awards) Dark of the Moon, Shirley Valentine, Peter Pan: The musical, 1984 (Postponed Covid), Sadie and Dracula

ERIN CHARTERIS COSTUMER DESIGNER

Erin graduated from Queens University in 2011 with a BA Hons in English Literature. She has worked at the Lyric Theatre since it reopened in 2011 and works full time in the Costume Department. During a five month sabbatical from the Lyric she worked as a maker on season 6 of Game of Thrones. She received a certificate in historical hair styling in 2018 and has since made historically accurate wigs for museum interpretation.

Costume Design Credits: Lyric Theatre credits include: The Comedy of Errors; Light Shining in Buckinghamshire; Oedipus the King; Our Country’s Good;

The Miracle 55 Days; What Are They Like? Mistletoe and Crime; Eternal Love The Ladykillers and Alice The Musical, Peter Pan, Sadie and Pinocchio.

Other credits include: Yes, So I Said Yes; Normal; Breathing Water; The Golden Point and Afterwards Frankenstein; Proni: Titanic Centenary Event; City Hall: Titanic Centenary Event History of Stormont immersive experience, Kabosh: Partition Stories with the National Museums of Northern Ireland.

OLI GEORGE REW MUSICAL DIRECTOR

Training: Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts (Musical Direction, Recipient of Help Musicians UK’s Lesley Hayes Award) and University of Cambridge.

Musical Directing credits include: Honk! (UK tour); Soldier On (The Other Palace and UK Tour); Give My Regards To Broadway (Upstairs at the Gatehouse); H.R.Haitch and Honk! (Union Theatre); Hot Lips and Cold War (London Theatre Workshop); Peter Pan, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Aladdin (Theatre Royal Bath); When Midnight Strikes and Birds of Paradise (Drayton Arms Theatre); Chicken Little, DinoStory and Song Writers’ Showcase (From Page To Stage Festival of New Musical Theatre, The Other Palace Studio); Mary Stuart: The Musical (Workshop, Mountview Catalyst Festival 2017); [Title of Show] (Waterloo East Theatre); Busters (Bernie Grant Arts Centre).

Assistant and Associate Musical Directing credits include: Evita (China Tour 2019); Swallows and Amazons (University Parks, Oxford); On the Town (University of Chichester); Blondel (Union Theatre); Paper Hearts (Edinburgh Fringe 2016); Anne of Green Gables (Unicorn Theatre); Undergraduate Musical Theatre Showcase 2015 (Phoenix Theatre) and First Lady Suite (Karamel Club).

Oli was extensively involved with productions at the ADC Theatre and was Musical Director for Into The Woods, Company, Cabaret, Merrily We Roll Along, Footloose and Jet Set Go!