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Glynis is an actor, theatre maker, director and teacher. A graduate of the John Bolton Theatre School, Glynis co-wrote and performed in her show Haul Away for which she won Best Female Performer (Independent Theatre) Green Rooms Awards 2006 and a nomination for Best New Australian Play. She is a founding member of physical theatre groups The Business(The Concert 2003 British Council Award), Blue Vault and Hunchback Theatre.
Recent theatre acting roles include Letters From Animals, Asylum and The Time is Not Yet Ripe (Best Ensemble (Independent Theatre) Green Rooms Awards 2006) for Here Theatre. Glynis directed Djoushi Cabana: The Dilapidated Diva & Her Three Piece Outfit, 2000 Best of The Melbourne Fringe Festival. Film/TV credits include leading roles in Waiting at the Royal 2001 Banf International Film Festival Best Film Made for Television, The Interview, An Angel at my Table, and guest roles in Blue Heelers and Something in the Air.
Glynis teaches performing arts in primary schools, Victoria University TAFE and to circus students and people with disabilities.
Clare Bartholomew (Conductor, Actor)
Clare Bartholomew is a Melbourne based freelance actor, deviser, and director. Clare joined MPTC as an actor in 1995 and was Co-Artistic Director from 2002 - 2005. Clare also conducts performances and teaches Playback regularly in the community and corporate sector.
She works as a Clown Doctor at Children’s Hospitals’ in Melbourne and around Australia and is also a Training Advisor for The Humour Foundation (Clown Doctors) nationally.
Clare won the Comedy Festival Foreign Exchange Award, Moosehead Comedy Award and a Green Room Award nomination for her solo show One Man’s Business. She was invited to perform the show at The Traverse Theatre for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
She is a member of the physical comedy ensemble ‘The Business’ who have performed their award winning shows’ The Business…as usual (Best Comedy - Melbourne Fringe) and The Concert (The British Council Oz Export Award – Melbourne Comedy Festival) nationally and internationally.
Clare has taught Master Classes in clown, improvisation and physical performance independently and also in association with Victoria University, The Starlight Foundation, Circus Oz, The Tasmanian Circus Festival, Slipstream Circus, POW, Westside Circus and The Women’s Circus. She has a Certificate IV in Workplace Training & Assessment.
In 2007 she completed with her company – Tobias & Bartholomew a highly successful seven-city tour of Canada with Die Roten Punkte (The Red Dots) a German punk rock duo that has also been performed in New York City, the Adelaide Fringe Festival (06, 07 & 08), the Brisbane Powerhouse and The Melbourne International Comedy Festival (06, 07 & 08).
Vanessa Chapple (Musician)
Vanessa joined Melbourne Playback Theatre as musician in 2001. Vanessa has played with Vardos (double bass), Ju Ju (Tabla and Piano), Linus (tabla and percussion). Over the past 15 years she has created sound concepts/design for many theatre works.
Vanessa Chapple is a director, writer and dramaturg whose most recent work includes Haul Away starring Glynis Angel (La Mama, May 2005), Her Secret Face with Josephine Lange, MIPAC, June 2005 (Green Room Award nomination for Best New Australian Writing and Best Direction), A Frog in your Throat, Coco’s Lunch (international award winning acapella ensemble (The Victorian Arts Centre, July 2005, Sydney Opera House, 2006; 2005.) Vanessa directed The Performing Older Women’s Circus (POW) in their show This Skin (March 2006), and received Full Tilt creative development funding for the work Nautilus with Kate Hunter and Leo Dale (2006).
Vanessa holds a BA (Hons Psychology), University of Melbourne and trained at The John Bolton Theatre School, (1996-97). She studied a Graduate Diploma in Movement and Dance (University of Melbourne, 1998), and continues her studies of music presently on piano and double bass.
Ian David (Conductor, Actor)
Ian joined Melbourne Playback Theatre Company in 1999 as an actor and as a conductor in 2007. Ian is responsible as technical assistant and lighting operator with Alan Davies. He is the education assistant for the company.
Ian works as a performer and teacher, and is particularly interested in solo work. He has a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Performance Studies (Victoria University), and has trained with Al Wunder at Theatre of the Ordinary for the past 7 years. Ian is a student of Hilda Knottenbelt’s Creative Voice and has attended the New Zealand Playback Theatre Summer School in 2007 & 2008. Ian has trained with the National Theatre Drama School. In addition, Ian holds a Diploma in Education (P-12), and Certificate IV in Workplace Training and Assessment and has a Bachelor of Economics and a Diploma in Beauty Therapy.
Ian appeared in Home for ABC TV. He has written two solo shows, the last, The Residual was performed at La Mama in 2003. In 2005 he performed in The Joker at Dancehouse for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. In 2007 he toured the Giant Story Book (a puppet show) through Victorian primary schools. Ian performed his puppet show Gitterella on Earth Hour 2008.
Ian works as a teacher for Chisholm Institute Department of Beauty Therapy and is a consultant for Clinique Laboratories.
Alan Davies (Lighting)
Danny Diesendorf (Actor)
Danny has a Grad. Dip. of Animateuring from the VCA and trained at Ecole de Mime Corporel (London). He has experience performing at festivals, carnivals and corporate settings incorporating both acting, clowning and a range of circus skills. He has trained with Tony Kishawi in masked performance styles and has attended workshops with Phillipe Gaulier.
Danny has extensive experience creating and acting in new performances including; The 72 Hour Mime Project, recipient of a Melbourne Fringe Special Commendation Award, Hip Hop On Pop and The Typist, The Doctor and the Girl with Two Heads . Other acting roles include in the Christos Tsolkas play, Dead Caucasians and playing an eccentric soldier in the television drama Bastard Boys. While living in Canberra (before 1999), Danny created, co-directed and acted in a dozen performances with Full Tilt Performance Troupe and five with director David Branson all of which were funded by Canberra's Arts ACT. Full Tilt was commissioned to create and perform theatre for many events including the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and Canberra-Nara Sister City celebrations held in Japan. Danny continues to work with former Full Tilters Robin Davidson and Mark Johnson.
Danny has taught movement within a TAFE acting course at The National Theatre Drama School and currently directs The Ned Kelly Gang, a theatre company for participants with disabilities (allied with Scope). He has taught a range of performance skills including acting, circus, clowning and masked theatre with St Martin's and Canberra Youth Theatre. Danny has also has run workshops for high school drama teachers as part of in-service training days.
Tim is a graduate of the University of Melbourne, and trained with the St Martins Performance Ensemble and at Circle in the Square Theatre School in New York. At the 2006 Green Room Awards, Tim was nominated for Best Male Performer for his role in Still a Hero and won the Best Ensemble Award for The Time is not yet Ripe (both awards were in the independent theatre category). Recent theatre highlights include a sell out La Mama Explorations Season of his own show Lloyd Beckmann Beekeeper, In Train by Chris Thompson for the Arts Centre’s ArtsConnect9 Program, Talya Chalef’s in other words at the Abbotsford Convent and Kit Lazaroo’s Asylum at La Mama (winner of the 2005 Wal Cherry Play of the Year). Tim has also performed at the Arts Centre, fortyfivedownstairs, the Victorian College of the Arts, St Martins, Gasworks, The Organ Factory, Union House Theatre, and as part of the Melbourne and Adelaide Fringe Festivals. Tim will appear in the upcoming SBS series Bogan Pride, can be seen in the feature film Dying Breed and has appeared in numerous short films.
Andrew Gray (Co-Artistic Director, Conductor, Actor)
Andrew Gray rejoined the company in 2003 after returning from living and studying in New York for 5 years. Originally an actor with the company, Andrew currently facilitates/conducts both corporate and public Playback performances and in 2007, joined Glynis Angel as Co-Artistic Director of the company.
Andrew recently completed a post-graduate in Directing at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA), where he originally trained as an actor. He has recently directed The Winterling by Jez Butterworth at Red Stitch Actors Theatre. While living in America, Andrew trained at the Michael Howard Acting Studio in New York and with Ruth Zaporah's Action Theatre in Berkeley, California. He is also a qualified Feldenkrais Movement practitioner, a freelance actor in the Melbourne theatre community and a founding member of the improvisation troupe, Five Square Metres.
Andrew's teaching credits include the Victorian College of the Arts, National Theatre Acting program, Victoria University Performing Arts Program, Deakin University Dance Program as well as freelance teaching in schools, drama associations and public and corporate workshops for Melbourne Playback Theatre.
Ernie Gruner (Musician) www.erniegruner.com
Ernie Gruner joined Playback as a musician in March 1999. He has been the Company's Treasurer since 2000. He works as a professional musician, teacher and booking agent. He regularly performs at events ranging from festivals to weddings to conferences and manages Kaleidoscope Music, an entertainment booking agency specialising in acoustic music.
Ernie plays in several bands including; Klezmeritis (East European Jewish), Yalla! (Middle-Eastern) and Jugularity (Jazz Comedy Cabaret), He collaborates in music theatre projects such as Russian Soup and Emma Celebrazione and has over 40 recording credits in jazz, rock, country, classical, celtic and world/folk music areas. Theatre experience includes cabaret with Jugularity.
Television experience includes ABC TVs Spicks and Specks with Klezmeritis. Ernie holds a Science Degree and before becoming a full-time musician he worked for 10 years in science research and management. His teaching experience includes giving private lessons (classical, klezmer, celtic and improvised violin) and lectures and workshops in klezmer music.
Petra Kalive (Actor)
Petra joined Playback in late 2006.
Since graduating from WAAPA (Acting 2004), where Petra developed a love of comedy, character roles and voice, she has diversified and moved into directing, writing and teaching as well.
Acting credits include touring regional Victoria with Complete Works Theatre Company, performing in the VCA Directors season, St Martins, Short & Sweet, Adelaide and Melbourne Fringe Festivals. She has also featured in various short films and TV credits include, Blue Heelers, Tripping Over and most recently a lead-supporting role in Underbelly. As a director Petra has worked for St Martins, Short and Sweet (Judges choice) and Holmesglen Tafe. In 1999 she received an honourable mention for her play Stroganoff in the St Martins Playwright competition and since then has had works commissioned by the Anatomy Collective and The Artery, has developed a Peter Goldsworthy novel into a stage play 3 Dog Night, and has written and performed in her own one woman comedy show for the Melbourne Fringe.
Petra has been actively involved in Youth Theatre since graduating and has facilitated workshops in voice, movement, acting and screen skills.
Alex Sangster joined Melbourne Playback Theatre as an actor in 2002, and began working as a conductor in 2007.
She began performing professionally in 1988 with Handspan's 4 Little Girls and later trained at the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), graduating in 1995.
Screen credits include; Blue Heelers, Halifax, Phoenix and Street Angels. Alex has performed in numerous fringe theatre productions as well as Playbox’s Language of the Gods. She also won the Australian Young Playwrights Award for a radio play broadcast on ABC Radio National.
Alex has taught drama for the past four years to kids at the Carlton 'Commission Flats', and has taught at the National Theatre.
Alex is a Minister of the Word for The Uniting Church.
Mike McEvoy (Actor)See Mike's web page
Mike McEvoy joined Melbourne Playback Theatre in 2005. He is an Honours Graduate from the School of Creative Arts, VCA and is also an ensemble member with Rawcus. Mike's theatre credits include roles in; Hunger (2007 Melbourne Festival, Rawcus, dir. Kate Sulan), White With Wire Wheels (2007, UHT, dir. Susie Dee), I Start Again (2006, Abbotsford Convent, dir. David Myles), The True Amazon Adventures of Roger Casement (2006, La Mama), Ariette Taylor's highly acclaimed production of Ivanov (2005, fortyfivedownstairs), Barry Dickins' Tyranny (2005, La Mama, dir. Robert Reid), An Air Balloon Across Antarctica (2004, The Foundry), Matilda Goes Down (2003, Mechanics Institute, dir. Sarah Austin) and The Meeting (2002/03, The Open Stage, dir. Paul Monaghan).
Screen credits include roles in; Broken Love Songs (2007), A Stowaway's Guide to the Pacific (2005, ABC), Webster Say (2005), Late (2005). You might also have spotted him in the odd TV commercial and any number of independent and student short film projects.
Mike has facilitated drama workshops at the CAE, St Martin’s Youth Arts Centre, in high schools, for young men at the Melbourne Juvenile Justice Centre and for teenagers with disabilities. He is also a facilitator at the Education Foundation.
Nikki joined Playback in May 2007. She has been involved in creating, devising and performing theatre since first joining the local youth theatre company at age eight.
In 2005 Nikki completed a Diploma of Arts in Small Companies and Community Theatre (VU). In 2006 Nikki completed a Cert. III in Solo Performance (VU) concluding in a self devised solo show informed by trainings exploring Butoh, Suzuki and Grotowski methods.
She has worked with groups such as Actors for Refugees, Amnesty International and Ooh La Femme Cancan Troupe. She is a member of the fIRST cHORUS choir, which performs new and original works. In 2007, she worked with a small group of fIRST cHORUS members in collaboration with Jacob Boehme (Master of Puppetry) to create the original live soundscape for Idja (Skin), singing in the traditional Narangga language. In 2007 Nikki started working with Roundangle creating and performing Sensory Theatre at various festivals, primarily exploring smell within story while audience members are blindfolded.
Nikki is currently working for Our Planet Enterprises, touring The Sustainables (environmental educational theatre) to schools in Vic, as well as teaching drama to adults with intellectual disabilities at the Hawthorn Community House.
Tamara Saulwick joined Playback in early 2005. She has a Masters degree in Animateuring from VCA (2001), a B.Ed in Drama/Dance/Design from Rusden (1986-1989) and is a graduate of The John Bolton Theatre School (1991).
Tamara works as an independent actor, performance maker, director and teacher for the last 20 years. Her training and experience have been in a diverse range of areas from dance, film and TV, indoor theatre and outdoor performance to large-scale outdoor community events. She has worked with many companies including Not Yet it's Difficult, The Hunting Party, Born in a Taxi, Melbourne Theatre Company, Strange Fruit, Neil Cameron Productions, and with Justus Neumann in his Vienna based company Theaterverein zum aufgebundenen Baren. Since 2001 Tamara has been on developing her own original performance works including map folding for beginners (2001), Imprint (2005), and Pin Drop (currently in development).
In late 2007, with the assistance of professional development funding from the Australia Council, Tamara traveled to New York to train with Siti Company for six weeks.
Tamara's teaching experience includes; Associate Lecturer at the School of Communication and Creative Arts, Deakin University (2002 - 2006), guest Lecturer/Artist, Centre for Ideas, VCA (2003), director and teacher for VUT Theatre Arts (2005-2008).
Nancy Sposato has been a member of Playback since the beginning of 2005. A Bachelor at the School of Studies in Creative Arts, VCA was a catalyst for Nancy to start an ongoing investigation into the theatrical form as provocateur in contemporary culture. Influenced by dynamic performance practices such as Butoh and her training with Tess De Quincey in Body Weather, Nancy has continued her research whilst performing and directing collaborative performance projects for the Adelaide Fringe Festival, Melbourne Fringe Festival and The Big West Festival.
For the past two years Nancy has toured extensively with Strange Fruit, performing in highly accessible outdoor spectacles. Other highlights include performing and collaborating on 1803 (2005, Collingwood Children's Farm), and facilitating The Playground, an ongoing creative development that intends to create an outdoor physical theatre event around a specifically designed Playground for children and adults. The first showing of The Playground was presented at the Big West Festival.
Nancy is employed by the Arts Centre in facilitating workshop in schools and for teacher's professional development and has recently created a ten-minute solo physical theatre work for The Victorian Arts Centre. Since 2000 Nancy has been employed by the Melbourne Theatre Company coordinating and facilitating workshops in the education department. She also facilitates teenage drama workshops with the Joint Councils Access for All Abilities (JCAAA) and Melbourne Playback.