Richard is Director of Open Theatre, which seeks to place the creativity of young people with learning disabilities at the centre of the cultural life of Birmingham and Coventry, UK. In 1997, Richard set up The Shysters, a company of actors with learning disabilities, in partnership with the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry. Through the development of a unique nonverbal physical theatre practice with the Shysters, the company gained a national reputation for the ground-breaking quality of its performance work ‘on the borderlines of theatre, dance and mime’. Alongside this, Richard has developed long-term creative collaborations with over 20 special schools in the West Midlands region of the UK, to explore the impact the nonverbal physical theatre practice has on young people’s learning and development and transition into adult life. Richard works locally, nationally and internationally, spreading the practice as far as Australia and Siberia.
Find him at:
www.opentheatre.co.uk
Instagram: @Open_Theatre_Co
X: @Open_Theatre_Co