Gren Middleton trained as lighting cameraman photographing some 14 feature films and many documentaries before meeting John and Lyndie Wright founders of the Little Angel theatre. The potential for combining the marionette with modern technology controlling the light and sound in a production was obvious. Gren with his film experience and Juliet Rogers, his partner, an accomplished puppeteer, founded Movingstage Marionette Co in 1978. Since then Gren has carved the marionettes for over twenty productions, been responsible for the creation of a fully fitted 55 seat marionette theatre which has been open to the public throughout the year for more than twenty five years. Three texts have been commissioned from two contemporary published writers. The texts were subsequently published. He plays an active part in the puppet world and has written articles for the puppet press. He is a full member of the Association of Lighting Designers.
Juliet Rogers has been working with marionettes since 1970 and is an accomplished operator and maker. She trained with John Wright OBE and has operated the lead parts in all his major productions. She and Gren Middleton have run the Puppet Theatre Barge for more than 30 years as a touring puppet theatre presenting work for children and adult audiences. She has adapted three Shakespeare plays for the theatre and has written two pieces for children. She devises and manages an educational project annually which tours to primary schools in Greater London and has created two rod puppet shows which are performed regularly in and around London and occasionally nationwide.
Colleen Magennis has a background as set painter and props maker in South Africa, Colleen came to Britain in 1973. She joined the Little Angel Marionette Theatre in London where she trained in all aspects of puppetry; designing and making puppets, working backstage with lighting and and operating string, rod and shadow puppets in performance. She made a series of wire rod puppets for the production All He Fears by Howard Barker. She operated on The Puppet Barge summer tour 2004 and has facilitated a series of school workshops conducted in the City of Westminster primary schools. Colleen also makes modern silver jewellery. She lives on the Isle of Bute in Scotland.
Amy Hazeldine completed a degree at the Central School of Drama before joining the Puppet Barge in the summer 2002. She has operated for the company on a number of productions and has for some years been involved with the annual spring educational workshop programme. She has created her own shadow show and made a number of marionettes.
Athena Gilbert joined the Puppet Barge as a trainee for the summer 2004 tour having already made her own marionette productions which she presented at the Ticycle Gallery and Kew Gardens Festival. Since the tour she has shown her work at Pollocks Toy Museum and the British Museum. She has performed in several shows on the Puppet Barge and accompanied the company at an international puppet festival in Lahore (Pakistan). Athena is now the owner of a double decker busto be used for puppet purposes
Stan Middleton a third generation marionettist is touring India with Soledad Zarate, his colleague in String Theatre, so who knows what will happen in the future
Sarah Fitzpatrick known as Fitz was born in Dublin in 1980. After leaving school she mucked around in art college for a few years before being turfed out of there with a degree in fine Art and an interest in making little figures, but with a meandering sense of purpose in life. Seeing a Púca Puppets production and ensuing work experience with the company resulted in a solid interest in puppetry forming slowly. In 2006, when her flat in Henrietta Place (Where is that? Ed) sprung a leak and flooded she decided to escape the sodden carpets by fleeing to London. Accustomization to being surrounded by water turned out to be of benefit when she was given the opportunity to do a traineeship on board the Puppet Barge. Since falling head over heel-strings for marionettes, Sarah Fitz has operated in several shows on the Barge and performed as part of The Marionettears collective. Recently she has given in to an urge to try making her own marionettes, a couple of which made a shaky debut appearance at the Washer-loo Street Carnival in 2008. Her current ambition is to have created a carved marionette show, entirely of her own thought and making, and performed it before reaching the ripe old age of 30!
Biogs of the following to follow.
Josh Middleton
Soledad Zarate
Kate Middleton
Rob Humphreys
Beatrice Pentney
Adrien Alexandre-Allin
Sian Kidd
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