In January 2018, Ed joined the team as resident director of the RSC's London production of Matilda The Musical.
Ed was the resident director for the first UK Tour of Billy Elliot The Musical. As part of his work internationally, he has put 15 boys into the show as Billy and his work with the “Michael” cast resulted in an award for the boys as best newcomers in the Manchester Theatre Awards 2017. He was also the Deputy Associate Director of the original Japanese production and the Korean revival of the show.
Black with Le Gateau Chocolat was originally commissioned by Homotopia in Liverpool. As Co-Writer and Director, Black was nominated for a Total Theatre Award for Experimentation, Innovation and playing with form as part of its month long run at Assembly in Edinburgh (produced by SOHO Theatre). Black played Contact Theatre, Manchester and Theatre Royal, Stratford East in 2017, in its expanded outing with Psappha (13 piece orchestra led by Julian Kelly). Black then played Adelaide Cabaret Festival in the Summer of 2017.
Alongside orchestrator, musical director and longtime collaborator Julian Kelly, Ed has been granted permission by Richard Maltby Jr. and David Shire to reimagine their seminal song cycles Starting Here, Starting Now and Closer Than Ever for larger stages, full ensemble and orchestra. Julian and Ed have had the opportunity to workshop these works with this unique approach in Chichester.
From 2007 to 2013, Ed was co-Artistic Director of Dorset Corset Theatre Company. With renowned South West writer, Helen Watts, they created adaptations of Persuasion, Far From the Madding Crowd, Northanger Abbey, Under The Greenwood Tree, Frankenstein: The Year Without a Summer (a new play by Helen Watts), and Cosi fan Tutte for Festival by the Sea at Shelley Theatre.
The company continues to thrive presenting work that tours the South.
Circle Game was commissioned by Brit School in Croydon.
Ed devised and wrote the work based on verbatim interviews with students on the Year 14 course. Circle Game was presented at Brighton Festival in 2015.
Ed is currently working with actress and campaigner Kirsty Dillon on a challenging new piece of work based on the final days of Eva Braun.
Ed has considerable experience working with young people and community groups of varying backgrounds, ages and abilities. He has been a visiting practitioner for Old Vic New Voices most recently running a day’s course in the practice of American Acting Teacher Sandford Meisner. He regularly visits conservatoires including Trinity Laban, Urdang, BRIT School and Italia Conti as both an acting teacher and director. He has also run workshops for BBC Shakespeare for Schools, Birmingham Stage Company and Billy Elliot.
