Sophie is a London-based freelance theatre director. She trained on Mountview Academy’s Theatre Directing MA after studying Philosophy at Southampton University. Her interests include international writing and she is passionate about diversity. She is currently on attachment at The Old Vic Theatre as an Old Vic 12 Director. Through her attachment she will be developing a new play written by Omar El-Khairy.

Through her commitment to diverse new work, she directed Black Theatre Live’s national tour of a new play The Diary of a Hounslow Girl by Ambreen Razia (commissioned and supported by Ovalhouse). The show was nominated for Best Stage Production at The Asian Media Awards 2016. Following its success the production re-toured with House Theatre and was performed at Southbank Centre. She is currently developing a new piece called POT by the same writer (supported by Arts Council, Ovalhouse and Stratford Circus). The piece explores the challenges faced by girls in gangs. After continued development POT is set to tour nationally in 2018.

Sophie’s Directing Timeline can be found here.

Directing credits include: POT by Ambreen Razia (Ovalhouse, supported by Stratford Circus), The Diary of a Hounslow Girl by Ambreen Razia (Ovalhouse, Black Theatre Live National Tour, House Theatre National Tour & Southbank Centre), Midsummer Roman Feast (as writer and director) (The RSC: The Dell/Avonbank Gardens), dirty butterfly by debbie tucker green (Co-director, Guildhall), The Five Stages of Waiting by Caro Dixey (Tristan Bates Theatre), Fucking Outside the Box by Jessica Burgess (VAULT Festival: The Vaults), Indian Summer by Lucy Maurice (White Bear Theatre), Creditors by August Strindberg (in a version by David Greig) (Cockpit Theatre), The Star-Spangled Girl by Neil Simon (Karamel Club), Purgatorio by Ariel Dorfman (Karamel Club), Zero Degrees (devised) (The Annex Theatre) and The Lark by Jean Anouilh (in a bilingual version using translation by Christopher Fry) (Cockpit Theatre). She has directed new shorts  for The Young Vic (Noah by Amir Nizar Zuabi), Vertical Line at Greenwich Theatre, Writer’s Avenue at Soho Theatre, Heavy Weather at Park Theatre, Writer’s Bloc at Charring Cross Theatre, Off Cut Festival at Riverside Studios, Breaking 30 at Worlds End Studios and for Rapid Write Response at Theatre 503. Freelance dramaturgy credits include Hush by Moon Mission in association with Patch of Blue (Gilded Balloon), Super Hero Snail Boy by Vertical Line in association with Greenwich Theatre (Bedlam Theatre), Skint by Rosie Kellett (VAULT Festival) and Naked by Jessica Burgess (VAULT Festival). She has also run a development workshop at the National Theatre Studio on Megaball by Sonali Bhattacharyya.

Assistant Director credits include: The Winter’s Tale directed by Justin Audibert (National Theatre: Schools Tour and The Dorfman), Yerma* directed by Simon Stone (Young Vic & NT Live), B directed by Sam Pritchard (The Royal Court), Myth directed (and co-written by) Kirsty Housley (The RSC (TOP), Creditors directed by Rikki Henry (Young Vic) and The Rise and Shine of Comrade Fiasco directed by Elayce Ismail (The Gate). (*Jerwood Assistant Director supported by The Jerwood Charitable Foundation).

I am driven to make theatre that dislodges us from our preconceptions about the world, that inspires conversation and that reminds us that we are larger than the individual story that we are living. I find curiosity and play to be powerful forces in a rehearsal process. I strive to establish the conditions for discovery. A collaborative ethos is at the heart of my process.