Wales

DESIGN CHAMPION: RUTH STRINGER

Ruth is a designer for performance, based in Cardiff. After completing her BA in Drama and English at Queen Mary University of London, Ruth trained in Theatre Design at Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, where she became recipient of the JO Francis Memorial Award for research.

Ruth designs for theatre, dance, circus, opera and live art performance events, and is particularly drawn to site-specific productions and projects that integrate community groups in their development and delivery.

Ruth has worked with companies in and out of Wales including Sherman Theatre, National Theatre Wales, Shunt, Albany Theatre, Citrus Arts, Opera Sonic, DorkyPark, Teatro Vivo and Wales Millennium Centre. Besides design projects, Ruth works with schools to encourage art and visual thinking amongst children and has worked extensively with Arts Council Wales on the Lead Creative Schools initiative.

Further information on Ruth’s work and images of her designs can be found on her website: www.ruthstringer.com.

Higher Education partner: Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama

Sean Crowley is Head of Design and Director of Drama at Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

Over 30 years Sean has designed over 200 productions for companies across Wales, the UK and Europe. In 2007, Sean was Project Leader for the Prague Quadrennial Scenofest. In 2011, he organised the SBTD national exhibition and as the Project Leader for World Stage Design 2013, he helped bring 13,000 exhibitors, practitioners and visitors to Cardiff.

Sean has been the Chair of the SBTD since 2011 and was elected onto the OISTAT Executive Committee in 2013. Sean was presented with an honorary doctorate from Swansea University in 2016.

He continues to pursue a balance as an educator and practitioner, allowing both activities to inform his practice in each area. His ultimate aspiration is to develop future generations of performance practitioners with a flexibility in their philosophy and a positive approach to problem resolution.

BA (Hons) and MA Design for Performance: https://www.rwcmd.ac.uk/departments/theatre_design.aspx