DARREN CLARK
Darren is a New Zealand born composer and lyricist working in the theatre in the UK. He has been commissioned to write music and lyrics for several national touring productions and his work has been heard in productions in London's West End, Off West End, Off-Broadway at the RSC and the Royal National Theatre amongst many others.
He is the inaugural recipient of the Music Theatre International Stiles & Drewe Mentorship Award and his songs have appeared as finalist in the Stiles & Drewe Best New Song Competition on three separate occasions, winning runner-up in 2015. He has been a finalist in the Iris Theatre XMas Factor Awards for the past three years, winning the Iris Theatre Panel Award in 2014, The Audience Runner Up Prize in 2015 and The Audience Award in 2016. In 2018 he was a finalist for the prestigious Fred Ebb Award for Musical Theatre.
His musical The Wicker Husband was part of the official selection for the NAMT Musical Theatre Festival in New York and will receive it's inaugural production at The Watermill Theatre in 2020. In 2018, his new musical Day of the Living was produced by the RSC as part of their mischief festival. His musical version of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, written with Jethro Compton was produced at Southwark Playhouse in 2019 to critical and audience acclaim. Darren is the composer and lyricist of The Scarecrows Wedding which has played in London's West End and throughout the UK since 2015. In addition to his many other works, his cabaret musical These Trees Are Made of Blood has had two London productions in 2015 and 2017.
He is an associate member of the BML Songwriting Workshop, and a member of the MMD Advanced Composer & Lyricist Lab.
He is a founding member of Paper Balloon Theatre Company, dedicated to making original theatre for, with and by young audiences. Paper Balloon have now created several shows including Night Light at the Camden Fringe, a UK tour of The Grumpiest Boy in the World by Finegan Kruckemeyer, the utterly bonkers Christmas show Once Upon a Snowflake with the Moscow Puppet Theatre and most recently the original shanty story The Boy and the Mermaid.
He is the inaugural recipient of the Music Theatre International Stiles & Drewe Mentorship Award and his songs have appeared as finalist in the Stiles & Drewe Best New Song Competition on three separate occasions, winning runner-up in 2015. He has been a finalist in the Iris Theatre XMas Factor Awards for the past three years, winning the Iris Theatre Panel Award in 2014, The Audience Runner Up Prize in 2015 and The Audience Award in 2016. In 2018 he was a finalist for the prestigious Fred Ebb Award for Musical Theatre.
His musical The Wicker Husband was part of the official selection for the NAMT Musical Theatre Festival in New York and will receive it's inaugural production at The Watermill Theatre in 2020. In 2018, his new musical Day of the Living was produced by the RSC as part of their mischief festival. His musical version of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, written with Jethro Compton was produced at Southwark Playhouse in 2019 to critical and audience acclaim. Darren is the composer and lyricist of The Scarecrows Wedding which has played in London's West End and throughout the UK since 2015. In addition to his many other works, his cabaret musical These Trees Are Made of Blood has had two London productions in 2015 and 2017.
He is an associate member of the BML Songwriting Workshop, and a member of the MMD Advanced Composer & Lyricist Lab.
He is a founding member of Paper Balloon Theatre Company, dedicated to making original theatre for, with and by young audiences. Paper Balloon have now created several shows including Night Light at the Camden Fringe, a UK tour of The Grumpiest Boy in the World by Finegan Kruckemeyer, the utterly bonkers Christmas show Once Upon a Snowflake with the Moscow Puppet Theatre and most recently the original shanty story The Boy and the Mermaid.
darren's RECOMMENDATIONS
"Tim Connor is a writer of extraordinary class. He has been writing high quality work for a long time and deserves your attention."
