Community Theatre

and Opera Direction

Ellen directs community theatre and opera, working specifically with refugee and migrant women, children and disabled adults. Projects are participatory, and performances are devised through a collaborative workshop process.

Check out specific examples of groups and productions she has directed below, and please get in touch if you have a project, community or school group in mind.

Assistant directing credits include Barefoot Opera’s Bloom Brittania (2021) and Loud Crowd’s The Silly Little Mouse (2023).

She also facilitates music and theatre workshops for Kiln Theatre, Dream Arts, and The Company.

THIS LONDON

A devised performance project with Lewisham Refugee and Migrants Network’s women’s group

The sounds of carnival street dancers and faulty generators, the smell of fresh fruit and baked bread atop market sellers' heads, the heat of the Nigerian sun: A stark contrast to the harsh reality of a cold British winter.

“What? THIS is London?”

Through storytelling, theatre and song, 'This London' followed the journeys of migrant women arriving to the city to build a new life: the expectations, first impressions, challenges, and achievements.

2022: Funded by We Are Lewisham, performed at the Horniman Museum for Refugee Week.

2023: Funded by Artelier Armonico, performed at the Living Seams Exhibition at Morley College.

2026: Funded by Luminescent, performed as part of the LOST VOICES project at Morley College.

Group of women standing in a line on stage, holding hands, with some placing hands on each other's shoulders, participating in a collective activity or prayer, with a black curtain backdrop.
A group of women standing on a stage, one woman speaking and gesturing with her hand, while others listen. The setting appears to be an indoor event or gathering.
A group of women standing on a stage in a theater, with one woman in front gesturing passionately with arms raised, while others watch. Audience members in the foreground observe the scene.

RED!

An Outdoor Children’s Opera on Hastings’ Seafront with Barefoot Opera

A feminist adaptation of Little Red Riding Hood, which centre’s Red (Little Red Riding Hood) as the story’s hero. After being bullied at school for having red hair, Red develops confidence and self acceptance through taking on Wolfie (the Wolf), alongside her brave and wacky grandmother.

The project involved 3 professional opera singers, a 5 piece band and 160 students from 3 Hastings Primary Schools. It was performed outside at The Stade on Hastings seafront (East Sussex) in July 2022. A Barefoot Opera Production composed by Lucy Mulgan.

A musical performance taking place at an outdoor festival with a children's choir and an audience seated under a white tent. Musicians playing keyboard, double bass, and drums are visible in the foreground. The children are dressed in red outfits, performing in the background.
Children and adults participating in a strawberry-themed event outdoors, with some children in white shirts and gray hats, others in red, and a stage where some people are performing or presenting.
A puppet show with a person wearing a red hoodie and a person holding a wolf puppet, with a group of children seated watching outdoors.

BEING HERE - HIER SEIN

An International Women’s Theatre Project at Hellerau, European Centre of the Arts, Dresden Germany

Being Here was a weekly community theatre group for international women, meeting over two years from 2017-2019 to create and perform two devised pieces. Each experimented with a range of different theatrical mediums to explore group members personal experiences.

The first employed Bunraku and shadow puppetry, music and storytelling to unpack themes of migration, identity and belonging, inspired by Shaun Tan’s graphic novel - The Arrival.

The second used a Body Puppet, dance and chorus work to explore intercultural Mother - Daughter relationships.

The project was commissioned by Refugee Arts Center Hellerau, with performances at Hellerau, the State Theatre Dresden’s Klein Haus, and Kleine Hoftheater Meißen .

Two women are performing a puppet show with a puppet of a woman, using a wooden case as a stage. They are kneeling on the floor in a dimly lit setting.
Group of people wearing masks standing on stage, with one person kneeling and handling a puppet and papers, in a theatrical setting.
A woman with brown hair in a blue dress facing a person in a large, theatrical mask and costume with a giant beard and colorful robes during a stage performance.

CITIZEN’S PLATFORM - DIE BÜRGER:BÜHNE

Weekly community theatre clubs with the State Theatre Dresden

Beherrschen wir uns! - We Master Ourselves September 2017 - March 2018

A club for international residents of Dresden, of all ages and backgrounds. Using theatre games and movement improvisation to bridge language and cultural barriers to create a performance piece in response to the theme of Power.

Gegenwind - Headwind, September 2018 - March 2019

A club for time conscious residents of Dresden, stressed and accelerated. Going against the gain, swimming against the tide and slowing down to devise a performance piece around the theme of ‘Resistance’.

A group of people standing on stage in a dark theater with colorful balls scattered on the floor and hanging from the ceiling.
A group of people on stage dancing and celebrating, dressed in colorful athletic clothing, with some wearing glasses and headbands, against a black background.
People performing a theatrical or dance scene on stage with colorful balls and a black background.