Sharon is a highly-experienced workshop facilitator/leader, having worked for many theatre and opera companies and community organisations.
CURRENTLY HER PROFILE INCLUDES:
Take Five and Move On Up - Serious (www.serious.org.uk)
Sharon is Performance Coach for Serious, working on their flagship Take Five programme and Move On Up. Take Five is an annual talent development programme for emerging jazz and improvising musicians/composers, while Move On Up is a talent development programme for creative artists working in African and Caribbean music, who live in England. The programmes are made up of a week-long residency with an intensive schedule of talks from industry specialists and practical sessions in making and presenting work.
Lost Chord UK
Sharon is a singer and choir/community vocal leader for this innovative charity dedicated to improving the quality of life and well-being of those living with dementia and other complex health needs. By interactive, therapeutic music sessions in both the community and care home setting, we increase the general awareness, self-esteem and overall well-being of everyone who takes part and is present at the sessions.
Alina Orchestra
Alina is a new professional orchestra that is dedicated to supporting everyone in the local community. The orchestra has a simple mission: To provide everyone with access to classical music and its many benefits via our concerts, outreach and work in the community.
Sharon is one of their outreach workshop leaders and portfolio includes regular visits to dementia care homes in Milton Keynes, Early Years sessions and Come and Sing community singing days.
Streetwise Opera (www.streetwiseopera.org)
2002-2021
Sharon began leading workshops award-winning charity Streetwise Opera in 2005, running regular workshops in London and Luton. In April 2007 , she was invited to Boston, Mass., to run a two-week residency at the Tewkesbury State Hospital, working with participants with alcohol and drug dependency, mental health issues and physical disabilities including Huntingdon’s and Parkinson’s Disease. She also ran a series of workshops in two homeless centres in central Boston.
She has also directed/devised for Streetwise including three productions at the Hat Factory, Luton. The first, in 2006, was ‘Long Road Home’ featuring folk icon Eliza Carthy and the second, ‘Under the Greenwood Tree’ in October 2008, was based on Shakespeare’s ‘As You Like It’, with original music by Thomas Gray.In 2010, again collaborating with Thomas Gray, was 'Sea Change' based on Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'. Most recently, she directed two world premiere commissions at the South Bank Centre (2019), and the English National Opera Studios (2017). She also directed 'Commedia', a site-specific piece for the Royal Collection (July 2017) and 'Truth Force' at the Design Museum (March 2018).
In 2007, she was workshop leader and assistant director on Streetwise Opera’s collaboration with Almeida Opera at the Almeida Theatre. ‘Critical Mass’, was composed by Orlando Gough and directed by Emma Bernard, awarded 4 stars in The Times, The Independent and the Evening Standard and was pick of the year on BBC Radio 3.
Create Arts
In 2016, Sharon co-facilitated a week of music and drama workshops, culminating in a devised performance for Create Arts.
Create uses the creative arts as a transformational tool, focusing on engaging society’s most disadvantaged and vulnerable people in inspiring, sustainable programmes in areas where provision is poor and engagement in the arts is therefore low.
The Hub - Clwyd Theatr Cymru
In October 2012, Sharon joined The Hub, an Arts Council Wales-funded pilot project with Clwyd Theatr Cymru, which took a team of artists into two secondary schools in North Wales. Hugely innovative, exciting and inspiring, The Hub was a great success and returned twice, in 2013 and 2015.
Southwark Splash
In July 2013, Sharon took part in Southwark Splash on Outfoxed, a new children's opera composed by Hannah Conway and directed by Karen Gillingham, at the Royal Festival Hall. Along with 800 children from primary schools across Southwark, she created the role of Head Human.
Music for a Generation
In January 2013, Sharon began work on another pilot project, this time for Herts Music Service - Music for a Generation, which brings together elderly and young people, using music, reminiscence and storytelling to bridge the two generations. She ran two workshop series' for them, one for seniors in Borehamwood and the other for a large mixed ability group in Harpenden, including physical and mental difficulties.
Royal Opera House
In November 2014, she ran her first workshop for the Royal Opera House's Family Day featuring Carmen and L'Enfant et les Sortileges, and ran another in February 2015 on Monteverdi's Orfeo. Adults and children took part in these sessions, which featured three-headed dogs, the River Styx made out of silk and the authorised trashing of their bedrooms.
Marmalade Castle
In autumn 2014, she co-founded Marmalade Castle, a brand-new initiative set up to explore ways to take music and performance into different and unusual settings, ie: hospitals, psychiatric units, children's wards, working either in groups or as single interventions. Marmalade Castle's first commission was to create a Christmas 'musical' over four sessions in two hospital neuro-rehab units - St George's Tooting, and Queen Mary's Roehampton.
Sharon is also a peripatetic music theatre singing teacher at St Christopher School Letchworth and has enhanced DRB status.
CURRENTLY HER PROFILE INCLUDES:
Take Five and Move On Up - Serious (www.serious.org.uk)
Sharon is Performance Coach for Serious, working on their flagship Take Five programme and Move On Up. Take Five is an annual talent development programme for emerging jazz and improvising musicians/composers, while Move On Up is a talent development programme for creative artists working in African and Caribbean music, who live in England. The programmes are made up of a week-long residency with an intensive schedule of talks from industry specialists and practical sessions in making and presenting work.
Lost Chord UK
Sharon is a singer and choir/community vocal leader for this innovative charity dedicated to improving the quality of life and well-being of those living with dementia and other complex health needs. By interactive, therapeutic music sessions in both the community and care home setting, we increase the general awareness, self-esteem and overall well-being of everyone who takes part and is present at the sessions.
Alina Orchestra
Alina is a new professional orchestra that is dedicated to supporting everyone in the local community. The orchestra has a simple mission: To provide everyone with access to classical music and its many benefits via our concerts, outreach and work in the community.
Sharon is one of their outreach workshop leaders and portfolio includes regular visits to dementia care homes in Milton Keynes, Early Years sessions and Come and Sing community singing days.
Streetwise Opera (www.streetwiseopera.org)
2002-2021
Sharon began leading workshops award-winning charity Streetwise Opera in 2005, running regular workshops in London and Luton. In April 2007 , she was invited to Boston, Mass., to run a two-week residency at the Tewkesbury State Hospital, working with participants with alcohol and drug dependency, mental health issues and physical disabilities including Huntingdon’s and Parkinson’s Disease. She also ran a series of workshops in two homeless centres in central Boston.
She has also directed/devised for Streetwise including three productions at the Hat Factory, Luton. The first, in 2006, was ‘Long Road Home’ featuring folk icon Eliza Carthy and the second, ‘Under the Greenwood Tree’ in October 2008, was based on Shakespeare’s ‘As You Like It’, with original music by Thomas Gray.In 2010, again collaborating with Thomas Gray, was 'Sea Change' based on Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'. Most recently, she directed two world premiere commissions at the South Bank Centre (2019), and the English National Opera Studios (2017). She also directed 'Commedia', a site-specific piece for the Royal Collection (July 2017) and 'Truth Force' at the Design Museum (March 2018).
In 2007, she was workshop leader and assistant director on Streetwise Opera’s collaboration with Almeida Opera at the Almeida Theatre. ‘Critical Mass’, was composed by Orlando Gough and directed by Emma Bernard, awarded 4 stars in The Times, The Independent and the Evening Standard and was pick of the year on BBC Radio 3.
Create Arts
In 2016, Sharon co-facilitated a week of music and drama workshops, culminating in a devised performance for Create Arts.
Create uses the creative arts as a transformational tool, focusing on engaging society’s most disadvantaged and vulnerable people in inspiring, sustainable programmes in areas where provision is poor and engagement in the arts is therefore low.
The Hub - Clwyd Theatr Cymru
In October 2012, Sharon joined The Hub, an Arts Council Wales-funded pilot project with Clwyd Theatr Cymru, which took a team of artists into two secondary schools in North Wales. Hugely innovative, exciting and inspiring, The Hub was a great success and returned twice, in 2013 and 2015.
Southwark Splash
In July 2013, Sharon took part in Southwark Splash on Outfoxed, a new children's opera composed by Hannah Conway and directed by Karen Gillingham, at the Royal Festival Hall. Along with 800 children from primary schools across Southwark, she created the role of Head Human.
Music for a Generation
In January 2013, Sharon began work on another pilot project, this time for Herts Music Service - Music for a Generation, which brings together elderly and young people, using music, reminiscence and storytelling to bridge the two generations. She ran two workshop series' for them, one for seniors in Borehamwood and the other for a large mixed ability group in Harpenden, including physical and mental difficulties.
Royal Opera House
In November 2014, she ran her first workshop for the Royal Opera House's Family Day featuring Carmen and L'Enfant et les Sortileges, and ran another in February 2015 on Monteverdi's Orfeo. Adults and children took part in these sessions, which featured three-headed dogs, the River Styx made out of silk and the authorised trashing of their bedrooms.
Marmalade Castle
In autumn 2014, she co-founded Marmalade Castle, a brand-new initiative set up to explore ways to take music and performance into different and unusual settings, ie: hospitals, psychiatric units, children's wards, working either in groups or as single interventions. Marmalade Castle's first commission was to create a Christmas 'musical' over four sessions in two hospital neuro-rehab units - St George's Tooting, and Queen Mary's Roehampton.
Sharon is also a peripatetic music theatre singing teacher at St Christopher School Letchworth and has enhanced DRB status.
