Philip Dart

Philip is the Artistic Director of the acclaimed, Channel Theatre Company, for whom he has directed many successful national tours.

After gaining a degree in Drama at Hull University, Philip’s early directing career took him to the Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, the Plymouth Theatre Company and the Soho Poly Theatre in London. He was a founder member of Channel Theatre Company and took over the position of Artistic Director in the late 1980s.

Philip’s Artistic Directorship of Channel Theatre Company began with two touring premieres: Larry Kramer’s pioneering play about AIDS, The Normal Heart and Anthony Minghella’s Made in Bangkok. There followed highly successful touring productions of The Woman in Black; Lettice and Lovage; The Kingfisher by William Douglas Home; Noel and Gertie, Michael Frayn’s Benefactors, an adaptation of a Feydeau farce, Sleeping It Off, and a revival of Terence Rattigan’s While the Sun Shines.

He has also directed two in-house productions for the Festival Theatre, Malvern; Shaw’s Arms and the Man and a reworking of the musical, Nightingale. In a freelance capacity he has directed Noel Coward’s Fallen Angels for Pavilion Theatre and Charles Dickens Hard Times for The Courtyard Theatre Company.
As well as being a director Philip is also a playwright/adapter. He co-adapted The Mysteries at Canterbury Cathedral (published by Churchman) and adapted Jane Eyre (which toured nationally and was produced by Northampton Royal Theatre’s touring company). He also adapted and directed a new translation of Molière’s comedy The School for Wives (national tour, 1999); George Lillo’s play The London Merchant, (national tour, 2002) and E Nesbit’s classic children’s novel The Phoenix and the Carpet, Jane Austen’s Emma and Robert Tressell’s The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists which toured in 2007. His adaptation of Wilkie Collin’s The Haunted Hotel has been on two major British tours over the last few years. For outdoor performance he has adapted and directed The Wind in the Willows, Alice in Wonderland, and Peter Pan.

Recently his new adaptation of Erksine Childers’s The Riddle of The Sands was nominated in four categories for the prestigious Off West End awards and his production of Tom McGrath’s Laurel and Hardy had a successful national tour.
Last year he wrote and directed a new play Running For Glory about the 1922 Paris Olympics which received great critical success when it toured Southern England.
Philip is a regular guest director at Vienna’s English Theatre, where productions have included No Sex, Please, We’re British; Arms and the Man: Blithe Spirit: Charlie’s Aunt, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Importance of Being Earnest and last year’s Rough Crossing. Philip is delighted to be able to return once again to direct tonight’s play.