MEET THE TEAM
of Sparks Dramatic Society
Partners
The society was created by six founding partners. These partners have extensive knowledge and industry experience and have been volunteering for other societies on many different productions for decades.
The partners elect the production team for every production. Our production team plans, organises and coordinates the running of our productions. If you would like to join the production team, to find out more information and apply, see our crew page.
Daniel
Founding Partner
Daniel's bio and description.
Facts about Daniel:
- He has performed at live at the Trafford Centre and live on GMTV
- He studied up to his goal, bar, three in Jazz, Contemporary and Modern dance
- He used to be in a band and has released a single with HMV
Jayne
Founding Partner
Jayne is also the Safeguarding Officer at Hyde Festival Theatre and has been a chaperone for over ten years on a variety of productions.
Jayne is really proud to be a partner of Sparks Dramatic Society and looks forward to producing fantastic productions for the community.
Facts about Jayne:
- She was born in Coventry and located up North when she married Martin
- She loves live theatre and working behind the scenes, but never on stage
- She enjoys a glass of Sauvignon Blanc in the company of friends - or three
Kelly
Founding Partner
Kelly first performed at Hyde Festival Theatre as a cast member when she was just 11 years old. The theatre is her hobby, passion and she is incredibly proud her daughter is following in her footsteps.
Kelly is incredibly versatile and can work backstage as crew, a chaperone, tech, box office and can do absolutely any job in the theatre!
Facts about Kelly:
- 1
- 2
- 3
Martin
Founding Partner
Martin started in the theatre industry as a sound engineer over 25 years ago. More recently, he became the Vice-Chairman of Hyde Festival Theatre and leads on the theatre's bar running and operation - raising vital extra funds for the theatre.
He is delighted to have founded Sparks Dramatic Society and will be leading the team for building the set for the first pantomimes as well as assisting in the setup of the productions sound and lighting. He has developed many skills throughout his theatrical life and is proud to support amateur theatre.
Facts about Martin:
- He is married to Jayne and has been for over 30 years
- He loves model railways
- He spends a lot of his spare time at his caravan in Wales
Ste
Founding Partner
Steven, originally from the Surrey Hills in South London, has lived in Manchester since 2014. Since then, he has been involved in over 60 productions in the North-West and has written four scripts up to 2022.
He is normally behind the scenes and often works backstage or in tech. Having previously played a small cameo role in 2019 where he won the ‘Best Newcomer’ award from the Association of Community Theatre, in 2022 - he played the principal role of Freckles - the ugly step sister in Hyde Festival Theatre's production of Cinderella.
Facts about Ste:
- He trained at college as a Mechanical Engineer
- He worked in Aviation for 9 years
- He cannot dance in Tap, Modern, Ballet or pretty much any type of dance but will give it a go
Sue
Founding Partner
Sue has been teaching dance in the local area for 30 years, she has choreographed and performed in hundreds of dance shows, musicals, variety shows and pantomimes in many different theatres and venues across the North West.
She usually just handles the dancing and choreography side of things but recently has been getting more involved with all other aspects from directing, chaperoning, costumes and set builds and she has enjoyed the challenge. It has been said that Sue brings equal measures of chaos and organisation to productions.
Facts about Sue:
- Sue studied graphic design and textiles and college
- She can’t survive without chocolate
- Her drink of choice is always a regular coca-cola
Management Team
The partners are also supported by two managers; Finance and Marketing & Communications. The team ensure productions have a management team, see the overall finances of the society, plan for future productions, manage the administration of the society and maintain a strong relationship with those who volunteer for SDS.
Clare
Finance Manager
Hi, I’m Clare and I’ve been involved with Hyde Festival Theatre for over 45 years. I’ve performed in; plays & pantomimes with RLT & St Pauls Players, lots of Musicals with HMS and countless dance shows with GX School of Dancing and my own dance school - ARTSync. I am the treasurer for HFA and a trustee and director for the theatre Ltd.company. And I love this beautiful little place.
Facts about Clare:
- Clare's 5x Great Grandfather raised the flags on Nelson’s Ship, the Victory, at the Battle of Trafalgar - England expects every man will do his duty etc.
- Clare loves MAFS Australia.
- Clare does not like bananas 🍌!
Jem
Marketing & Communications Manager
Jem is from Hyde and has been performing since the age of 4 and has a BA Hons in Drama & Performance Studies. Jem has worked in Marketing & Events for nearly 15 years but still finds time to get involved in amateur dramatics on and off stage.
Jem is a regular when it comes to pantomime having played parts from the chorus, to principal boy. She’s even turned her hand to the dark side and played the evil witch Ms Phyliss in the adult pantomime, Jack & his Big Stalk at Hyde Festival Theatre in 2022.
Facts about Jem:
- Jem loves Murder Mysteries and Quizzes
- Jem is a Eurovision super fan
- Jem cries at the end of every musical she sees regardless of whether its a happy or sad ending
© Copyright. All rights reserved.
We need your consent to load the translations
We use a third-party service to translate the website content that may collect data about your activity. Please review the details in the privacy policy and accept the service to view the translations.