Steve has worked with young people in theatre for 25 years. He was Associate Director for Scottish Youth Theatre, Head of Education at the Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh where he created the Education Department and founded the award winning Lyceum Youth Theatre and was Associate Director, Education & Community, at Dundee Rep. Since founding Strange Town he has directed numerous plays including Teach Me which was shortlisted for the Scottish Arts Club Edinburgh Guide Scottish Theatre Award in 2012. Other work includes; The National Theatre of Scotland, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Edinburgh College, Queen Margaret University College, Moray House, BBC Scotland, Aberdeen Council and he has led workshops in Norway and Japan.
0131 629 0292
info@strangetown.org.uk
Meet more of the Team
Sophia Irvine-Fortescue
Sophia is the Workshop Assistant for the Friday 5-7s Intro to Drama and Friday 8-12s Theatre Skills classes.
Dylan Mooney
Dylan Mooney is a playwright and facilitator based in West Lothian. Graduating from Performing Arts Studio Scotland with a BA (Hons) in Dance and Drama, Dylan has gone on to build a career in playwriting with his work recently being performed at Capital Theatre’s Studio and Biggar Corn Exchange. He is currently being mentored by Douglas Maxwell and Playwrights’ Studio Scotland. As a facilitator, Dylan has worked with a number of Strange Town groups over the years and really enjoys inspiring the young people creatively as they discover new passions and joy for the arts.
Jenny Anderson
Jenny has worked in Edinburgh and the Scottish Borders as a drama practitioner since 2017. Through this work, she helps young people to develop their confidence and perfect their drama skills whilst having fun and making new friends.
She also runs Zoom workshops for young people across the UK with the same rare syndrome (Kabuki) as herself. They gain so much by connecting through drama. She loves all aspects of my work both face to face and in the virtual world and is very much looking forward to this new chapter working regularly with Strange Town.
Pollyanna Esse
Pollyanna has worked with Strange Town for 2 years assisting various workshops. She graduated from Edinburgh University in 2022 with a Fine Art degree and is now training to be an Art Physiotherapist.
She has worked in theatre throughout her life and found her love for directing and producing in her final year of her undergraduate degree. In 2022, she wrote and directed her own Fringe show, going on to work for a New York based Theatre company. There she produced a programme for young and emerging playwrights as well as taking their show to Fringe in 2023. Some of the playwrights she mentored have now been commission to write for multiple theatres in New York. She has always had a love for arts education and giving people the space and opportunity to express themselves.
She has worked for Edinburgh International Festival for the past 2 years as their Digital Content Officer. So she has an strong organisation head too as well as being a creative at heart!
She recently set up Ophelia Hare Arts, where she aims to develop creative experiences that challenge the barriers of pay for early career creatives. She believes that no matter who you are, you should have access to the arts and experience the freedom of expression.
Daniel Orejon
Daniel Orejon is a theatremaker and performer. He has been commissioned by the Edinburgh Multilingual Stories Festival and collaborated with Scottish Youth Theatre and the Edinburgh International Science Festival. He is the artistic director of the Crested Fools, with whom he has created award-nominated show The Rotting Hart. He specialises in projects that focus on multiculturalism, queerness and mental health, with a special fondness for all things Hispanic.
Ola Olsinova
Ola is an actor with experience working as a school, nursery, and language teacher, and as a nanny for several years. She has a degree in Sociology and Psychology from the University of Edinburgh, as well as Acting from the MGA Academy. Ola is passionate about supporting children in finding out what they love (her favourite is when that happens to be theatre), exploring the world through creative lenses, and helping children develop empathy and understanding of the world and other people through drama.
