Ed has been teaching at Bird College since 2009. He has taught and directed at many performing arts schools and colleges including The Poor School, Rose Bruford, Mountview, GSA, The Royal College of Music and Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Productions include: 42nd Street, Baby, Betrayal, Oklahoma!, Entertaining Mr Sloane, Absolute Hell, A View from the Bridge, The Beggar’s Opera,  Blues in the Night, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and 9 To 5. He worked as a singer, actor, musical director and director in theatre for over 25 years. Directing credits include: The Threepenny Opera (Birmingham Summer Festival); Pipe Dream (Barber Institute); Grand Hotel (Edinburgh Festival); Alfie (Drayton Court Theatre); How He Lied to Her Husband and Overruled (King’s Head, Islington); Royal Variety (The Man in the Moon); Stig of the Dump (Tabard, Chiswick); Tin Pan Pals (Drayton Court Theatre); Charlie Sexboots (The Man in the Moon, Chelsea; The Circus, Stratford; The Boxer Rebellion Theater, Chicago); Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? and Lonely Heart (Workhouse Theatre); The Other Woman (Tricycle, Bath and Edinburgh Festivals); Phantasmagoria (East Midlands Youth Theatre), and Carousel (Opera North and UK tour). As Associate Director opera credits include productions of The Cunning Little Vixen and La Vie Parisienne (Royal College of Music), Kiss Me Kate (Welsh National Opera) and The Marriage of Figaro (Opera North). Ed was the Resident Director for the West End musicals: Whistle Down the Wind, The Woman in White, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and Billy Elliot – the Musical. Ed directed Kiss Me Kate (London Coliseum and UK & International Tour) and was the Associate Director for The Fantastic Follies of Mrs Rich for the Royal Shakespeare Company and Beautiful – The Carole King Musical.

Claire’s interests are in new writing, physical theatre and improvisation, and upon graduating with a BA(Hons) degree in Directing she worked with various companies developing devised and script based performances. During this time she continued to study performance making and performer training, including spending extensive periods in India and Japan studying classical dance and drama forms.

After completing a Masters Degree in Physical Performance at Exeter University, Claire continued to work as a director and performer, but shifted her focus to performer training, teaching in a variety of universities and colleges across the UK before taking a full time position at Bird College. Performance credits during this time include the Singapore premier of Martin Crimps Attempts on her Life; Die Nacht and Blood Memory (Dust Physical Theatre), and Njangalude Antigone for the Abhinaya Acting Company in India. Professional directing credits include, classical, new writing and physical theatre productions at Riverside Studios, The Roundhouse, The Pleasance Theatre, and the Etc. Theatre.  For Bird College Claire has directed in excess of 40 productions of physical theatre, devised theatre, verbatim theatre, forum theatre, reminiscence theatre, and the odd piece of realism.

Jennifer originally trained as a dancer at Laine Theatre Arts and Bush Davies. She has performed in opera ballet (Opera North and Covent Garden) and the West End musicals Me and My Girl, Charlie Girl, Cabaret and Follies. She then went on to train as an actor at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and has worked in TV, commercials, film and theatre – including seasons at the National Theatre with directors Phyllida Lloyd, Trevor Nunn, Nicholas Hytner, Marianne Elliott and Howard Davies. She has also performed at Sadlers Wells for the RSC in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and in theatres throughout the UK. She has toured with companies including Paines Plough and English Touring Theatre – favourite roles include Nora in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, Gwendolen in The Importance of Being Earnest and Diane in Wild Things. In 2008 she gained a 1st class BA (Hons) in Performance Studies at Arts Educational and graduated from Central School of Speech and Drama in 2016 with an MA (Distinction) in Actor Training and Coaching. She joined the Acting faculty at Bird College in 2017 and has also been teaching at Arts Educational, Mountview and PPA.

Nick trained at Rose Bruford College as an actor musician. He is an established actor trainer and coach with 25 years industry experience as a performer. His career includes over 40 Theatre, TV, and Film credits, including contracts with Disney, 20th Century Fox, BBC, and Sky. Nick graduated with an MA in Actor Training and Coaching from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and his research interests lie in Interdisciplinary Practice. He has worked as an actor tutor at Colchester University and Mountview, and his pedagogical approach is one of inclusivity, working in dialogue with students, to bring out their unique voice, and establish a creative and supportive atmosphere to encourage their confidence.
Nicks West End credits include, Sunset Boulevard, Return to the Forbidden Planet, Buddy, Fame, Happy End, and Murderous Instincts. Shakespeare credits include Twelfth Night, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and A Midsummer Nights Dream. Other theatre credits include Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Private Lives, The Importance of Being Earnest, To Kill A Mockingbird, Dracula, and Room at the Top. Nick has worked extensively within Actor-musicianship and these credits include Song of Singapore, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, Up on the Roof, Curses! Keep on Running, The Good Intent, Oh What A Lovely War, Face, Blitz! and Sweet Charity.

After training at LAMDA, and then specialising in The Meisner Technique with the Impulse Company Tom co-founded the award-winning production company GOOD SHOUT. He now works both sides of the camera as a film maker and actor. Behind the camera Tom has made 12 short films (one of which was long-listed for a BAFTA) and 2 features. As an actor Tom has worked on Features, TV, Shorts, Stage, Commercials, Radio, and Immersive. He has taught at a variety of UK Drama schools including: LAMDA, GSA, ISSA, & The Impulse Company.

Nic Charles is a director for TV, Film and Theatre, with projects for BBC, Channel 4, ITV.
Her first theatre production Emilia by Morgan Lloyd-Malcolm won three Olivier Awards following a run at the Vaudeville Theatre after transferring from The Globe. Following five-star reviews, Nic’s second theatre production, Sing Yer Heart Out for the Lads by Roy Williams transferred from Chichester Festival Theatre to the Royal National Theatre, before cancellation due to the pandemic.

Born and raised in south London, Nic attended the BRIT School where she studied theatre, trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and conducted further postgraduate study at Goldsmiths University. She still lives in South London. She is raising two children.

She is drawn to stories from underrepresented perspectives and voices with universality at their centre. The work she likes to make is authored, intentional, rigorous with visual flair.

Jonny is a multi-disciplined Jersey born actor who’s most likely known for playing Paul Coker in Eastenders in 2017.

Since graduating from Bird College in 2014 Jonny has played the lead in the original West End cast of Strictly Ballroom, won ITV’S Dance Dance Dance UK and most recently played Jerry Travers in Top Hat at the Mill at Sonning. Other credits include In The Heights (Southwark playhouse), Jingle Jangle (Netflix), Doctors (BBC) and Shakespeare and Hathaway (BBC). More recently Jonny has been writing and directing short film projects and is eager to work with students, sharing nearly 10 years of experience in the business of how to put you career in your own hands and help encourage a broader interest into screen acting.

Jonny is very passionate about inspiring emerging talent who have determination and a solid work ethic. In 2021 Jonny developed his own company MYWY which champions the growth of new artists and funds projects that will make a difference to their careers. Doreen Bird was the start of this encouragement for him so as a proud patron he is always happy to do the same for the next generation.