User:CobraPaw/sandbox

William Kerley (born 1965) is a British director of theatre, opera and film and writer.

Early Life and Education
Kerley was born in Kensington, London and attended schools in Twickenham and Sunbury-on-Thames, before taking a degree in theatre at Dartington College of Arts, Devon. While still at school, he joined Youth Action Theatre, Teddington and acted in many of their productions, playing Romeo at the age of 16.

Career
On leaving Dartington College of Arts, Kerley co-founded a touring music-theatre company Actiontrack Performance Company, before starting work as an assistant director in theatre and opera. He was assistant director in theatre at the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre and the Almeida Theatre and in opera at City of Birmingham Touring Opera, Opera North, Scottish Opera, Welsh National Opera, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Buxton Festival Opera and Glyndebourne Festival Opera. He was assistant and associate director to directors including Tim Albery, Bill Alexander, Jonathan Kent, Phyllida Lloyd, Jonathan Miller, Graham Vick and Matthew Warchus. While he was assistant director at the RSC, Kerley directed Nick Dear’s The Art of Success at the RSC Fringe Festival, starring Olivia Williams, Jonathan Cake and Ruth Jones.

Theatre World Premieres
Kerley directed the world premiere of Gill Adams’ play Jump to Cow Heaven, starring Martin Freeman – which won the First of the Fringe Firsts prize at the 1997 Edinburgh Fringe Festival and transferred to the Riverside Studios in London. In 2003, he directed the world premiere of Richard Bean’s The God Botherers, starring David Oyelowo and Sunetra Sarker at the Bush Theatre, London.

Opera
Kerley’s opera directing includes for Opera Philadelphia George Benjamin’s Written on Skin – starring Anthony Roth Costanzo, Benjamin Britten’s Rape of Lucretia - starring Nathan Gunn - and Thomas Adès’ Powder her Face. He directed the Chinese premiere of Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the National Centre for the Performing Arts (China) in Beijing, Bizet’s Carmen at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari, Italy, Puccini’s La Boheme at the Royal Opera House Muscat, Oman and the fiftieth anniversary production of Britten’s Gloriana at the Aldeburgh Festival. Kerley has directed many productions for the National Youth Theatre and British Youth Opera.

Kerley is a specialist in the operas of Benjamin Britten. His chief mentors were Jonathan Miller - whom he assisted on A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Almeida Theatre and Basil Coleman - who directed many of the first

productions of Britten’s operas. Kerley is one of the trustees of Basil Coleman’s Estate.

From 2007 to 2012 Kerley was Resident Stage Director at Lorin Maazel’s Castleton Festival in Virginia, U.S.A. and directed many operas conducted by Maestro Maazel which toured in America (notably to CAL Performances in Berkeley, California) and internationally - e.g. to the Royal Opera House in Oman.

Film
Kerley’s first feature film The Krays' Mad Axeman was released in the U.K. in 2019 and as The London Mob had its U.S.A. release in 2020.

Writing

Kerley’s first book of memoirs Driving Mr. C. was published in 2021. His writing has been published in the Independent on Sunday, The Guardian and the Sunday Telegraph.

Broadcasting
Kerley was a regular columnist for BBC Radio 4’s Home Truths programme, presented by John Peel.

Personal Life
Kerley is married to the classical soprano Claire Bessent. He has three children.