ABOUT US

It’s almost witching hour in South Newtown, and you’re walking down the seedy end of King Street. Every second shopfront is boarded up; windows broken, old posters peeling away from the walls.

In the distance, gothic spires penetrate the silvery night sky; the clanking of a late-night train pounds closer and closer. A gust of wind wisps its way around your neck, sending a chill down your spine.

As you walk through the skeletons of two trees by a run-down apartment block, you notice every window and every door is barred tight – graffiti on the pavement announces this as Ghost Valley.

Suddenly, a dimly-lit side-street comes into view – and there it is. Amongst the lit-up brothels and the closed-up shops, you see the sign. A couple of steps down the alley and you are greeted by a darkened stairwell. Through the doors and up you go, up…
…up into…

…the Theatre of Blood!

Theatre of Blood is a late-night horror theatre in the tradition of the Grand Guignol. Each Friday night at 11pm, we go live in the foyer of the Newtown Theatre in Sydney, with a one-hour program of three short plays. Every three months, there’s a brand new selection of plays to entertain, titillate and frighten you senseless. So don't lose your head...

...there’s plenty of reasons to come back to the Theatre of Blood!

STEVEN HOPLEY| Director

Steve was the Artistic Director of The Central Coast Shakespeare Company from 2001 to 2007, and directed several productions for the company during that time, including “Romeo & Juliet” as a four-hander, an outdoor “Twelfth Night”, and an epic “Macbeth” on Terrigal Beach with a cast of 35.

In 2004, he won the Best New Writer award at Short + Sweet for “Spots”, then followed it up in 2005 with a Best Director gong for his own piece “Paradise”. The former has since been performed in Malaysia and at the Edinburgh Festival; the latter in Singapore, the Brighton and Glastonbury festivals in the UK, and on tour around Australia with Shorter + Sweeter.

In 2007, he was Artistic Co-ordinator for the first regional arm of Short + Sweet on the Central Coast. A writer, director, actor, producer, composer and magician – among other things – Steve utilizes all the strings in his bow to bring you Theatre of Blood!

ANNA GARDINER | Designer

Anna graduated from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts with a Bachelor in Production and Design. She designed six productions whilst at WAAPA including “West Side Story”, “Lysistrata” and “Animal Farm”. Anna earned a place within the Golden Key International Honour Society and was within the top two percent of students in 2008. She has also worked with Kaleidoscope Theatre Company as properties designer for their inaugural production of “Cosi”. There’s nothing in terms of design that this young woman can’t do!

CRAIG WALKER | Stage Manager

With a career in entertainment spanning almost forty years, Craig has countless credits as an actor and performer on the stage and screen, as well as having worked as a producer and announcer for several radio stations. He has a great deal of experience in public relations, security and event management, including his work as manager of the events group, Genre Manipulations. He’s directed and produced for the theatre, and worked in stage management for Impro Australia. We feel safe in his Craig’s capable hands!