Company Members

The Collective Ethos

We believe that Theatre is a collective art and without a collective, there is no theatre. Each show or project we do has its own collective and we are proud of instigating this ethos with all the people we work with within all the projects we have done. We also invest in keeping the relationship with all the artists we have worked and collaborated with in the past as much as we possibly can. They are a sort of Dende community - a pool of artists that if we could, we would be working with all the time. The theatrical landscape in London does not allow that, differing from the theatre scene in São Paulo where artists are constantly looking for new projects and there is little financial support to maintain artistic relationships. We call some of our regular Dende artists, those with whom we have worked on several projects over the years, our associate artists. We get inspired by them and they are there to support our work and advise us whenever possible. Building a Dende network that makes creating theatre in such a competitive environment like the City of London a bit easier. There is a list of some of these great people below and where possible, a link to their websites.

Artistic Director - Andre Pink

Andre is a Brazilian-born theatre practitioner residing in England since 1996. He started his training in Universidade de São Paulo (USP), a state-funded university, in the BA Directing Diploma. Dropping out two years later after being frustrated with the academic nature of the studies, Andre started acting and directing in experimental theatre, which led him to join Troupe de Atmosfera Nômade, which was being spearheaded by two directors who specialized in clowning and Commedia Dell’Arte respectively, Cristiane Paoli-Quito and Tiche Vianna. The work of Troupe was pivotal to the birth of a clowning scene in the city of São Paulo that is still going strong today.

Eventually, Andre returned to USP where he re-did the four-year course and directed two shows (All That Fall by Samuel Beckett & The Ghost Sonata by Strindberg) that were developed into professional productions. A few years later Andre applied and received a grant from the Brazilian Ministry of Culture to train at the Ecole Phillipe Gaulier in London. He was also the recipient of a fellowship bursary by the Japan Foundation that allowed him to study and train Kyogen and Noh in Japan.

He has been returning to direct British and European contemporary plays in his native Brazil since 2011, staging Love and Money by Dennis Kelly, Realism and The Wonderful World of Dissocia by A. Neilson, Blue Heart by C. Churchill and The Ugly One by Marius Von Mayenburg.

Andre teaches and directs in several H.E. organisations and drama schools in England and abroad (Brazil, Singapore, Korea and Japan). In London, he taught and directed at Mountview Academy of Dramatic Arts from 2003 to 2008 and now he is a regular tutor and director at East 15's Physical Theatre course, which he joined in 2007.

Associate Artists

Caroline Jones - Designer in Comedia for Elders and The Glass Flower Society. Co-facilitator and Designer in The Kilburn Mask Project, The Church Street Mask Project and GARDENS R US.

Montse Gili - Associate director, writer and actress (she joined the company in 2000, was a core member of the company from 2002 to 2010 and co-artistic-director from 2008 to 2010).

Mark O'Thomas - Associate playwright, Translator and dramaturg (he was a core member of the company from 2001 to 2008)

Akiko Sato - She was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE, OneFourSeven and KWAIDAN

Bob Karper - He was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE, CHRISTMAS IN THE PIRANHA INN, OneFourSeven and THE MACUNAÍMA CYCLE

Catherine Mobley - She was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE, CHRISTMAS IN THE PIRANHA INN, OneFourSeven and THE MACUNAÍMA CYCLE

Dani Machancosis - Played the hero in all the stages of THE MACUNAÍMA CYCLE

Frank Wurzinger - He was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE, CHRISTMAS IN THE PIRANHA INN, KWAIDAN and C-ATTACK!

George Little - He was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE, CHRISTMAS IN THE PIRANHA INN

George Ogilvie - He was the lighting designer in DONA FLOR, LUNA CLUB and AGRESTE

James Bellorini - Was in OneFourSeven and DONA FLOR

Mark Reid - He was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE, CHRISTMAS IN THE PIRANHA INN, DONA FLOR, AGRESTE, KWAIDAN and in THE MACUNAÍMA CYCLE

Mariana Whitehouse - She was in VIVA MARIA! and DONA FLOR

Nicholai Labarrie - He was in OneFourSeven and THE MACUNAÍMA CYCLE

Patrizia Paolini - She was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE and OneFourSeven

Pedro de Senna - He was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE and OneFourSeven

Samuel Guimarães - He was our resident visual artist in THE MACUNAÍMA CYCLE

Vania Cardoso - She was in THE PIRANHA LOUNGE and CHRISTMAS IN THE PIRANHA INN