“Actors should be overheard, not listened to, and the audience is 50 percent of the performance.”
Carl's directing debut was in 2009 at Titirangi Theatre. He was asked to partake as the "newbie" director in the 24 Hour Play Festival. A frantic 24 hours consisting of five writers, five directors and 20 actors, all randomly matched on the day: the writers had just 12 hours to write a short play. At 8am, the finished play was handed over to the directors and actors, who had 12 hours from read-through to performance at 8pm Saturday. Amongst the chaos Carl found another calling that equalled his passion for acting.
Since then Carl has directed a handful of one act plays and received the Dolphin Theatre award for Best One Act Play 2012.
2014 was to be his first attempt at a full production called The Fox on the Fairway by Ken Ludwig. A laugh out loud comedy set in a golf club. The production was a great success and went on to win a number of awards at the Dolphin Theatre Awards including Best Production 2014.
“I’m not interested in how people move;
I’m interested in what makes them move.”
Company: Café Theatre & Ellerslie Theatre
Writer: Kellie Powell
Cast: Jennifer Onyeiwu, Fellis McGuire, Erik van de Wydeven, Munashe Tapfuya
Year: 2020
The plot revolves around Catherine, a young woman facing emotional turmoil after the death of her brilliant yet unstable mathematician father. As she navigates her own feelings, her estranged sister Claire's return, and the interest of her father's former student Hal in his notebooks, Catherine finds herself grappling with the question of how much of her father's brilliance or madness she has inherited. This intriguing storyline unfolds over a long weekend, marked by a budding romance and the unveiling of a mysterious notebook.
Close Enough
Company: Short + Sweet Festival
Writer: Kellie Powell
Cast: Zoe Gilmore & Mia Marama
Year: 2018
Close Enough was part of the Short+Sweet Festival 2018, a very heartwarming funny play, written by Kellie Powell and directed by Carl Drake.
Fiona (Mia Maramara) is a disgruntled indoor cat who finds herself suddenly transplanted to a new home when her owner moves in with her boyfriend and the couple adopts a new kitten, Prometheus. Like all kittens, Prometheus (Zoe Gilmore) is lively and curious, and Fiona finds herself in an awkward position when the two cats happen to witness their humans “mating”.
Dolores
Season: 24th - 2 September 2017
Company: Ellerslie Theatre
Writer: Edward Allan Baker
Cast: Brooke Petersen & Lyndsey Garner
A woman escapes her dangerously abusive husband and seeks help from a sister who doesn't want to get involved.
Farewell
Medium: Stage
Season: 20th - 29th August 2015
Company: Ellerslie Theatre
Writer: David Blakey
Ellerslie Theatre approached Carl to direct a one act play that was part of the One Act Play Festival. The moment he read the script he new he simply had to do it. It's beautifully written piece that encapsulates drama and comedy in this slice of life by David Blakey.
Proof
The Fox on the Fairway
Season: 14th June - 5th July 2014
Company: Dolphin Theatre
Writer: Ken Ludwig
PA's: Mandy Clarke
Christina Christopher
This year was to be Carl's first attempt at directing a full production called The Fox on the Fairway by Ken Ludwig. A laugh out load comedy set in a golf club. The production was a great success and went on to win a number of awards at the Dolphin Theatre Awards including Best Production 2014.
Here's the Thing
Year: 2013
Company: Dolphin Theatre
Writer: Debra K Chalmers
PA: Annie Whittaker
Amanda didn’t expect to have much more than a blinding headache after her big night out on the town with her newly divorced sister.
But finding a naked young man passed out on her couch and trying to explain that to her daughter was a doddle compared to dealing with the police searching for an armed robber, her boss looking for his missing son and her mother with a slight drinking problem.
What the hell did they do last night? If only they could remember.
Nothing
Year: 2012
Company: Dolphin Theatre
Writer: Mark Langham
PA: Annie Whittaker
Awards: Dolphin Theatre Best One Act 2012
The people in this play know each other extremely well. The three friends, very relaxed in each other’s company, soon find what inhibitions they may have had washed away by a healthy sluicing of booze!
The action, such as it is, takes place in a garage on a languid day in summer. The meaning of life and death is broken down, built back up again, broken down again after lunch and then, due to a lack of time, left in a heap in the corner by the lawnmower.
This play from left field is about the importance of doing nothing and having time out. We all do it. We all need to do it, but who is going to change the world and what is life all about? Why should we care? Why is it so noisy? And will the lawn ever get mowed?
Two Women and a Chair
Year: 2013
Company: Dolphin Theatre
Writer:
PA: Annie Whittaker
Two actors, Jessie and Martine, arrive at an audition to discover only a bare room with a mysterious black chair. The only instructions on what they should do are contained on the flyer advertising the play, and it soon becomes clear that this is no ordinary audition; or is it an audition at all? Will they obey the cryptic instructions? What of Damian, the director? Is this all a plot to get back at Martine, or is there something more? The answers, as always, lie in the choices Jessie and Martine are about to make.
Nothing
Year: 2012
Company: Dolphin Theatre
Writer: Mark Langham
PA: Annie Whittaker
Awards: Dolphin Theatre Best One Act 2012
The people in this play know each other extremely well. The three friends, very relaxed in each other’s company, soon find what inhibitions they may have had washed away by a healthy sluicing of booze!
The action, such as it is, takes place in a garage on a languid day in summer. The meaning of life and death is broken down, built back up again, broken down again after lunch and then, due to a lack of time, left in a heap in the corner by the lawnmower.
This play from left field is about the importance of doing nothing and having time out. We all do it. We all need to do it, but who is going to change the world and what is life all about? Why should we care? Why is it so noisy? And will the lawn ever get mowed?
For F#$% Sake, It's Your Turn
Year: 2009
Company: Titirangi Theatre
Writer: Jo Holstead
PA: Sharon
Cast
Natalie Blighs
Bruce Coventry
Nicola Turner
Karen Soulje
“Carl’s mind is an exciting playground for artistry. As an actor, I’ve been wanting to find more authenticity, joy, and instinct in my work. With unique and fresh approaches, not only does he facilitate that in my acting but also in my life. Life imitates art, isn’t that how it goes?
Carl’s empathy, intelligence, and humour knows no bounds.
It’s a real privilege to be directed by someone at Carl’s calibre time after time; and he’s only going up!
Thank you for your continued guidance and making acting joyful and exciting. I look forward to many more opportunities to collaborate.”
“Carl is a talented director who has a clear vision of what he requires from his actors, and he has an extensive array of techniques designed to draw out the best in them. His ability to mould his cast into a cohesive unit is unique. Carl is always engaging, extremely patient and he provides excellent feedback and encouragement.”
“Like any actor, I have always strived to approach roles from a place of honesty, but working under Carl’s direction really captivated my spirit. Through renewed techniques within improvised and scripted scenarios, Carl taught me how to connect more emotionally and within a very short space of time. Now that I understand the power of that connection, my performances have become much more about ‘being present’ than simply reciting words from a manuscript. Thanks Carl, I greatly look forward to working with you again.”
“Carl is very much an actor’s director. By that I mean he understands and helps you give real truth to your performance by getting to the core of why your character is there in the first place. He brings the natural performance out in his actors. Your performance stems from the reaction of the person you are performing opposite and he helps you understand that.”
“It was a truly amazing experience to be directed by Carl. He has this rare talent to get the best out of everyone and always makes you so comfortable and at ease. Rehearsing was always a joy, hard work, but so rewarding. He’s got a great understanding of acting and his actors and adapts well to each and every personality. I truly admire his work and what he’s done to me/my character.”
