CHRISTOPHER DENNIS UMNEY
BA Hons in Visual & Performing Arts - Theatre (1992-1995)
from the University of Brighton
Born in Cardiff, Wales
Date of birth: 26/03/1963
LIGHTING
I was fortunate to begin my professional lighting
career whilst studying in my first year the Visual & Performing Arts
(Theatre) BA Hons. degree course at the University of Brighton. From 1992 until 1999 I worked with Liz
Aggiss and Billy Cowie’s dance company Divas, lighting 7 productions throughout
the UK and Europe. Highlights included performing “Falling Apart At The Seams
(So It Seems)” and “Absurdities” at Kampnagel in Hamburg; at Podewil in Berlin;
at the Zurich Theater Festival in 1993, and the Divadlo Arca in Prague in 1995.
In 1996 we took “The Fetching Bride” to Ludwigsburg at the end of a UK tour,
and in 1997 we performed “Divagate” in Mainz after performances in Brighton and
London. During this time I also designed the lighting for Brighton Theatre
Events’ “Get Oscar”; “The Greatest Hits Of British History” and “The Football
Factory”. These shows toured nationally during 1997 and 1998.
Other companies I
worked for in the latter half of the decade included Teatrul Sophrozin in Bucharest,
Camille Thoman (a New York based performance artist), the Sarah Lloyd Dance
Company, Facepack Theatre, Quirk Productions, Southern Actors, and Clout Dance
Theatre. In 1999 I worked as lighting designer for 4 shows at the Edinburgh Festival,
including Camille Thoman’s “Numb” for which I shared a Total Theatre Awards
nomination for best overall production design.
In 2000 I designed the lighting for 2 further shows
at the Edinburgh Festival, Martin Sutherland Productions’ “So I Killed A Few
People” and Mark Mander’s “Maybelline”. The following year I became the
lighting designer for Swamp Circus and that Autumn we toured “Moto” to 24
theatres in The Netherlands. UK touring followed in 2002, and in 2003, a new
show, “Fragile” that toured until Summer 2004. Other design work during this
time included Theatre and Beyond’s “Looking For Christian” and Bright FX’s
“Ignite!” at the 2002 Brighton Festival; Prodigal Theatre’s “The Tragedian Part
1” at the 2002 Edinburgh Festival; Brighton Theatre Events’ “Blue And White Christmas”
at the Komedia, Brighton, December 2002 and Bandbazi’s “Pussy Galore’s Flying
Circus” that toured the UK 2002 - 2003.
In 2003 I also worked relights for Chahine Yavroyan
on a 40 date UK tour of People Show 101 “Slideshow”, and I became the production
manager for Sound & Fury, touring the UK and to Macedonia with “The Watery
Part Of The World”. During the next 5 years further productions followed with
Theatre & Beyond, Sound & Fury, Prodigal Theatre, Bright FX, and I also
lit shows in the UK and in Europe for a number of new clients including Voodoo
Vaudeville, Trio Con Brio, Take The Space, Periplum, Patter, John Paul
Zaccarrini, Inservice, Highspin, and Company Collisions.
In October 2007 I became the technical manager for
Tim Crouch and News From Nowhere touring 3 productions, “An Oak Tree”; “My Arm”
and “England”, both nationally and Internationally until the Summer of 2009.
In the last two years I have relit two shows for designer
Katharine Williams: Darren Johnston / Array’s “Outré” and Inspector Sands
“Hysteria”. Performances include visits to London, Valencia, Edinburgh, Yerevan,
Berlin and Moscow. I have also designed the lighting for Prodigal Theatre’s
outdoor show “Fusion”, that premiered at the Volvo International Yacht Race in
Alicante in October 2007; Periplum’s
“The Bell” that toured Mexico in November 2008; Liz Aggiss and VDT’s “Double
Vision” that toured nationally Spring 2009; and for Array’s latest show “Ousia”
that opened at the Edinburgh Festival 2009.
LICHTDESIGN
Bereits während meines ersten
Studienjahrs der Visual & Performing Arts (Theater) - abgeschlossen mit dem
BA Hons an der Universität Brighton -, hatte ich das Glück meine berufliche
Laufbahn in Richtung Lichtdesign zu lenken. Zwischen 1992 und 1999 tourte ich mit
Liz Aggiss und Bill Cowie´s Dance Company Divas und gestaltete das Lichtdesign
für 7 Produktionen in ganz England und Europa. Die Highlights (Lichtdesign
& Ausführung) waren: Falling Apart At The
Seams (So It Seems) und Absurdities im Kampnagel in Hamburg und im Podewil in Berlin. 1993 auf
dem Zürich Theater Festival und im Divadlo Arca in Prag, 1995. 1996 führten
wir The Fetching Bride in Ludwigsburg
auf. Ende der UK Tour 1997, lieferten wir
die Performance für Divagate in
Mainz, was zuvor in Brighton and London aufgeführt worden war. Während dieser
Zeit entwarf ich außerdem das Lichtdesign für verschiedene produktionen der
Brighton Theatre Events Kompany: Get
Oscar; The Greatest Hits Of British History und The Football Factory. Diese Shows tourten zwischen 1997 und 1998
innerhalb Englands.
Andere
Veranstalter, für die ich in der ersten Hälfte der letzten zehn Jahren
gearbeitet habe sind: Teatrul Sophrozin in Bukarest, Camille Thoman (ein New
Yorker Performance Künstler), die Sarah Lloyd Dance Company, Facepack Theatre,
Quirk Productions, Southern Actors, und das Clout Dance Theatre. 1999 arbeitete
ich als Lichtdesigner für 4 Veranstaltungen des Edinburgh Festivals. Darunter
Camille Thoman´s Numb, wofür ich (u.A.)
mit dem „Total Theatre Awards“ nominiert wurde, für das beste Gesamt-Produktionsdesign.
2000
gestaltete ich das Lichtdesign für zwei weitere Shows des Edinburgh Festivals:
die Produktionen von Martin Sutherland: So
I Killed A Few People und von Mark Mander: Maybelline. Im darauf folgenden Jahr das Lichtdesign für den Swamp
Circus; mit Moto tourten wir im
Frühjahr durch 24 niederländische Theater. Eine England Tournee folgte 2002.
2003 dann die neue Show Fragile, die
bis zum Sommer 2004 tourte. Andere Lichtdesign Arbeiten aus dieser Zeit waren
für Theatre Beyond’s Looking For
Christian und Bright FX’s Ignite!
auf dem Brighton Festival 2002; Prodigal Theatre: The Tragedian Part 1 auf dem Edinburgh Festival 2002; die Brighton
Theatre Events Blue And White Christmas
in der Komedia in Brighton im Dezember 2002 und Bandbazi’s Pussy Galore’s Flying Circus, was zwischen 2002
und 2003 durch England tourte.
2003 entwarf ich das Lichtdesign für Chahine Yavroyan auf
einer 40-tägigen Tournee der People Show 101 Slideshow. Als Produktionsmanager begleitete ich die
Produktion für Sound & Fury, die mit The
Watery Part Of The World durch England, inklusive Mazedonien tourten. Über die folgenden 5 Jahre folgten
weitere Produktionen mit Theatre & Beyond, Sound & Fury, Prodigal
Theatre, Bright FX. Ich übernahm die Beleuchtung von Veranstaltungen zahlreicher
neuer Kunden in England und Europa, darunter Voodoo Vaudeville, Trio Con Brio,
Take The Space, Periplum, Patter, John Paul Zaccarrini, Inservice, Highspin und
Company Collisions.
Im Oktober 2007 wurde ich
Technischer Manager für Tim Crouch and News From Nowhere, die mit drei Produktionen:
An Oak Tree; My Arm und England bis zum Sommer 2009 sowohl innerhalb
Englands, als auch international tourten.
In den letzten zwei Jahren habe
ich die Lichttechnik zweier Shows gestaltet: für die Designer Katharine Williams: Darren Johnston /
Array’s Outré und Inspector Sands Hysteria. Die
Inszenierungen waren mit Aufenthalten in London, Valencia, Edinburgh, Yerevan, Berlin
und Moskau verbunden. Für die Outdoor Show Fusion
des Prodigal Theatre habe ich das Lichtdesign entworfen. Die Show wurde auf dem
Internationalen Volvo Yacht Rennen in Alicante, im Oktober 2007 uraufgeführt. Es
folgte das Lichtdesign für Periplum’s The
Bell, was im November 2008 durch Mexico tourte; Liz Aggiss und VDT’s Double Vision im Frühjahr 2009
(England-Tournee) und Array’s letzte Show Ousia,
die auf dem Edinburgh Festival 2009 eröffnet wurde.
EXAMPLES OF WORK
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Liz Aggiss & VDT "Double Vision"
Sallis Benney Theatre, Brighton (2009) company (c)
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Liz Aggiss & VDT "Double Vision"
Sallis Benney Theatre, Brighton (2009) company (c)
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Liz Aggiss & VDT "Double Vision"
Sallis Benney Theatre, Brighton (2009) company (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Zacatecas Festival, Mexico (2008) Johnny Goodwin (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Zacatecas Festival, Mexico (2008) Johnny Goodwin (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Zacatecas Festival, Mexico (2008) Johnny Goodwin (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Brighton Festival (2008) U.Shehadeh (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Brighton Festival (2008) U.Shehadeh (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Brighton Festival (2008) U.Shehadeh (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) company (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) company (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) company (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Brighton Festival (2008) Ray Gibson (c)
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Array "Outré" LX design by Katharine Williams
VEO Fest, Valencia (2008) company (c)
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Inspector Sands "Hysteria" LX design by Katharine Williams
Stanislavsky Theatre, Moscow (2007)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Hastings Coastal Currents (2007) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Hastings Coastal Currents (2007) Sama Mara (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Hastings Coastal Currents (2007) Ray Gibson (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Watch This Space @ The National Theatre (2007) Rosie Reed Gold (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Watch This Space @ The National Theatre (2007) Rosie Reed Gold (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Watch This Space @ The National Theatre (2007) Jules Deering (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Watch This Space @ The National Theatre (2007) Rosie Reed Gold (c)
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Periplum "The Bell"
Watch This Space @ The National Theatre (2007) Rosie Reed Gold (c)
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Prodigal "Queen Of The Slaughter"
Edinburgh Festival (2007) company (c)
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Prodigal "Queen Of The Slaughter"
Edinburgh Festival (2007) company (c)
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Prodigal "Queen Of The Slaughter"
Edinburgh Festival (2007) company (c)
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Company Collisions "Nothing Left To Lose"
London International Mime Festival (2007) Usama Shehadeh (c)
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Company Collisions "Nothing Left To Lose"
London International Mime Festival (2007) Usama Shehadeh (c)
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Company Collisions "Nothing Left To Lose"
London International Mime Festival (2007) Usama Shehadeh (c)
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Company Collisions "Nothing Left To Lose"
London International Mime Festival (2007) Usama Shehadeh (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Watch This Space @ The National Theatre (2006) Alex Whittaker (c)
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Periplum "Arquiem"
Bracknell Premiere (2006) Robin Manuell (c)
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Bright FX "Ignite!"
Glastonbury Festival (2005) company (c)
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Bright FX "Ignite!"
Glastonbury Festival (2005) company (c)
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Highspin "Whodunnit?"
Brighton Corn Exchange (2004) Ben Johnson (c)
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Prodigal "The Tragedian Part 1"
Edinburgh Festival (2002) company (c)
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Bright FX "Ignite!"
Brighton Festival (2002) company (c)
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Divas "Die Orchidee"
The Purcell Rooms, London (1999) company (c)
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Divas "Die Orchidee"
The Purcell Rooms, London (1999) company (c)
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Divas "Die Orchidee"
The Purcell Rooms, London (1999) company (c)
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Divas "Divagate"
The Queen Elizabeth Hall, London (1997) company (c)
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Divas "Divagate"
The Queen Elizabeth Hall, London (1997) company (c)
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Divas "Divagate"
The Queen Elizabeth Hall, London (1997) company (c)
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Divas "Absurdities"
The Place, London (1995) company (c)
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Divas "Absurdities"
The Place, London (1995) company (c)
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Divas "Falling Apart At The Seams (So It Seems)"
The Gardner Centre, Brighton (1992) company (c)
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Divas "Falling Apart At The Seams (So It Seems)"
The Gardner Centre, Brighton (1992) company (c)
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Divas "No Man's Land"
The Gardner Centre, Brighton (1992) company (c)
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Divas "No Man's Land"
The Gardner Centre, Brighton (1992) company (c)
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SOUND
Alongside my lighting and production work I have continued a lifelong interest in music and sound. Recent sound projects include a monthly radio show featuring local field recordings with Joseph Young as Field Radio on Brighton's Radio Reverb: April 2007 - July 2008 and "The Reading Room", an installation collaboration with artist / performer Miriam King for The Point in Eastleigh in April 2008. I am currently writing music inspired by the novel "Oxossis Farben" by Kerstin Westerbeck for release on CD in 2010. In 1993 I co-founded the music & performance collective WEVIE STONDER with Alan Boorman and Richard Sothcott. Almost 17 years later we are still going strong!
Click here to explore the world of Wevie!
The new album THE BUCKET was released on our very own
CACK RECORDS label on April Fool's Day 2009!
Since 20th October 2008 in England
Schräder - Umney : Design and Management