Paul Griffiths (Wales)
Encyclopedia
Paul Griffiths is a Welsh writer, theatre critic and director. He won the Drama Medal at the National Urdd Gobaith Cymru
Eisteddfod three times in succession between 1995 and 1997 – the only person ever to do this. Since March 2006 he has contributed a controversial weekly theatre column to the National Paper of Wales Y Cymro
. He is also a regular contributor on the Welsh language Television Channel S4C
and BBC Radio Cymru
. In July 2008, he was appointed as the Operations Manager for Youth Music Theatre: UK
.
, North Wales
He set up his own theatre company aged 13 years old called Cwmni Ieuenctid Dolwyddelan. The company became successful and toured Wales competing in local theatre festivals. He was educated at Dolwyddelan
school and later at Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy
Secondary school in Llanrwst
, North Wales. Griffiths took a three-year Media Course at the Y Coleg Normal, University of Wales
, Bangor
and after graduating in 1994, worked for numerous television companies as a Production Assistant, and later as an Assistant Producer and Director.
Eisteddfod for the first time at the Preseli Eisteddfod in 1995 for a short play entitled O Gysgod y Cyll (From the Shadows) . He repeated his success in 1996 at the Bro Maelor
Eisteddfod in Wrexham
with another short play called B’echdan? (Sandwich?) later adapted and televised on the S4C Digital as B'echdan Wŷ?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVuAp5-9MgQ (Egg Sandwich?). In 1997 he won again at the Islwyn
Eisteddfod in Crosskeys
with the play Ai am fod haul yn Machlud? (Is it because the sun is setting?) which was also later adapted and televised on S4C Digital under the new name of Traeth Coch (Red Beach) starring Mali Harries
. In 2000, at the Bro Conwy
Eisteddfod held in Llandudno
he was invited to adjudicate the competition and at the 2008 Eisteddfod, again held in Llandudno presented the Ceremony live on S4C. In 2010, Griffiths adjudicated the Drama Medal for the second time at the Ceredigion Urdd Eisteddfod.
play Brad (Treason). After completing his Degree, he joined Eryri Films and worked on several drama series such as Tydi Coleg yn Gret (Isn’t College Great) and I Dir Drygioni (Into the Evil Earth) and numerous light-entertainment series for S4C. In 1995, he spent a year working as an Assistant Film Editor on S4C's eight-part family drama series Lleifior. He joined Cwmni Da as a Researcher and later Assistant Producer
in 1997, and contributed to BAFTA Cymru
Award Winning series such as Y Sioe Gelf (The Arts Show), Popeth yn Gymraeg (Everything in Welsh) and Jones Jones Jones
. In 2006, he filmed and directed a 30 minute documentary in the series Love Hurts for ITV1 Wales. He has also worked on co-productions for TG4
, S4C and ITV1 Wales with Midas Productions, Dublin such as Frongoch
- Coláiste na Réabhlóide http://www.s4c.co.uk/ffeithiol/e_frongoch.shtml (Frongoch – University of Revolution) and Celtic Monsters which won an Award at the Celtic Film and Television Festival in 2006. In June 2007, he left North Wales and re-located to London. Griffiths continues to work from time in Wales, and his last contribution was as Assistant Producer on the live six-day coverage for S4C of the Urdd Gobaith Cymru
Eisteddfod from the Conwy
Valley held in May 2008. He has previously worked on the 2006 and 2007 festival broadcast.
for a Festival to celebrate the centenary of poet and Archdruid
Cynan
in Pwllheli
, Wales. In collaboration with Musical Director and Composer Annette Bryn Parry
and author Glyn Roberts, Griffiths successfully produced O Docyn Brwyn i Ben Draw’r Byd (From ‘Tocyn Brwyn’ to the Ends of the Earth) at Neuadd Dwyfor
Theatre, Pwllheli in May 1995, with a cast of over 50 local and professional artists including the Hogia’r Wyddfa
and Rosalind and Myrddin. Following the success of the production, an annual May Festival was set up in the town, and Griffiths co-wrote and directed three further productions with the cast; Dan Hwyl Wen (Under a White Sail) in 1996 based on the sea-shanties of J.Glyn Davies, Dan Gysgod y Graig (In the Shadow of the Rock) in 1997 based on the true story of the Carreg yr Imbyll Granite
Company, and Ail-Godi’r Llen (Raising the Curtain) in 2005, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the company.
In 1998, Griffiths was commissioned along with composer Einion Dafydd to write a musical for the Urdd Gobaith Cymru
Eisteddfod in Pwllheli
, and Yn y Ffrâm (Framed) was produced at Neuadd Dwyfor, during the festival week in May 1998. A second commission followed in 2000, and Griffiths worked with composer Gareth Glyn
on Ail-Liwio'r Byd which was staged at the Venue Cymru
, Llandudno
in May 2000.
Since re-locating to London in June 2007, Griffiths has worked as a production assistant on Moonwalking in Chinatown at the Soho Theatre
, The Masque of the Red Death
at the Battersea Arts Centre
, and musical productions with Youth Music Theatre: UK
.
. His frank and honest comments were well received, and gained the respect of many actors and theatre directors. He openly disagreed with the appointment of Cefin Roberts, as the Artistic Director of the 'Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru' (National Theatre of Wales in Welsh), and received much criticism for his honest remarks. He often declared his jealousy of the National Theatre of Scotland
, under the leadership of Artistic Director Vicky Featherstone and longed that Wales could one day match their production standards.
Griffiths regularly has to defend his views, especially in respect to the Welsh language
National Theatre of Wales on numerous arts programmes on BBC
Radio Wales and S4C
. In February 2010, Griffiths was interviewed on S4C
's youth current affairs series Hacio in which he defended his right to criticise the work of the Theatr Genedlaethol, on an artistic level.
To date Griffiths has covered well over 300 productions from Wales to London's West End and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
and managed their 2008 Summer productions which included Marie Jones
' The Chosen Room at Belfast, Terry Pratchett
' Mort
at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
, Guildford
and Nick Stimson and Jimmy Jewell's production of Peter Pan
at the Barbican, Plymouth
. YMT's production of Conor Mitchell and Kath Burlinson’s Missing Mel transferred to the Cochrane Theatre
in the West End
in October 2008.
Griffiths' Summer 2009 productions included A Winter's Tale by Howard Goodall
and Nick Stimson at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford, Loserville: The Musical
by James Bourne
and Elliot Davis
directed by Steven Dexter
at the South Hill Park
Arts Centre in Bracknell
with Mamma Mia!
Musical Director Martin Lowe and second year developments of Marie Jones
' The Chosen Room in Belfast and Peter Pan
at the Aberdeen
International Youth Festival. YMT also commissioned four new musicals called Fool's Gold and According to Brian Haw
...? at the Barbican, Plymouth
,The Watchers at the Bradford
Playhouse and EIGHT at Casterton
in Cumbria. In December 2009, Peter Pan
transferred to the Bridewell Theatre, London for a short pre-Christmas run.
In February 2010, Griffiths appeared on S4C
's early evening TV show 'Wedi 7' to promote YMT's 2010 Cardiff Auditions.
YMT's 2010 Summer productions, which Griffiths oversaw, included further development of Nick Stimson and Jimmy Jewell's Peter Pan
alongside their new interpretation of John Gay
's The Beggar's Opera
at South Hill Park
Arts Centre in Bracknell
with Choreographer David Leighton. Other projects included Jenifer Toksvig's adaptation of David Almond
's children's novel, The Savage
in Casterton, Cumbria
; Scheherazade
at the Bradford
Playhouse; A Song for Eurydice
at the Barbican Plymouth
and a sequel to the 2009 production of the vampire
musical The Watchers called Ghosts of the Past at the Aberdeen
International Youth Festival. Conor Mitchell's The Dummy Tree originally commissioned by the National Theatre's
Connections Festival and presented by YMT members in 2009, ran for 2 weeks at London's Tristan Bates Theatre.
2011 saw further developments of Terry Pratchett
' Mort
, a new musical version of Shakespeare's Macbeth
and Out There by James Bourne
and Elliot Davis
directed by Steven Dexter
who gave YMT Loserville: The Musical
in 2009. YMT's 2011 flagship show was Korczak based on the life and work of Janusz Korczak
at the Rose Theatre, Kingston
. YMT also visited the Aberdeen
International Youth Festival with a new show by Kath Burlinson called Tales of the World's End and two shows in Plymouth, Love and Madness and Jabberwocky based on an adaptation of Jabberwocky
.
In August 2011, Griffiths and the Korczak company were featured on S4C
's 'Wedi 7' to promote the show.
Urdd Gobaith Cymru
dde|200px|thumb|The Urdd logoUrdd Gobaith Cymru, literally, the Welsh League of Hope, but normally translated as the Welsh League of Youth, or merely referred to as the Urdd, is a Welsh-medium youth movement with over 1,500 branches and over 50,000 members...
Eisteddfod three times in succession between 1995 and 1997 – the only person ever to do this. Since March 2006 he has contributed a controversial weekly theatre column to the National Paper of Wales Y Cymro
Y Cymro
Y Cymro is a Welsh language newspaper, first published in 1932.Y Cymro was founded in Wrexham, and succeeded other newspapers of the same name that had existed during the 19th and early 20th century. It is the only national newspaper in the Welsh language, and is published weekly, on a Friday.In...
. He is also a regular contributor on the Welsh language Television Channel S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
and BBC Radio Cymru
BBC Radio Cymru
BBC Radio Cymru is BBC Cymru's Welsh-language radio station, broadcasting throughout Wales from studios in Cardiff, Bangor, and Aberystwyth on FM since 1977. At the time of its launch it was one of the few FM-only radio services in the UK...
. In July 2008, he was appointed as the Operations Manager for Youth Music Theatre: UK
Youth Music Theatre: UK
Youth Music Theatre UK is the United Kingdom's biggest provider of music theatre projects for young people. It is one of nine recognised National Youth Music Organisations ....
.
Early life
Griffiths was raised in DolwyddelanDolwyddelan
Dolwyddelan, Welsh language : 'the meadow of Gwyddelan', is a village and community in Conwy county borough, north Wales, on the main A470 road between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Betws-y-Coed...
, North Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
He set up his own theatre company aged 13 years old called Cwmni Ieuenctid Dolwyddelan. The company became successful and toured Wales competing in local theatre festivals. He was educated at Dolwyddelan
Dolwyddelan
Dolwyddelan, Welsh language : 'the meadow of Gwyddelan', is a village and community in Conwy county borough, north Wales, on the main A470 road between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Betws-y-Coed...
school and later at Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy
Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy
Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy is a bilingual co-educational comprehensive school in the town of Llanrwst in Conwy County Borough, North Wales. The school serves the community of Llanrwst and the many surrounding villages including the rural districts of Betws-y-Coed, Llangernyw and Cerrigydrudion...
Secondary school in Llanrwst
Llanrwst
Llanrwst is a small town and community on the A470 road and the River Conwy in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It takes its name from the 5th century to 6th century Saint Grwst, and the original parish church in Cae Llan was replaced by the 12th-century church....
, North Wales. Griffiths took a three-year Media Course at the Y Coleg Normal, University of Wales
University of Wales
The University of Wales was a confederal university founded in 1893. It had accredited institutions throughout Wales, and formerly accredited courses in Britain and abroad, with over 100,000 students, but in October 2011, after a number of scandals, it withdrew all accreditation, and it was...
, Bangor
Bangor, Gwynedd
Bangor is a city in Gwynedd, north west Wales, and one of the smallest cities in Britain. It is a university city with a population of 13,725 at the 2001 census, not including around 10,000 students at Bangor University. Including nearby Menai Bridge on Anglesey, which does not however form part of...
and after graduating in 1994, worked for numerous television companies as a Production Assistant, and later as an Assistant Producer and Director.
National Urdd Eisteddfod
Griffiths won the Drama Medal at the National Urdd Gobaith CymruUrdd Gobaith Cymru
dde|200px|thumb|The Urdd logoUrdd Gobaith Cymru, literally, the Welsh League of Hope, but normally translated as the Welsh League of Youth, or merely referred to as the Urdd, is a Welsh-medium youth movement with over 1,500 branches and over 50,000 members...
Eisteddfod for the first time at the Preseli Eisteddfod in 1995 for a short play entitled O Gysgod y Cyll (From the Shadows) . He repeated his success in 1996 at the Bro Maelor
Maelor
Maelor is a border area of north-east Wales. It originated as a Cantref of the Kingdom of Powys, focused on Bangor-on-Dee.-History:The Maelor was first divided from the rest of Wales by the construction of Offa's Dyke in the eighth century, but was reclaimed for Wales during the reign of Stephen...
Eisteddfod in Wrexham
Wrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located in the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
with another short play called B’echdan? (Sandwich?) later adapted and televised on the S4C Digital as B'echdan Wŷ?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVuAp5-9MgQ (Egg Sandwich?). In 1997 he won again at the Islwyn
Islwyn
The Borough of Islwyn was one of five local government districts of Gwent from 1983 to 2011.The district was formed under the Local Government Act 1972 from part of the administrative county of Monmouthshire, namely the urban districts of Abercarn, Mynyddislwyn and Risca, and the Bedwellty urban...
Eisteddfod in Crosskeys
Crosskeys
Crosskeys is a small village in Caerphilly county borough in Wales.- Location :Crosskeys is seven miles north west of Newport, just past Risca off the A467 road. Located near to the confluence of the Ebbw River and the Sirhowy River, it was originally called Pont-y-cymer...
with the play Ai am fod haul yn Machlud? (Is it because the sun is setting?) which was also later adapted and televised on S4C Digital under the new name of Traeth Coch (Red Beach) starring Mali Harries
Mali Harries
Mali Harries is a Welsh actress and has been in the television industry since 1999 and is still ongoing in her work. She is renowned for her roles in several TV series, such as Holby City, The Bill and Doctors....
. In 2000, at the Bro Conwy
Conwy
Conwy is a walled market town and community in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales. The town, which faces Deganwy across the River Conwy, formerly lay in Gwynedd and prior to that in Caernarfonshire. Conwy has a population of 14,208...
Eisteddfod held in Llandudno
Llandudno
Llandudno is a seaside resort and town in Conwy County Borough, Wales. In the 2001 UK census it had a population of 20,090 including that of Penrhyn Bay and Penrhynside, which are within the Llandudno Community...
he was invited to adjudicate the competition and at the 2008 Eisteddfod, again held in Llandudno presented the Ceremony live on S4C. In 2010, Griffiths adjudicated the Drama Medal for the second time at the Ceredigion Urdd Eisteddfod.
TV production career
Griffiths started his career in television production as a part of his work experience in his second year at Y Coleg Normal, University of Wales, Bangor, when he worked as a Runner on S4C's adaptation of the Saunders LewisSaunders Lewis
Saunders Lewis was a Welsh poet, dramatist, historian, literary critic, and political activist. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist and a founder of the Welsh National Party...
play Brad (Treason). After completing his Degree, he joined Eryri Films and worked on several drama series such as Tydi Coleg yn Gret (Isn’t College Great) and I Dir Drygioni (Into the Evil Earth) and numerous light-entertainment series for S4C. In 1995, he spent a year working as an Assistant Film Editor on S4C's eight-part family drama series Lleifior. He joined Cwmni Da as a Researcher and later Assistant Producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
in 1997, and contributed to BAFTA Cymru
BAFTA Cymru
BAFTA Cymru is the Welsh branch of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.Formed in 1991, they hold an annual awards ceremony to recognise achievement by performers and production staff in Welsh-made films and television programmes...
Award Winning series such as Y Sioe Gelf (The Arts Show), Popeth yn Gymraeg (Everything in Welsh) and Jones Jones Jones
Jones Jones Jones
Jones Jones Jones was an event held at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff, Wales on the November 3, 2006, which broke the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of people with the same surname - Jones.-Gala Concert:...
. In 2006, he filmed and directed a 30 minute documentary in the series Love Hurts for ITV1 Wales. He has also worked on co-productions for TG4
TG4
TG4 is a public service broadcaster for Irish language speakers. The channel has been on-air since 31 October 1996 in the Republic of Ireland and since April 2005 in Northern Ireland....
, S4C and ITV1 Wales with Midas Productions, Dublin such as Frongoch
Frongoch
The village of Frongoch is located in Gwynedd, Wales. It lies close to the market town of Bala, on the A4212 road in north Wales.It was the home of the Frongoch internment camp, used to hold German prisoners-of-war during First World War, and then Irish Republican prisoners from the 1916...
- Coláiste na Réabhlóide http://www.s4c.co.uk/ffeithiol/e_frongoch.shtml (Frongoch – University of Revolution) and Celtic Monsters which won an Award at the Celtic Film and Television Festival in 2006. In June 2007, he left North Wales and re-located to London. Griffiths continues to work from time in Wales, and his last contribution was as Assistant Producer on the live six-day coverage for S4C of the Urdd Gobaith Cymru
Urdd Gobaith Cymru
dde|200px|thumb|The Urdd logoUrdd Gobaith Cymru, literally, the Welsh League of Hope, but normally translated as the Welsh League of Youth, or merely referred to as the Urdd, is a Welsh-medium youth movement with over 1,500 branches and over 50,000 members...
Eisteddfod from the Conwy
Conwy
Conwy is a walled market town and community in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales. The town, which faces Deganwy across the River Conwy, formerly lay in Gwynedd and prior to that in Caernarfonshire. Conwy has a population of 14,208...
Valley held in May 2008. He has previously worked on the 2006 and 2007 festival broadcast.
TV writing career
In 2000, Griffiths received several writing commissions from S4C including his first feature film commission. Two other scripts had also been turned into short dramas for the Welsh-language channel. He has worked on a number of scripts for S4C series like Pengelli and Tipyn o Stad (A Bit of a State) and wrote a 13 episode children’s animation series called Bibi Bêl (Bibi the Ball) for Griffilms. His work is inspired by everyday life and gets his inspiration from listening to people talking and picking things up from conversations. In 2000, S4C's commissioning editor for drama, Angharad Jones said Griffiths’ scripts contained warmth and a sense of humour. “He also has quite a good understanding of female characters as he has got sensitivity”, she added.Theatre career
After his Youth Company parted in 1994, Griffiths was invited to co-write, produce and direct a musicalMusical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
for a Festival to celebrate the centenary of poet and Archdruid
Archdruid
The Archdruid is the title used by the presiding official of the Gorsedd.The Archdruid presides over the most important ceremonies at the National Eisteddfod of Wales including the Crowning of the Bard, The Award of the Prose Medal and Chairing of the Bard. From 1932 only former winners of the...
Cynan
Albert Evans-Jones
Sir Cynan Evans-Jones CBE , more commonly known within Wales by his bardic name of Cynan, was a Welsh poet and dramatist.-Early life:...
in Pwllheli
Pwllheli
Pwllheli is a community and the main market town of the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, north-western Wales. It has a population of 3,861, of which a large proportion, 81 per cent, are Welsh speaking. Pwllheli is the place where Plaid Cymru was founded. It is the birthplace of Albert Evans-Jones -...
, Wales. In collaboration with Musical Director and Composer Annette Bryn Parry
Annette Bryn Parry
Annette Bryn Parri is a classical pianist, best known as an accompanist to opera stars such as Bryn Terfel, Rebecca Evans and Jason Howard. Parri appears regularly on the National Eisteddfod stage, and also at the International Eisteddfod at Llangollen....
and author Glyn Roberts, Griffiths successfully produced O Docyn Brwyn i Ben Draw’r Byd (From ‘Tocyn Brwyn’ to the Ends of the Earth) at Neuadd Dwyfor
Dwyfor
Dwyfor was one of the five local government districts of Gwynedd, Wales from 1974 to 1996, covering the Llŷn peninsula. Its council was based in Pwllheli....
Theatre, Pwllheli in May 1995, with a cast of over 50 local and professional artists including the Hogia’r Wyddfa
Hogia’r Wyddfa
Hogia’r Wyddfa is a five piece band which have been at the forefront of Welsh language entertainment, and have performed at hundreds of venues across Wales and beyond, for over forty years....
and Rosalind and Myrddin. Following the success of the production, an annual May Festival was set up in the town, and Griffiths co-wrote and directed three further productions with the cast; Dan Hwyl Wen (Under a White Sail) in 1996 based on the sea-shanties of J.Glyn Davies, Dan Gysgod y Graig (In the Shadow of the Rock) in 1997 based on the true story of the Carreg yr Imbyll Granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
Company, and Ail-Godi’r Llen (Raising the Curtain) in 2005, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the company.
In 1998, Griffiths was commissioned along with composer Einion Dafydd to write a musical for the Urdd Gobaith Cymru
Urdd Gobaith Cymru
dde|200px|thumb|The Urdd logoUrdd Gobaith Cymru, literally, the Welsh League of Hope, but normally translated as the Welsh League of Youth, or merely referred to as the Urdd, is a Welsh-medium youth movement with over 1,500 branches and over 50,000 members...
Eisteddfod in Pwllheli
Pwllheli
Pwllheli is a community and the main market town of the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, north-western Wales. It has a population of 3,861, of which a large proportion, 81 per cent, are Welsh speaking. Pwllheli is the place where Plaid Cymru was founded. It is the birthplace of Albert Evans-Jones -...
, and Yn y Ffrâm (Framed) was produced at Neuadd Dwyfor, during the festival week in May 1998. A second commission followed in 2000, and Griffiths worked with composer Gareth Glyn
Gareth Glyn
Gareth Glyn, born Gareth Glynne Davies , is a Welsh composer and radio broadcaster.-Life and education:Born in Machynlleth, Wales, Glyn is the eldest son of the late Welsh poet T. Glynne Davies...
on Ail-Liwio'r Byd which was staged at the Venue Cymru
Venue Cymru
Venue Cymru is a large arts venue in Llandudno, Conwy county borough, north Wales, incorporating a 1,500 seat theatre, restaurant, conference centre and arena. The venue was previously known as the North Wales Theatre and the North Wales Conference Centre....
, Llandudno
Llandudno
Llandudno is a seaside resort and town in Conwy County Borough, Wales. In the 2001 UK census it had a population of 20,090 including that of Penrhyn Bay and Penrhynside, which are within the Llandudno Community...
in May 2000.
Since re-locating to London in June 2007, Griffiths has worked as a production assistant on Moonwalking in Chinatown at the Soho Theatre
Soho Theatre
Soho Theatre is a theatre in the eponymous Soho district of the City of Westminster. It presents new works of theatre, together with comedy and cabaret....
, The Masque of the Red Death
The Masque of the Red Death
"The Masque of the Red Death", originally published as "The Mask of the Red Death" , is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe. The story follows Prince Prospero's attempts to avoid a dangerous plague known as the Red Death by hiding in his abbey. He, along with many other wealthy nobles, has a...
at the Battersea Arts Centre
Battersea Arts Centre
The Battersea Arts Centre is a performance space near Clapham Junction in Battersea, in the London Borough of Wandsworth that specialises in music and theatre productions.-History:...
, and musical productions with Youth Music Theatre: UK
Youth Music Theatre: UK
Youth Music Theatre UK is the United Kingdom's biggest provider of music theatre projects for young people. It is one of nine recognised National Youth Music Organisations ....
.
Y Cymro
Since March 2006, Griffiths has contributed a controversial weekly theatre column to the National Paper of Wales Y CymroY Cymro
Y Cymro is a Welsh language newspaper, first published in 1932.Y Cymro was founded in Wrexham, and succeeded other newspapers of the same name that had existed during the 19th and early 20th century. It is the only national newspaper in the Welsh language, and is published weekly, on a Friday.In...
. His frank and honest comments were well received, and gained the respect of many actors and theatre directors. He openly disagreed with the appointment of Cefin Roberts, as the Artistic Director of the 'Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru' (National Theatre of Wales in Welsh), and received much criticism for his honest remarks. He often declared his jealousy of the National Theatre of Scotland
National Theatre of Scotland
The National Theatre of Scotland is a theatre company established in February 2006. The company performs in a wide range of venues including theatres, halls and found spaces across Scotland....
, under the leadership of Artistic Director Vicky Featherstone and longed that Wales could one day match their production standards.
Griffiths regularly has to defend his views, especially in respect to the Welsh language
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
National Theatre of Wales on numerous arts programmes on BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Radio Wales and S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
. In February 2010, Griffiths was interviewed on S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
's youth current affairs series Hacio in which he defended his right to criticise the work of the Theatr Genedlaethol, on an artistic level.
To date Griffiths has covered well over 300 productions from Wales to London's West End and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Youth Music Theatre UK
In July 2008, Griffiths became Operations Manager for Youth Music Theatre: UKYouth Music Theatre: UK
Youth Music Theatre UK is the United Kingdom's biggest provider of music theatre projects for young people. It is one of nine recognised National Youth Music Organisations ....
and managed their 2008 Summer productions which included Marie Jones
Marie Jones
Sarah Marie Jones is a Belfast-based actress and playwright. Born into a working class family, Jones was an actress for several years before turning her hand to writing.-Charabanc/DubbelJoint:...
' The Chosen Room at Belfast, Terry Pratchett
Terry Pratchett
Sir Terence David John "Terry" Pratchett, OBE is an English novelist, known for his frequently comical work in the fantasy genre. He is best known for his popular and long-running Discworld series of comic fantasy novels...
' Mort
Mort
Mort is a Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett. Published in 1987, it is the fourth Discworld novel and the first to focus on the Death of the Discworld, who only appeared as a side character in the previous novels...
at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
The Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford, Surrey presents in-house productions which often tour and transfer to London's West End. Other performances include opera, ballet and pantomime. Named after the actress Yvonne Arnaud, the company has two performance venues, a main theatre and the smaller Mill...
, Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
and Nick Stimson and Jimmy Jewell's production of Peter Pan
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
at the Barbican, Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
. YMT's production of Conor Mitchell and Kath Burlinson’s Missing Mel transferred to the Cochrane Theatre
Cochrane Theatre
The Cochrane Theatre is a receiving and producing theatre that aims to present all aspects of the performing arts within a proscenium arch. The theatre is situated in Holborn, London.-History:...
in the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
in October 2008.
Griffiths' Summer 2009 productions included A Winter's Tale by Howard Goodall
Howard Goodall
210px|thumb|Howard Goodall at St. John the Baptist Church in Devon, United Kingdom, May 2009Howard Lindsay Goodall CBE is a British composer of musicals, choral music and music for television...
and Nick Stimson at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford, Loserville: The Musical
Loserville: The Musical
In February, 2009, Youth Music Theatre: UK comissioned James Bourne, along with his friend, Elliot Davis, to write a musical based on the Son Of Dork album, Welcome To Loserville. The tickets for the August 20 premier, directed by Steven Dexter, went on sale on May 7...
by James Bourne
James Bourne
James Elliot Bourne is an English singer-songwriter and co-founder of pop bands Son of Dork and Busted. He is currently pursuing a solo career under the name Future Boy. His albums have sold over six million copies...
and Elliot Davis
Elliot Davis
Elliot Davis is a British composer, musician and music documentary maker.- Biography :Davis started his career transcribing musical ideas for Lionel Bart. He then went on to work in the West End of London in a musical capacity on Miss Saigon, Cats, Les Misérables, Blood Brothers and Jesus Christ...
directed by Steven Dexter
Steven Dexter
Steven Dexter is a theatre director and writer. Born in South Africa, he moved to London in 1984 and studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.- West End productions :...
at the South Hill Park
South Hill Park
South Hill Park is a site that lies in the Birch Hill estate to the south of Bracknell town centre, in Berkshire, England.-History:The original South Hill Park mansion was built in 1760 for William Watts for his retirement from service as a senior official of the Bengal Government...
Arts Centre in Bracknell
Bracknell
Bracknell is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Bracknell Forest in Berkshire, England. It lies to the south-east of Reading, southwest of Windsor and west of central London...
with Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia! is a stage musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson, based on the songs of ABBA, composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, former members of the band. Although the title of the musical is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia", the plot is fictional, not...
Musical Director Martin Lowe and second year developments of Marie Jones
Marie Jones
Sarah Marie Jones is a Belfast-based actress and playwright. Born into a working class family, Jones was an actress for several years before turning her hand to writing.-Charabanc/DubbelJoint:...
' The Chosen Room in Belfast and Peter Pan
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
at the Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
International Youth Festival. YMT also commissioned four new musicals called Fool's Gold and According to Brian Haw
Brian Haw
Brian William Haw was an English protester and peace campaigner who lived for almost ten years in a camp in London's Parliament Square from 2001, in a protest against UK and US foreign policy...
...? at the Barbican, Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
,The Watchers at the Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
Playhouse and EIGHT at Casterton
Casterton, Cumbria
Casterton is a small village and civil parish close to Kirkby Lonsdale on the River Lune in the south east corner of Cumbria, England.The parish is bounded by Kirkby Lonsdale, Barbon, Dent, Leck and Burrow-with-Burrow, and lies just outside the western edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park:...
in Cumbria. In December 2009, Peter Pan
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
transferred to the Bridewell Theatre, London for a short pre-Christmas run.
In February 2010, Griffiths appeared on S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
's early evening TV show 'Wedi 7' to promote YMT's 2010 Cardiff Auditions.
YMT's 2010 Summer productions, which Griffiths oversaw, included further development of Nick Stimson and Jimmy Jewell's Peter Pan
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
alongside their new interpretation of John Gay
John Gay
John Gay was an English poet and dramatist and member of the Scriblerus Club. He is best remembered for The Beggar's Opera , set to music by Johann Christoph Pepusch...
's The Beggar's Opera
The Beggar's Opera
The Beggar's Opera is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satirical ballad opera to remain popular today...
at South Hill Park
South Hill Park
South Hill Park is a site that lies in the Birch Hill estate to the south of Bracknell town centre, in Berkshire, England.-History:The original South Hill Park mansion was built in 1760 for William Watts for his retirement from service as a senior official of the Bengal Government...
Arts Centre in Bracknell
Bracknell
Bracknell is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Bracknell Forest in Berkshire, England. It lies to the south-east of Reading, southwest of Windsor and west of central London...
with Choreographer David Leighton. Other projects included Jenifer Toksvig's adaptation of David Almond
David Almond
David Almond is a British children's writer who has written several novels, each one to critical acclaim.-Early life:Almond was born and raised in Felling and Newcastle in post-industrial North East England and educated at the University of East Anglia, he was born in 1951...
's children's novel, The Savage
The Savage
The Savage is a 1952 Western film directed by George Marshall and starring Charlton Heston. Much of the film was shot in the Black Hills of South Dakota.-Plot synopsis:...
in Casterton, Cumbria
Casterton, Cumbria
Casterton is a small village and civil parish close to Kirkby Lonsdale on the River Lune in the south east corner of Cumbria, England.The parish is bounded by Kirkby Lonsdale, Barbon, Dent, Leck and Burrow-with-Burrow, and lies just outside the western edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park:...
; Scheherazade
Scheherazade
Scheherazade , sometimes Scheherazadea, Persian transliteration Shahrazad or Shahrzād is a legendary Persian queen and the storyteller of One Thousand and One Nights.-Narration :...
at the Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
Playhouse; A Song for Eurydice
Eurydice
Eurydice in Greek mythology, was an oak nymph or one of the daughters of Apollo . She was the wife of Orpheus, who loved her dearly; on their wedding day, he played joyful songs as his bride danced through the meadow. One day, a satyr saw and pursued Eurydice, who stepped on a venomous snake,...
at the Barbican Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
and a sequel to the 2009 production of the vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
musical The Watchers called Ghosts of the Past at the Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
International Youth Festival. Conor Mitchell's The Dummy Tree originally commissioned by the National Theatre's
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
Connections Festival and presented by YMT members in 2009, ran for 2 weeks at London's Tristan Bates Theatre.
2011 saw further developments of Terry Pratchett
Terry Pratchett
Sir Terence David John "Terry" Pratchett, OBE is an English novelist, known for his frequently comical work in the fantasy genre. He is best known for his popular and long-running Discworld series of comic fantasy novels...
' Mort
Mort
Mort is a Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett. Published in 1987, it is the fourth Discworld novel and the first to focus on the Death of the Discworld, who only appeared as a side character in the previous novels...
, a new musical version of Shakespeare's Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
and Out There by James Bourne
James Bourne
James Elliot Bourne is an English singer-songwriter and co-founder of pop bands Son of Dork and Busted. He is currently pursuing a solo career under the name Future Boy. His albums have sold over six million copies...
and Elliot Davis
Elliot Davis
Elliot Davis is a British composer, musician and music documentary maker.- Biography :Davis started his career transcribing musical ideas for Lionel Bart. He then went on to work in the West End of London in a musical capacity on Miss Saigon, Cats, Les Misérables, Blood Brothers and Jesus Christ...
directed by Steven Dexter
Steven Dexter
Steven Dexter is a theatre director and writer. Born in South Africa, he moved to London in 1984 and studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.- West End productions :...
who gave YMT Loserville: The Musical
Loserville: The Musical
In February, 2009, Youth Music Theatre: UK comissioned James Bourne, along with his friend, Elliot Davis, to write a musical based on the Son Of Dork album, Welcome To Loserville. The tickets for the August 20 premier, directed by Steven Dexter, went on sale on May 7...
in 2009. YMT's 2011 flagship show was Korczak based on the life and work of Janusz Korczak
Janusz Korczak
Janusz Korczak, the pen name of Henryk Goldszmit was a Polish-Jewish children's author, and pediatrician known as Pan Doktor or Stary Doktor...
at the Rose Theatre, Kingston
Rose Theatre, Kingston
The Rose Theatre, Kingston is a theatre on Kingston High Street in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. The theatre seats 899 around a wide, lozenge shaped stage....
. YMT also visited the Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
International Youth Festival with a new show by Kath Burlinson called Tales of the World's End and two shows in Plymouth, Love and Madness and Jabberwocky based on an adaptation of Jabberwocky
Jabberwocky
"Jabberwocky" is a nonsense verse poem written by Lewis Carroll in his 1872 novel Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There, a sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland...
.
In August 2011, Griffiths and the Korczak company were featured on S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
's 'Wedi 7' to promote the show.