Our Team

Mark Barford

Mark Barford is an Australian-born stage director, writer, and producer based in NYC, who specializes in developing new work and reimagining classics. 

He is the founding Co-Artistic/Executive Director of The Australian Theatre Festival NYC, now in its seventh year.

As a director of two hit plays performed for audiences around the world, Mark’s work is recognized for its critical and commercial success. He is the director and dramaturg of ‘CADEL: Lungs on Legs’, which received a 5-star rave review from The Guardian. The production has garnered widespread critical acclaim, with The Scotsman praising Mark’s “seamlessly complex direction,” The Stage highlighting his “striking staging,” and The List describing the work as “pitch-perfect theatre-making.” To date, the production has toured extensively across Australia and the U.K and has been performed over 75 times. Mark also directed the award-winning production of ‘F*cking Men’, which played multiple sold-out seasons at The King’s Head Theatre (London). The production was described by Live Theatre UK as an “essentially faultless” piece of “beautiful direction” that surpassed the quality of work at the National Theatre. Having received multiple 5-star reviews, the production toured internationally to the Edinburgh Fringe (Assembly Festival), the Dublin Gay Theatre Festival and completed a 12 week run at the Vaults in London.

Recent NYC directing highlights included new work: ‘Python’, ‘Wavelength’ (Theatre Row); ‘Hubris & Humiliation’ (Theaterlab); ‘The Tiniest Thing’ (Alchemical); ‘Breakfast’ (Secret Theatre), and reimagined productions of ‘Much Ado About Nothing’, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (Theatre Row); ‘The Children’s Hour’ and ‘As You Like It’ (Circle in the Square). 

Writing/Directing highlights include: ‘Stranded’ (ATF), ‘Hadrian & Antinous’ (Lenfest), ‘Antidote’ (Croatian National Theatre). 

As resident director: ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, ‘The Sound of Music’, ‘The Mikado’ and ‘CATS’ (Regal Theatre); & ‘Company’ (Subiaco Arts Centre). 

Mark assisted directors Barrie Kosky on ‘La Boheme’ (Komische Oper, Berlin) and Ivo van Hove on ‘Network’ (Belasco, Broadway). 

He has been an educator for over 10 years and is currently on faculty at Circle in the Square Theatre School in NYC.

A graduate of the Acting Shakespeare program at RADA (London), he holds a BA & Grad Dip Ed from Murdoch University and an MFA in Theatre Directing from Columbia University, under professors Anne Bogart and Brian Kulick. 

Mark is an Associate Member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC).

www.markbarford.com IG @markbarford

Connor Delves

Connor Delves is an Australian-born, New York-based actor, producer, singer and director, whose work spans the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. 

He is the founding Co-Artistic/Executive Director of The Australian Theatre Festival NYC, now in its seventh year.

Connor is the Creator and star of the internationally acclaimed one-man play, ‘CADEL: Lungs On Legs’, in which he portrays Australia's first and only Tour de France winner, Cadel Evans, while riding a bicycle live on stage for the duration of the performance.

The production has become one of the breakout Australian theatre successes of recent years, earning sold-out seasons across the UK and Australia, including acclaimed runs at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and forthcoming seasons in Edinburgh and London. The production won “Best Show of the Fringe” from Theatre Weekly and received the prestigious Fringe Fix Wild Card from Underbelly. Delves' performance has been hailed as "remarkable" (The Stage), "magnificent" (Theatre Weekly), "a tour de force, with vivid, compelling energy" (The Scotsman), and "triumphant" (The Recs).

On screen, Connor can be seen in ‘Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game’ alongside Mike Faist, the ‘Sugar Plum Twist’, and ‘The Weight of Home’, for which he received a SOHO International Film Festival Best Actor nomination. He has appeared on SBS & ABC, including a national anthem performance on the internationally streamed Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race.

On stage, he originated the role of Mercutio in the UK premiere of ‘Starcrossed’ at Wilton's Music Hall, earning both OFFIE and BroadwayWorld Award nominations. His performance was praised by WhatsOnStage as "truly fabulous… his speech at the top of act two is a masterpiece." Select Off-Broadway credits include ‘Daniel's Husband’, ‘Endangered: The Musical’, ‘Holy Day’, and ‘Precious Little Talent’.

As a Producer he has worked on Award Winning NY Premiere of “Precious Little Talent”, 1st Irish Theatre Festival, for Roundabout Theatre Company and on the Award-Winning film “Who We Were”.

Connor is a graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts and a member of the Academy's 2017 Company. He is represented in the United States by Metropolis Artist Agency and in the UK by Top Talent Agency (TTA).

www.connordelves.com
IG @connordelves