MAX KIRK
Max Kirk is an Off West End Award Nominated director for Theatre, Film, TV and Radio and the Artistic Director of Southern Magpie.
DIRECTING GALLERY
BIO
Max is a British/New Zealand/Irish director and writer and maintains citizenship in all three countries of his heritage, as well as a keen interest in theatre, film and new writing from around the world. He especially enjoys making work with a strong sense of place and time.
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He graduated LAMDA's MA Directing programme in 2017 and has worked as a freelance driector since then. He founded Southern Magpie to continue exploring new writing and New Zealand theatre in particular and has subsequently used the company to help make work in film.
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He has worked as a director with theatres and companies in London, Bristol, Edinburgh and Oxford, as well as curating new writing programs in Bristol. He has also assisted directors including Ria Parry, Rebecca Frecknall and Kate Budgen.
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A revival of kiwi classic Skin Tight plays at the Hope theater, Islington from 19th Oct - 6th Nov, whilst his first short film 'Our Old Den' is currently debuting at festivals worldwide. He's recently spent time both in New Zealand, exploring theatre around the country, and in the UK, workshopping an adaptation of Helen DeWitt's epic novel 'The Last Samurai', set for production in Decemeber 2021.
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Max is currently based in London, UK and Auckland, NZ
PRESS
SKIN TIGHT
by Gary Henderson
The Hope Theatre
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Off West End Award Nomination 2017 - Best Director​
CRITICS CHOICE BEST SHOWS 2017 - London Pub Theatres
"The clarity of Max Kirk's direction and staging is impeccable"
***** thespyinthestalls
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"Kirk’s direction is dynamic from the offset"
***** londonpubtheatre
"draws the audience in and holds them spellbound"
***** londontheater1
"Moving, provocative, and truly original as a piece of art"
****1/2 Breakingthefourthwall​
"Flawless... heartbreaking"
JUST BEFORE SUNRISE
by Max Kirk
The Alma Tavern Theatre
‘‘brilliantly written, deftly performed and a joy to watch. Max Kirk is a name we will definitely be seeing a lot more in the future"
***** Epigram
"the whole audience was left in amazement, with one such reviewer left quite simply in complete bewilderment as to how to do justice to such a poignant performance"
***** Intermission
‘a cosmic understanding of life and love’
*****Bristol Theatre Review
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"witty, poignant, intellectually chewy and often very moving" B 24/7
HIS DARK MATERIALS
by Philip Pullman adapted by Nicholas Wright
The Winston Theatre
PART 1
***** Epigram
"so good that I’m running out of positive adjectives to use’
***** Intermission
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PART 2
"a masterful display of performance, narrative, and sheer emotional lucidity."
***** Epigram
"plays of poetry, love and drama that draw you into their world"
***** Intermission
"Sheer genius"
***** Bristol Theatre Review
GET YOUR SH*T TOGETHER
& LOW TIDE IN GLASS BAY
by Artemis Howard and Eliot Salt
Underbelly, Edinburgh
Get Your Sh*t Together
‘Directors… deserve enormous credit for shaping the production into such a heady cocktail of laughter and melody’
**** Edfringe review
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED SHOW - Fringe review
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Low Tide in Glass Bay
"Impossible not to feel invested in every character"
***** Epigram
"the cast were so well selected it seemed as if the characters were written for them personally"
***** Arteviste.com
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"keeps the laughs coming... a likeable look at what happens when grown-ups still have a lot to learn from the school of life."
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OTHER PROJECTS
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Henna Night by Amy Rosenthal
Etcetera Theatre Camden
"An intelligent and well-observed two-hander"
Susan Elkin, Sardines magazine
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Walk Swiftly and with Purpose by Siofra Dromgoole
"a tumbling, touching story of four female friends on the brink of adulthood – imagine an English, all-girl Superbad"
- Fergus Morgan, Alchymy critic in residence
& The Counties by Patrick Russell
(Part of Catalyst 2018), The North Wall, Oxford, 2018
The Only Real Elegance by Max Kirk
Wickham Theatre, 2016
Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce adapted by Max Kirk
Winston Theatre, 2015
“Kirk’s trademark quirky directing style paved the way for some beautiful shadowplay, which, not to give too much away, added a cinematic backdrop to the whistle-stop tour through Philippa Pearce’s children’s classic.”
HerCampus.com
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Up! by Pete Docter adapted by Max Kirk, Anson Rooms, 2014
"Rendered sensitively and skillfully, Max Kirk’s bold directorial move to retain the younger versions of lovers Carl and Ellie onstage to linger amongst their older selves successfully weaves us into a scene of past and present.” Epigram
Write Bear/Who Dares Writes/Bristol Old Vic New Writing Showcase
[as Literary Producer/Director]
Annual New Writing Showcases at The Wardrobe Theatre, The Bierkeller Theatre, The Room Above and Bristol Old Vic, 2014-2016
THE RIVER
by Jez Butterworth
The Wardrobe Theatre, 2013
"A tense, surprising and sexy play that’s not just about fish"
**** Epigram
"the direction is so good"
****BTR
"I would certainly like to see more from director Max Kirk"
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