Mike Alfreds

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Michael Alfreds (born 5 June 1934) is an English theatre director, adaptor, translator and teacher.

Michael Alfreds was born in London in 1934 and trained as a director at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

He lived in the United States for eight years (1954–1962), during which time he worked for MGM Studios in Hollywood, was artistic director of Theatre West, Tucson, and then of the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. For five years he worked in Israel (1970–1975), where he became the artistic director of the Jerusalem Khan Theatre and contributed immensely to its development.

In the UK, Alfreds founded Shared Experience in 1975 and ran it for thirteen years. He worked as a director at the Royal National Theatre between 1985 and 1988, and was an associate and artistic director of the Cambridge Theatre Company, later renamed Method and Madness, from 1991 to 1999. He has directed for Shakespeare's Globe, Royal Shakespeare Company, and for several regional repertory theatres.

As well as the USA and Israel, Alfreds has worked in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Norway, France, Italy, Mongolia and China. He has staged over two hundred productions, and won awards both internationally and in the UK. He has translated the texts of several of his productions and has also specialised in the adaptation of novels and stories for the stage and has developed techniques for storytelling in the theatre.

Alfreds has written three books on his working methods: Different Every Night, which deals with his rehearsal processes for plays; Then What Happens, concerning his methods of working on adaptations; and What Actors Do, which is a philosophy of his process. He has divided his career between directing and teaching acting and directing. Alfreds is known for his special method of working with actors, inspired amongst others by the principles of Constantin Stanislavski and Rudolf Laban, with emphasis on physical work, scrupulous analysis of text, spontaneity and interaction with others during the play in minimalistic productions.

Alfreds began teaching acting and directing at the London Opera Centre and taught at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) in London from 1965 to 1970. He later served as a senior lecturer in drama at the University of Tel Aviv from 1971 to 1973.

Alfreds has conducted workshops and masterclasses globally, including locations such as St Andrews, Melbourne, Wellington, and Beijing, covering various techniques such as storytelling, melodrama, and the methods of Chekhov and Stanislavski.

He has collaborated with theatre companies like the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre, and worked with the Shakespeare Festival Theatre in Canada and the Actors Studio in New York.

Alfreds has also taught dance and choreography workshops, contributing to theatre education through training courses and workshops for organisations worldwide.

• Kinoor David (David's Harp) Award (Israel), Best Director/Production: Mandragola, Haifa Theatre 1971; Suitcase Packers, Cameri Theatre 1984
• The Israeli Culture & Arts Council Theatre Award: Mandragola, Haifa Theatre 1971; The Persian Protocols, Khan Theatre 1973  
• BTA/DRAMA Award, Best Revival: The Seagull, Shared Experience 1982
• BTA/DRAMA Award & Plays and Players Award, Best Director: The Cherry Orchard, National Theatre 1986
• Writer's Guild, Best New Regional Play: The Dearly Beloved, 1993
• TMA Awards, Best Director, for Jude the Obscure, Private Lives and Flesh and Blood, 1996
• Honorary Fellowship of London Guildhall (HonFGS) 2014.

• A Shared experience: The actor as story-teller Series: Theatre papers. Published 1980 by Dartington College of Arts
• The Wandering Jew by Michelene Wandor, Mike Alfreds. Published 27 May 1988 by Heinemann Educational Books.
• Different Every Night: Freeing the Actor, Published 1 April 2008 by Nick Hern Books ISBN 978-1-85459-967-4
• Then What Happens? Storytelling & Adapting for Theater. Published 2013 by Nick Hern Books, ISBN 978-1-84842-270-4 Published 21 August 2014 by Nick Hern Books.
• The Surprise of Love by Pierre Carlet De Marivaux, translated by Mike Alfreds. Published 2011 by Oberon Books, ISBN 978-1-84943-183-5.
• What Actors Do, Published 2024 by Nick Hern Books.

Books:

• Different Every Night: Freeing the Actor, Nick Hern Books 2007. An account of his rehearsal processes with actors.
• Then What Happens? Storytelling & Adapting for the Theatre, Nick Hern Books, 2013. An account of his work on material not originally conceived for the stage.
• What Actors Do - Advice to the Players in Seven Paradoxes and a Manifesto, Nick Hern Books, 2024.

Translation:

• The Surprise of Love by Marivaux, published by Oberon Books for The Theatre Royal Bath, 2011.

Adaptation:

• The Wandering Jew, co-adapted with M. Wandor from the novel by Eugene Sue. Methuen, 1987.

• Arts Council Drama Panel, 1981–1985
• Working Party of Gulbenkian Foundation Enquiry into Director
• Training and Report: "A Better Direction", 1987–1989
• Management Committee of the Actors Centre, 1988
• Director:  Board of Almeida Theatre, 1982–1989
• Director:  Board of Shared Experience, 1975–1998
• Director:  Board of David Glass Ensemble, 1990–1994
• Director:  Board of Odyssey Theatre, 1992–1993
• Member of Council:  Directors Guild of Great Britain, 1995–1996
• Director:  Board of Unicorn Theatre for Children, 2000–2002

• Bibliography at doollee.com

• Article in the Independent, 29 May 1996 David Benedict - Alfreds' way: more method, less madness
• The play is not the thing- actors and storytelling in theatre, at the site of Editions Nick Hern Books
• Video interview with Mike Alfred on directing The Tin Ring adapted by Jane Arnold on memories of holocaust survivor Zdenka Fantlová
• Top theatre director Mike Alfreds coming to Bolton (B. Little Theatre) to share expertise with town's actors (09-April-2015)
• Scene of Pedro, the Great Pretender, production by the Royal Shakespeare Company, directed by M. Alfreds in 2004