Joe Evans

Name

Joe Evans

Biography

Originally a singer/songwriter and performer, Joe started composing for theatre just over a decade ago and has since had shows on the fringe, the West End, site specific venues and internationally. As well as writing for various theatre companies, he has also written and produced several full-length musicals and two plays. Not formally trained, his background is as a touring musician, and has since honed years of experience into writing scores, focusing on diverse styles. The two most recent productions have been “Gatsby” and “Dorian”.

‘Gatsby’ began life at the Kings Head as a ‘play with music’, adapted from F Scott Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’, after which it underwent several workshops with RSC director Adrian Noble at the helm and was re-orchestrated and expanded into a full musical. It transferred to the Riverside Studios for a sell-out run and was subsequently redeveloped further. A showcase at the Arts Theatre West End preceded a seven-week run at the Leicester Square Theatre, starring Cressida Bonas as Daisy Buchannan, and later at Crazy Coqs starring Emma Williams and Jodie Steele. The score was expanded further and re-orchestrated by Henry Brennan. During lockdown it was filmed as a concert performance at Cadogan Hall, again with Emma Williams and Jodie Steele, and streamed across the UK. The most recent production ran at Southwark Playhouse in December 2021 and January 2022.

‘Dorian’ is a brand-new Rock Musical, developed from an adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ by Linnie Reedman, which began its life as a dramatic staging on Oscar Wilde’s birthday at Café Royal – in the very room where Wilde once held his readings. Having enjoyed a successful run at Riverside Studios, Joe wrote a hard-hitting score and re-shaped the show with elements of cabaret, steampunk, and glam rock. It showcased in the Speigeltent on the South Bank and was due to open at the Other Palace in 2020, but was cancelled just three days before opening because of the first lockdown. It was filmed and streamed by Stream.Theatre last summer and is currently negotiation a deal with BroadwayOnDemand for the licence to stream worldwide.

Other composing credits include “Hutch”, “Bel Ami”, “Song of the Seagull”, “Bonnie and Clyde” “Romeo and Juliet”, “Picnic at hanging Rock”, among others. In addition, Joe has worked as a sound designer across the UK and internationally and was commissioned to create a large-scale sound installation for the Prince of Wales Conservatory at Kew Gardens.

He has written two full length plays; “Rapunzel’s Last Midnight” (staged at the White Bear) and “Hutch” (a musical featuring the songs of Cole Porter at the Riverside Studios), and in 2021 released an album of original songs, written and recorded during lockdown, entitled “The Ghost Light” – available on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify and other platforms.

Brimming with ideas, other projects are either in the pipeline or the early stages of development – whilst Joe is always on the lookout for collaborators and support bodies to work with

Website

http://www.joeevans.london

Writer Type

Bookwriter, Lyricist, Composer

Other Skills

Arranger, Musician