Ben Harrison
About Ben Harrison
Ben was born in 1970 and formed his first company in 1988. He is best known as Co-Artistic Director of Grid Iron, one of Scotland’s most successful companies, which has won over 30 awards for its work in its 25 year history. He has directed 29 of the company’s productions. National Theatre of Scotland work includes Roam (co-produced with Grid Iron and winner of three CATS awards), Bint Jbeil, You Tell Us What Was We Tell You What Is (co-directed with Jemima Levick), and Hadda and Hassan LeKliches! . Highlights for Grid Iron include: The Bloody Chamber, Gargantua, Decky Does A Bronco, Those Eyes, That Mouth, The Devil’s Larder, Roam, Barflies, Spring Awakening, Crude, Jury Play, South Bend and The Brunch Club. Ben was Associate Director of the Almeida Theatre London 2000-2002, for which he created the acclaimed Participatory Projects programme and directed seven productions. From 2001-2004 he was a Fellow of the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts which supported his research and development of site-based work. He was Director of the Dutch company Muztheater 2004-2008, for which he directed five productions. His show Peter Pan for 360 Entertainment was seen by more than a million people in London and across the USA. Recent freelance work includes A Game of Death and Chance and Enlightenment House for the National Trust, The Buke of the Howlat for Findhorn Bay Arts, The Tailor of Inverness for Dogstar and Let’s Inherit the Earth for Dogstar/Profilteatern. He has mentored emerging artists over many years, including through the EPAD programme in Edinburgh and as mentor for the Platform 18 programme at the Arches Theatre in Glasgow and as mentor for the Tron 100 programme at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow. We was educated at the Universities of Edinburgh, Amsterdam and Venice, where he read English Literature and Drama, and trained as a theatre director at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Further information: www.benharrison.info.