Simon Evans | |
---|---|
Born | December 1983 ![]() |
Alma mater | |
Occupation | Television writer, television actor, television director, theatre director ![]() |
Works | Staged ![]() |
Simon Richard Evans (born December 1983)[1] is an English theatre and television director, writer, and actor. He is best known as co-creator, writer, and producer of Staged (2020–2022), in which he also co-stars as a fictionalised version of himself, which premiered on BBC One.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
Evans was raised in Oxford with his sister, actress Lucy Eaton, while his parents ran a dental practice in nearby Kidlington. He was educated at The Dragon School and Abingdon School, where his fellow alumni include Tom Hollander, Toby Jones, Hugh Laurie and members of Radiohead.[8] He studied Education, English, Drama & the Arts at Homerton College, Cambridge.[9]
As a theatre director, Evans' productions include The Dazzle (starring Andrew Scott), Bug (James Norton), The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui (Lenny Henry), Killer Joe (Orlando Bloom) and A Day in the Death of Joe Egg (Toby Stephens and Claire Skinner).[8][10]
As an actor, Evans' early roles include parts in Stig of the Dump (2002) and Lewis (2007).[3]
Working with Secret Cinema, Simon directed immersive productions of Shawshank Redemption and Millers Crossing.[11]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Evans wrote, directed and co-starred in the BBC Television series Staged, playing himself, alongside exaggerated versions of the show's stars, Michael Sheen and David Tennant.[4][5][6] The series was notable for being made using video conferencing technology. Evans had been due to rehearse Tom Stoppard's The Real Thing at Chichester when lockdown came into effect.[12] His cinematic directorial debut, Hunter in the Dark, was also postponed.[8][13]
Following Staged, Evans hosted and directed another lockdown event, a live-streamed Oxford Playhouse fundraiser, A Theatre Near You, starring Stephen Fry, Marcus Brigstocke, and Lucy Porter.[8]
Evans is the founding director of the theatre company, Myriad Entertainment, along with Georgia Clarke-Day and David Frias Robles.[3][11]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2002 | Stig of the Dump | Nathan Pinchbeck | 2 episodes |
2003 | Crisis | Sean Bell | Short film |
2007 | Lewis | Dr. Martin Cook | Episode: "Expiation" |
2012 | John Carter | Zodangan Guard | Credited as Si Evans |
2020–2022 | Staged | Himself / Director | Also creator and writer |