Actors from past & present Yellow Leaf productions
Dee Whitehead
Dee Whitehead joined the company to play Janet in the Spring/Summer 2006 tour of ‘Modelling Spitfires’.
Dee, who played Maggie Caulder in ‘Emmerdale’, lives in Nottingham where she did her Performing Arts Diploma which was affiliated to RADA.
She went professional eight years ago. Before that she spent her life treading the boards around her local theatres and pubs and clubs, performing theatre, and singing in three different bands; while bringing up her two (now grown-up) sons with her husband Paul. Then she decided it was her turn.
Her Theatre credits include Willy Russell’s one-woman show, ‘Shirley Valentine’ (twice), various Shakespeare including Titania in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ & Paulina in ‘The Winter’s Tale’, Antigone, John Godber’s ‘Teechers’, ‘Daisy Pulls it Off’, ‘Quatermass and the Pit’, ‘Home Comforts’, ‘Breaking Out’ and ‘M Butterfly and Trolly’.
Dee has also performed in a host of Musical Theatre including The Heather Brothers’ ‘Slice of Saturday Night’, ‘Anything Goes’ and ‘Kiss Me Kate’.
Her Television work, apart from ‘Emmerdale’, includes ‘Kiss me Kate’ with Caroline Quentin, ‘Peak Practice’, ‘The Paul Merton Show’, ‘Crossroads’ and ‘Playing the Field’.
Recently Dee has appeared with Anita Roddick and Toya Wilcox in lectures titled ‘Empowering Women’ and as a motivational speaker at various conferences.
Dee says, ‘Although I’m a relatively late starter, performing has always been in my blood and I am so very excited at the chance of working with Yellow Leaf and my experienced colleagues.’
Sheila Young
Sheila joined Yellow Leaf Theatre to play Brenda in ‘Bobbles & Bowls’ at Ringwood Hall in Chesterfield in January/February 2006.
Sheila has been a professional actress, director and writer since 1980. She trained at Bretton Hall and with Augusto Boal, Theatre de Complicite, DV8 and Jonothon Neelands. She has performed in a variety of companies both in theatre and television, and has been Drama Adviser for the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. She was a director of Proper Job Theatre Company and co-founder of the Chesterfield Youth Theatre.
In 2002 Sheila formed Dexter Productions and has written “Mirror Signal Manoeuvre”, “Turkey and Tinsel”, “Maltese Balcony” and “Sick of the Site”.
She also designs and delivers educational and issue-based drama programs and workshops in a variety of settings including schools, the corporate sector, councils, and museums.
Vanya Green
Vanya gave a brilliant performance as Maggie White in Yellow Leaf’s ‘Bill Maxted’s Most Excellent Adventure’.
She began her career in Newcastle-upon-Tyne working for touring theatre companies Bruvvers, Skin and Bones and Northern Stage. Her first TV role was in ‘Supergran’. She then moved South touring with Watford Palace TIE, York Theatre Royal YPT, The Royal Theatre, Northampton, and New Perspectives among many others. TV appearances included: ‘Signs and Wonders’; ‘Body and Soul’ and ‘Woof!’. She then took some time out to train as a dramatherapist.
Vanya decided to return to theatre when she co-founded Indigo Brave Theatre Co. and to play leading roles in the film ‘Autopsy’ and Channel 4’s ‘Living and Growing’.
Jeanne Golding
Jeanne played several demanding parts in ‘Bill Maxted’ with great verve.
She began her acting career in repertory in her home city of Newcastle upon Tyne, playing a wide variety of roles from Shakespeare leads to Agatha Christie maids. She also appeared in musicals and operettas staged by Newcastle Opera Company. Her roles included Maria in ‘West Side Story’, Adelaide in ‘Guys and Dolls’ and Eliza in ‘My Fair Lady’.
After several years out of the business to attend university and raise her family, Jeanne decided to return to acting and trained at Central School of Speech and Drama, London. Her recent roles include understudy to Angela Thorne in a national tour of ‘Old World’, Mistress Overdone/Mariana/Francesca in ‘Measure for Measure’ for Siege Perilous Productions, Mrs Robinson in ‘The Graduate’, Sheila from ‘A Day in the Death of Joe Egg’, and Jean Brodie in ‘The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie’.
Francesca Larkin
Francesca also played a number of fine cameo roles in ‘Bill Maxted’.
She trained in theatre acting at Bretton Hall College and thoroughly enjoyed 3 years larking around amid the art in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park. She is also a long-serving member of GYT – Derbyshire’s Gosforth Youth Theatre – and having become an old GYT she now assists with directing and making the tea.
As a Sheffield lass, Francesca discovered the theatre through childhood visits to the Crucible Theatre and performed there with Anna Mackmin’s production of Edna O’Brien’s ‘Iphigenia’.
One of Francesca’s passions is working with theatre for young people and she is very proud to work for Chesterfield-based Brief Candle Theatre, a company devoted to producing quality issue-based theatre and workshops for schools throughout the north.
Carole Copeland
Carole joined Yellow Leaf Theatre for the second tour of ‘Double Dutch’ in the Autumn of 2003.
Carole trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Since then she has worked extensively in theatre including the I.C.A. in London, Citizens Theatre Glasgow, Theatre Royal Nottingham, Kings Theatre Edinburgh, Nottingham Playhouse, New Perspectives and the Grand Theatre Blackpool. She toured for a year with ‘Like a Virgin’ for Hull Truck Theatre Company, and ‘Murder at the Vicarage’ for Ian Dickens Productions. Her other theatre work includes appearing in numerous productions for Tabs Theatre Company at the Pomegranate Theatre in Chesterfield.
In addition to her acting and directing Carole works as Arts Projects Officer for the Pomegranate, working to increase the use of the building, putting on events to promote and extend where possible the existing programme, and forging links with outside arts and educational bodies. For the last four years she has coordinated the Pomegranate New Playwright’s Festival, held annualy in the spring.
Last year she was instrumental in commissioning ‘Angels Never Leave Heaven’, Angela Truby’s highly succesful play about the wartime experiences of the staff of Robinson’s factory in Chesterfield. This played to packed houses at the Pomegranate and this year has just completed a highly successful tour.
Jeannie Crowther
Jeannie joined Yellow Leaf Theatre in 2004 to play Janet in ‘Modelling Spitfires’. Born in Bradford and trained at the Rose Bruford College, Sidcup, she made her professional stage debut with 18 glorious months at the Library Theatre, Manchester in the late 60’s, followed by seasons in rep in Bolton, Hull, Nottingham, Chester, Newcastle, Derby, York and Birmingham.
After a decade of regional theatre she moved to London to join a then prominent socialist touring company, Belt and Braces, spending 3 years on the road with the likes of Alfred Molina, Colin Meaney & Maggie Steed. It was a relief to unpack the suitcase for the final time and settle in London where regular TV and theatre work followed.
Among many TV credits, highlights would be Jonathan Miller’s production of ‘The Beggar’s Opera’ and 3 months on the BBC’s ill-fated ‘Eldorado’ playing Kitty Hindle. From 1982-87 she appeared in 6 series of the ‘Live Saturday Morning Children’s ITV show No. 73’ playing Sandi Toksvig’s neighbour, Hazel.
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