Dr Christopher Newell

Subject Group Leader

Christopher Newell has a PhD in computer science from the University of York and a professional background in opera, theatre direction and design. He is interested in combining a passion for the extravagances of opera with a passion for the formality of machines. His specific interest is in modeling and simulating 'liveness' in computer speech systems, particularly in relation to virtual actors, computer characters and believable agents.

Christopher is a lecturer in Digital Media at the University of Hull on the Scarborough Campus. He teaches BA/BSc modules in Interaction Design, Performance and Creative Technologies, and Interaction Experience and Engagement and an MSc module in Media Design and Interaction.

For latest news please go to my external web pages: 
http://www.yo-yo.uk.com/chris_newell_research

Undergraduate and postgraduate teaching posts at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, the Royal College of Music, Trinity College of Music, the Royal Academy of Music, the Birmingham Conservatoire, the Slade School of Art, Central St. Martins College of Art and Design and the Universities of Birmingham, York and Hull.

Digital media industry experience

Between 1997 -2003 Christopher was joint director of yo-yo.uk.com limited, an interactive media design company with a large commercial portfolio, including:

Opera and Theatre

Reviews:

Punch: “Some of the most strikingly effective images I have seen on any stage.”

Financial Times: “I have a powerful contempt for Christopher Newell.”

Christopher Newell assisted Sir Trevor Nunn at Glyndebourne and Sir Peter Hall at Glyndebourne, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and the Royal National Theatre. He taught Dustin Hoffman Peter Hall's verse speaking method and has directed extensively in the UK, Europe, USA and the Far East.

Artistic Directorships

Modern Music Theatre Troupe 1985- 1998

MMTT produced innovative, exciting music theatre, and pioneering education and community work since it was formed in 1985. Productions included 15 new commissions, community operas, and education projects leading to performances. The company played venues and festivals across the UK, abroad, and major London venues including the Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Place Theatre. Compositions included premieres by William Craft and John Adams.

Pavilion Opera and Theatre Company 1990 - 1992

Pavilion Opera toured chamber opera and theatre internationally.

The Grand Opera House York 1989 - 1990

The Grand Opera House hosted a program of national and international theatre, music and conferences.

Awards

In 1994 MMTT was nominated for an Olivier Award, and in 1995 MMTT won the Prudential Opera Award Commendation.

Mid Wales Opera, for whom Christopher directed The Barber of Seville (Rossini), Die Fledermaus (Strauss), The Tales of Hoffmann (Offenbach), Rigoletto (Verdi), The Magic Flute (Mozart) and La Cenerentola (Rossini), was one of three companies short-listed for a Prudential Opera Award.

Recent Research Outputs

Recent research outputs: exhibitions and installations

2009 - Digital Artist. Experiments in sympathetic engagement elicited through silence, sounds and slips in synthetic speech. 'Theatre Noise' Central School of Speech and Drama, London University

• 2009 - Digital Artist. A telephonic Installation. Sonic Interaction Symposium. York University
• 2009 - Digital Artist. Frank Interspeech 2009, Brighton
• 2008 - Digital Artist. PAT Testing. University of Hull, Scarborough Campus
• 2008 - Digital Artist. Please wait with me. SightSonic International Festival of Digital Arts, York
• 2007 - Digital Artist. Call Centre. Digital Music Research Network, Leeds University
• 2006 Tide. British HCI Conference 2006, London

Recent research outputs: publications

2009 Newell, C and Edwards, A. Place, Authenticity Time: a framework for synthetic voice acting. International Journal of Performance Arts and Digital Media. Vol 4 Nos 2&3. January 2009

2005 Newell, C and Edwards, A.. Achieving a lively voice. International Journal for Language Data Processing 28.2/2004, Pages 133-151, ISSN: 0343-5202.

2005 Newell, C and Edwards, A. Unnatural but lively voice synthesis for empathic, synthetic performers. Pages 137-143 AISB 2005: Social Intelligence and Interaction in Animals, Robots and Agents, Joint symposium on Virtual Social Agents. The University of Hertfordshire, ISSN:1 902956492.

2004 Newell, C and Edwards, A. To be or to seem to be: that is the question. Unnatural but lively, speech synthesis for synthetic performers: models from acting, Pages 124-131. AISB 2004: Symposium on Language, Speech and Gesture for Synthetic Characters. The University of Leeds, ISSN:1 902956390.

Recent research outputs: other

Convener of the inaugural meeting of the Creative Speech Technology Network. Creative Enterprise Lab, Scarborough, March 18^th, 2009

Experimental digital work

• 2001 - Digital Artist. Sepia Sands. University of Huddersfield research project. Software prototype only. This was an experimental attempt to present the e-shopping experience in a narrative, multimedia environment. Preliminary exploration of the
• 2001 - Digital Artist. Norman A digital video taster for live web show. Produced using web-cam technology and crude audio sampling.
• 2000 - Digital Artist. University of Huddersfield research project. Experimental composition tool merging poetry, morse code and chaotically-generated musical bytes.
• 1997 - Digital Artist. AHRB research and development grant. An online opera. Adapted from the pamphlet by Jonathan Swift.
• 1996 - Digital Artist. Birmingham Conservatoire. One year funded research project. Web-based music experiment merged Yamaha MIDI XG technology with streaming spoken audio.
• 1994 - Digital Artist. An early attempt to merge live and digital media. The only technology available was an Atari games console, and a voice modulator/pitch shifter. The show was presented in an historic greenhouse within a London Park in about 110 degrees of summer sun. The computers crashed and the screen images were invisible against the sunlight.

Opera and Theatre

• 2002 - Director: Carmen, Bizet. Diva Opera. European Tour
• 2002 - Director: La Cenerentola, Rossini. Mid Wales Opera.
  Published as a Newtonian Production Video: david_pugh@lycos.co.uk
• 2000 - Director. Curlew River, Britten. University of York
• 1999 - Director: Pierrot Lunaire, Schoenberg. Black Hair, University of York
  
• 1999 - Director. A Whitehouse Cantata, Bernstein, Nagano, London Symphony Orchestra
• 1998 - Director. The Magic Flute. Mozart. Mid Wales Opera
• 1998 - Digital Artist. Newell, Barker, Chance.
  A major Arts Council commission.
• 1997 - Director. Salome, Strauss. Bournemouth Orchestras Tour,
• 1996 - Director. The Tempest, Shakespeare. The Green Room, Manchester
• 1996 - Director. Noises, Sounds and Sweet Airs, Nyman. Festival di Fano, Italy
• 1996 - Director. The Turn of the Screw, Britten. Aldeburgh Festival
  
• 1996 - Director and Devisor.On the Road with Ron and Ros.
  Arts Council commission.
• 1995 - Director. Tosca, Puccini. Pavilion Opera International Tour
• 1995 - Director. Rigoletto, Verdi. Mid Wales Opera.
  Published as a Newtonian Production Video: david_pugh@lycos.co.uk
• 1995 - Director. The Coronation of Poppea, Monteverdi. Birmingham Conservatoire
• 1995 - Director. A Midsummer Night Sir Colin Davis. LSO
• 1994 - Stage Director. Barbican Theatre London
• 1994 - Director. The Merry Widow, Lehar. Pavilion Opera International Tour
• 1994 - Director. Tales of Hoffman, Offenbach. Mid Wales Opera.
• Published as a Newtonian Production Video: david_pugh@lycos.co.uk
• 1993 - Director. Blood Wedding, Lorca. Birmingham Conservatoire
• 1993 - Director. Alice in Wonderland. Gardner Arts Centre
• 1993 - Director. Barber of Seville, Rossini. Mid Wales Opera.
• Published as a Newtonian Production Video: david_pugh@lycos.co.uk
• 1993 - Director. Carmen, Bizet. Pavilion Opera International Tour
• 1992 - Director. Die Fledermaus, Strauss. Mid Wales Opera.
  Published as a Newtonian Production Video: david_pugh@lycos.co.uk
• 1992 - Producer. Fungus the Bogeyman, Briggs/Carter. Belgrade Theatre, Coventry
• 1992 - Director. The Turn of the Screw, Britten. Aldeburgh Festival
• 1991 - Director. La Pazzia Senile, Banchieri. MMTT at the Purcell Room, South Bank, London
• 1991 - Director. Into The Woods, Sondheim. Birmingham Conservatoire
• 1991 - Director. Higglety Pigglety Pop, Knussen. Barbican London
• 1989 - Director: The Golem workshops. Almeida Festival, London
• 1990 - Director. Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail. Mozart. Pavilion Opera International Tour
• 1990 - Director. The Bartered Bride, Smetana. The Birmingham Conservatoire
• 1989 - Verse coach. The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare. The Peter Hall Company, London
• 1989 - Associate Director. A Midsummer NightGlyndebourne Festival and Touring Opera
• 1988 - Director. La Traviata, Verdi. Macau International Festival
• 1988 - Director. Die Fledermaus, Strauss. Pavilion Opera International Tour
• 1988 - Assistant Director. The Late Shakespeares Shakespeare. The National Theatre, London
• 1987 - Adaptation Director. La Traviata, Verdi. Glyndebourne Festival Opera, The Royal Albert Hall, London
• 1987 - Director. Christopher Columbus, Offenbach. Birmingham Conservatoire
• 1987 - Associate Director. The Electrification of the Soviet Union, Osborne. Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Tour
  
• 1987 - Associate Director. La Traviata, Verdi. Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Tour
• 1987 - Associate Director. Albert Herring, Britten. Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London
• 1987 - Director. Die Zauberflote, Mozart. Pavilion Opera International Tour
• 1987 - Director. The Siege of Rochelle, Balfe. John Lewis Opera, London
• 1987 - Director. The Devils Wall, Smetana. University College Opera, The Bloomsbury Theatre, London
• 1987 - Director. Fantastic Mr Fox, Dahl/Carter. Gardener Arts Centre, Brighton
• 1986 - Director. Phantastes, Barker. The Place Theatre, London
• 1986 - Director. Cosi Fan Tutte, Mozart. Pavilion Opera Tour
• 1986 - Associate Director. Porgy and Bess, Gershwin. Glyndebourne Festival Opera
• 1986 - Associate Director. Higglety Pigglety Pop and Where the Wild Things Are, Knussen. Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Tour
• 1986 - Associate Director. Albert Herring, Britten. Accademia Philharmonica, Roma
• 1986 La Boheme, Puccini. Ashcroft Theatre, Croydon
• 1986 - Associate Director. Albert Herring, Britten. Summerscope, Queen Elizabeth Hall
• 1986 Nabucco, Verdi. Epsom Playhouse
• 1985 The Canterville Ghost, Wilde/Barker. Hoxton Hall, London
• 1985 - Associate Director. Albert Herring, Britten. Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Tour
• 1985 - Associate Director. The Coronation of Poppea, Monteverdi. Glyndebourne Festival Opera
• 1985 - Associate Director. A Midsummer Nights Dream, Britten. Glyndebourne Festival Opera
• 1985 - Director. Hands Across the Sky, Hopkins. London Chamber Opera
• 1985 - Director. The Marriage Between Zones 3, 4 and 5, Barker. Opera Viva, The Place Theatre, London
• 1984 - Director. A Midsummer Nights Dream, Britten. Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London
• 1984 - Director. Ariadne auf Naxos, Strauss. Opera Viva, London
• 1983 - Assistant Director. Intermezzo, Strauss. Glyndebourne Festival Opera
• 1983 - Assistant Director. Idomeneo, Mozart. Glyndebourne Festival Opera
• 1983 - Assistant Director. The Love of Three Oranges, Prokofiev. Glyndebourne Festival Opera
• 1983 - Director. Opera Scenes. The Wexford Festival, Ireland
• 1982 - Director. Il Trittico, Puccini. Abbey Opera, London
• 1982 - Director. The Threepenny Opera, Brecht/Weil. Opera Viva, London
• 1982 - Director. Don Pasquale, Donizetti. Pavilion Opera Tour
• 1981 - Director. Cosi Fan Tutte, Mozart. Pavilion Opera Tour
• 1981 - Director. The Triumph of Virtue, Scarlatti. Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London
• 1980 - Director. Ariadne auf Naxos, Strauss. Opera Orfeo, London
• 1979 - Director. L Opera Orfeo, London
• 1979 - Director. La Serva Padrona, Pergolesi. Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London

Television and video production

• 1987 - Assistant Stage Director. The Electrification of the Soviet Union, Osborne. BBC broadcast
• 1986 - Assistant Stage Director. Where the Wild Things Are, Knussen. TVS broadcast and video release. UPC#: 032031445192
• 1986 - Assistant Stage Director. Higglety Pigglety Pop, Knussen. TVS broadcast and video release. UPC#: 032031445192
• 1985 - Assistant Stage Director. Albert Herring, Britten. BBC broadcast and video release. ASIN: B0009PQWYY
• 1986 - Assistant Stage Director. La Traviata, Verdi. BBC broadcast and video release. ASIN: B0000541Y0
• 1985 - Assistant Stage Director. The Coronation of Poppea, Monteverdi. TVS broadcast and video release. ASIN: B00019HP1M
• 1986 - Stage Director. Arts Review of the Year. LWT broadcast.
• 1982 - Stage Director. Songs over the Garden Wall. BBC broadcast

Audio recording

• 1995 - Stage Director and Dialogue Coach. A Midsummer Night London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Colin Davis. ASIN: B0000041ET