Stuart Piper

Stuart Piper is a London based Agent who represents actors and creatives such as directors and designers, as Managing Director of Cole Kitchenn Personal Management Ltd. His client list includes television and film actors Hannah Spearritt, Glynis Barber, Jennifer Ellison, Pixie Lott, Rita Simons, Michelle Collins, Louise Jameson, Julia Hills, Dani Harmer, Mark Moraghan, Vinnie Jones, Sid Owen, Patsy Palmer, West-End and Broadway theatre stars Janie Dee, Caroline O'Connor, Emma Williams, David Bedella, Lauren Samuels, Melanie La Barrie, Alexandra Silber, Judy Kuhn, Mazz Murray, Paul Baker, Lauren Samuels, Leila Benn Harris and creatives Arlene Phillips, Russell Labey and Nick Winston. In 2010, the agency became part of The ROAR Group led by Chairman Jonathan Shalit, expanding to become part of a group of entertainment companies.[1]

He has also produced West-End theatre, and his most notable productions include Nicholas Hoult in New Boy and Phill Jupitus in Lifecoach at the Trafalgar Studios. He also established the Whatsonstage.com Theatregoer's Choice Awards live concerts, which take place annually in a West-End theatre from 2006–present.[2]

He is a regular columnist for The Stage newspaper, and has an online blog on The Stage Online. [3]

He was formerly a child actor, best known for roles in The Politician's Wife, Plastic Man and Tom's Midnight Garden.[4]

He has a son called Charlie born January 2010 with Robyn North from whom he separated in 2013.[5]

Agent

As Managing Director of Cole Kitchenn Personal Management Ltd. His client list includes television and film actors Hannah Spearritt, Glynis Barber, Jennifer Ellison, Pixie Lott, Rita Simons, Michelle Collins, Louise Jameson, Julia Hills, Dani Harmer, Mark Moraghan, Vinnie Jones, Sid Owen, Patsy Palmer, West-End and Broadway theatre stars Janie Dee, Caroline O'Connor, Emma Williams, David Bedella, Lauren Samuels, Melanie La Barrie, Alexandra Silber, Judy Kuhn, Mazz Murray, Paul Baker, Lauren Samuels, Leila Benn Harris and creatives Arlene Phillips, Russell Labey and Nick Winston.

The personal management company was originally a subsidiary of West-End theatre production company Cole Kitchenn Ltd, and in 2010 it became part of The ROAR Group, a group of entertainment companies led by Chairman Jonathan Shalit as reported by The Stage Newspaper.[6] The merger led to the agency being affiliated to other companies in the group such as Music Management & TV Talent company ROAR Global.[7]

Jonathan Shalit told The Stage: "I was excited by Stuart Piper, who is a dynamic young man, he’s a new agent really championing his talent, which I haven’t seen from a lot of theatrical agents. A lot of theatrical agents are too old-fashioned and gentle and we work in a massively competitive world, and you have to be aggressive at pushing your talent forward."[8]

He writes a column for The Stage Newspaper regularly and has an online blog 'Agent's Take' [9]

The company runs a Casting Suite in central London that opened in 2012.[10]

Producer

Stuart has also produced West-End theatre, and his most notable production was Nicholas Hoult in New Boy which broke all box-office records at the Trafalgar Studios, and as reported in the Evening Standard, "The show has become the fastest selling and highest grossing at the Trafalgar Studios since they opened five years ago." [11]

Other productions include Phill Jupitus in Lifecoach at the Trafalgar Studios which was nominated for Whatsonstage.com Award for Best New Comedy, Caroline O'Connor The Showgirl Within and Frances Ruffelle Beneath The Dress at the Garrick Theatre, Howard Goodall's Days of Hope at the King's Head Theatre and Snoopy! The Musical at the New Players Theatre. He also worked as a General Manager for two years for Cole Kitchenn Ltd working on such productions as the Laurence Olivier Award winning Death of a Salesman starring Brian Dennehy and Clare Higgins at the Lyric Theatre, the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winning I Am My Own Wife at the Duke of York's Theatre and Daddy Cool at the Shaftesbury.

He also established in 2006 the Whatsonstage.com Theatregoer's Choice Awards live concerts, which take place annually in a West-End theatre.[12] They have been hosted by Sheridan Smith and James Corden (2008/2009), Christopher Biggins and Mel Giedroyc (2010), Miranda Hart in 2011 and Jenny Eclair and Alan Davies in 2012, and Rufus Hound and Mel Giedroyc in 2013 and 2014.

Child actor

He began his career as a child actor, and at the age of 9 appeared in Annie Get Your Gun at the Prince of Wales Theatre. He then had a career in television and film with his credits including series regular roles as Paul Matlock in the BAFTA and Emmy Award winning The Politician's Wife by Paula Milne playing the son of Juliet Stevenson and Trevor Eve and James MacConnell in Plastic Man with John Thaw and Sorcha Cusack. He also played Serge in Absolutely Fabulous, Richard Kent in The Famous Five, Hubert in The Boot Street Band and John Thornton in Catherine Cookson's The Girl. His films included Hubert in Tom's Midnight Garden for MGM with Gretta Scacchi, Penelope Wilton, and Joan Plowright and Steven Carmody in Daisies In December with Joss Ackland and Jean Simmons.

On stage, he was also a member of the National Youth Music Theatre (NYMT) and played Dandy Dan in their West-End production of Bugsy Malone alongside a young cast that included Sheridan Smith, Jamie Bell, Ben Barnes, Hannah Spearitt and James Bourne.[13]

References