RICHARD NEWMAN is the founding Co-Artistic Director of The Hinterlands and a performer, director, creator, and teacher of physical, ensemble based theatre. He has performed nationally and internationally, created thirteen original works, and taught at universities and theatres across the U.S.  Richard Newman creates actor-driven theatre that blends intense physicality, heightened text, dreamlike imagery, and music in order to explore the intricacies of human relationships, the subjectivity of memory, and cultural archetypes.  Richard was an ensemble member of Double Edge Theatre in Ashfield, MA between 2004 and 2008.  He is the founder and Artistic Director of The Breaking Bread Performance Project, a long-term collaboration between U.S. and Balkan artists.  He was a founder and Co-Artistic Director of The Farm Theatre in Charlotte, NC. He is a graduate of The Dell’Arte School of Physical Theatre, and received a B.A. in theatre performance from Greensboro College in 2002.  Richard also plays the cello and DJ’s electronic music.

LIZA BIELBY, The Hinterlands co-director, is a physical theatre artist dedicated to forging meaningful international bonds among traditional artists across the globe. A former Fulbright Scholar to Sichuan, China, where she became one of six non-Chinese nationals globally to ever study and perform traditional Sichuanese folk “opera” (chuanju), Liza understands the value of preserving local traditions in the face of globalization. In addition to being a founding member of The Hinterlands, she is also the co-founder of the multi-media arts collective (con)temporary works exchange, a founding member of the character-based marching band Glasnost and a member of the Detroit Party Marching Band. Liza is a graduate of Kalamazoo College (major: Theatre Arts, minor: Anthropology) and received her MFA in ensemble-based physical theatre from Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre.

ELENI T. ZAHAROPOULOS is a multimedia artist and physical theater maker from Queens, New York. She is co-founder of (con)temporary works exchange, a multimedia arts and performance collective that creates relationships between artists through skill sharing and spontaneous art making. She is also the founder of The Adrian Cervantes Mejia Fund, a nonprofit whose mission is to support the arts by creating individualized grants for performing and performance-based interdisciplinary artists. When she’s not performing, she is the in-house filmmaker at the Hinterlands, proprietress to an underground social club, and chef to a part-time Greek restaurant. To learn more about this lady, check out her work at www.happyabandon.com.

BARNEY BAGGETT, Hinterlands Ensemble Member, is a theatre polymath haling from Charlotte, North Carolina.  Barney has worked with Mock Turtle Marionette Theater, Pig Iron Theatre Company, The Dell ‘Arte Company, Touchstone Theatre, The Farm Theatre Co., and Machine Theatre – which he co-founded in 2009. Barney’s community-based performance events have paired him with non-profit organizations across the country including the Hispanic Arts League of Allentown (PA), The University of Minnesota’s Aurora Center, The Raven Project (CA), and ArtWorks 945 (NC).  Barney is a founding member of the Glasnost Gypsy Marching Band, and comprises one half of the Uke-Rock duo Space Rockerz. Barney holds an MFA in Ensemble Physical Theatre from the Dell ‘Arte International School of Physical Theatre.