Martin Paul Roche

Martin Paul Roche is an award-winning actor, director and writer with over forty years’ experience of theatre … and still learning! Following his vocal training he performed with many companies encompassing musical, choral and opera repertoires, predominantly in the North of England, but also in other parts of the UK and Ireland as a soloist in concert and recital performances as well as for private and corporate engagements. 

Despite his background, Martin no longer performs but instead, has focussed for over twenty years on writing, directing, reviewing, compering, coaching and theatre (Festival) adjudication. He has also presented numerous workshops on topics ranging from musical theatre presentation to theatrical adjudication. 

In June of 2001 he produced and directed his first written work, a musical play entitled ‘To Be Frank’ which was very well received both critically and publicly. In January of 2003 he wrote and went on to produce the sell-out premiere performance of ‘The Gershwins – the Men and their Music’ at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester; this was reprised in a one-night charity performance at The Comedy Store, Manchester in 2006 for the music therapy charity, Nordoff Robins.  

In 2010 he premiered and co-directed a new musical, co-written with composer Ian Crabtree, called ‘Witchfinder’. This has now been published and the cast studio recording subsequently produced and released. The premiere won several regional awards including Best Director and best Book and Script and it has enjoyed many successful amateur productions. 

Most recently, his plays ‘Where Is The life?’, ‘Soul Without End’, ‘Is There Anybody There?’ and ‘The King’s Orphan’ have premiered at Guide Bridge Theatre in Manchester and subsequently been performed elsewhere within the North West. His new works ‘Changing’ (a trilogy of one act plays) and ‘Gymnopedies’ premiered in 2022. 

As well as being a writer-member of the Performing Rights Society, Martin is exclusively represented by Stagescripts, for whom he now also acts as their Acquisitions Agent and Advocate for the North of England, finding new writers and works for the stage. 

Martin is very proud to be the President of the award-winning Children’s Amateur Theatre Society with whom he occasionally gets the chance to work and maintains that he learns as much from them as he passes on! In 2009 his work with young people was acknowledged by the Greater Manchester Drama Federation when he was recognised with the Muriel Goodwin Trophy for '...an Outstanding Contribution to Youth'. 

As well as being a regular theatre reviewer across the region, Martin continues as a Drama Festival Adjudicator, having acted as such for the Manchester Musicals Awards, the GMDF One Act Play Festival, their Full-Length Festival and also the Partington Theatre One Act Play Festival. He is a past judge of the international script writing competition ‘The Alties’ and from 2019 to 2022 sat on the Board of the Oldham Coliseum Theatre. 

Writer's Website

• www.martinpaulroche.com

Titles We Represent

  Plays

• Ancient And Modern (One Act, Comedy, Monologue)
• Beggars Can Be Choosers
• Camels And Kings
• Changing (3 x One Act Comedic Dramas)
• Darkness Visible
• Eulogy
• Gymnopédies (Full Length, Drama)
• Hallowtide
• Is There Anybody There? (Full Length, Drama) **
• Last Bus To Whitby (One Act, Comedy, Monologue)
• Living With Lois (Full Length, Drama)
• Opposites In Common
• Soul Without End (Full Length, Drama) **
• The Cenotaph
• The Devil Who Came To Dinner
• The Front Of House Manager
• The Key
• The King's Orphan (Full Length, Drama) **
• To Be Frank (a play with the music of Frank Sinatra)
• Where is The Life? (Full Length, Black Comedy) **

  ** denotes that the play is also available in a collection book: 'Life, Love, Loss & Laughter (Vol 1)'. This book is not designed for rehearsal use.

  Musicals

• Witchfinder (with Ian Crabtree)