Max Elton
director
email: max@maxelton.com
I am a theatre director and have directed plays at a number of venues including Soho Theatre, The Orange Tree and The Finborough. I am also the founder and Artistic Director of The Painkiller Project, an initiative that pairs emerging playwrights with established actors to create short audio plays. For more information about the project click here.
I am not related to Ben Elton.
What I did in 2022 - I started the year directing an all-female student version of Laura Wade’s Posh with St Mary’s (Feb). I then directed a rehearsed reading of Rose Tremain’s debut play Waiting For The Day for Sonia Friedman Productions (July). I collaborated with David Ireland for a third time on Not Now at The Finborough Theatre (November) – the show was listed as #6 in The Observer’s Plays of 2022. In December I returned to St Mary’s to direct my own adaptation of Nikolai Gogol’s The Government Inspector. My production of Yes So I Said Yes also won Best Production at the London Pub Theatre Awards (Oct).
Latest: Not Now by David Ireland at Finborough Theatre (Nov 2022)
****#6 in The Observer’s 10 Best Shows of 2022****
★ ★ ★ ★ “Ireland’s dialogue is nonstop sparkle; the development of the play beautifully judged in Max Elton’s production” Susannah Clapp, The Observer
★ ★ ★ ★ Daily Mail, ★ ★ ★ ★ The Stage, ★ ★ ★ ★ The Morning Star
Recent: Yes So I Said Yes by David Ireland at Finborough Theatre (Dec 2021)
★★★★ “Prepare to be appalled…Max Elton marshals a marvellous cast of six with the quick fluidity vital to farce” Mark Lawson, The Guardian
★★★★ “The Finborough is ignited by Max Elton’s spot on direction…” Susannah Clapp, The Observer
★★★★ “Max Elton’s fluid and surefooted direction, steers the uniformly excellent performances from all the cast” The Daily Telegraph
★★★★ “Every performance is painstakingly funny…Elton’s direction commands every inch of The Finborough’s tiny space” The Stage
Assistant Directing:
2017 - Madame Rubinstien - Park Theatre
2016 - Sheppey - Orange Tree Theatre
Press for Yes So I Said Yes at The Finborough Theatre (2021):
★★★★ “Prepare to be appalled…Max Elton marshals a marvellous cast of six with the quick fluidity vital to farce” Mark Lawson, The Guardian
★★★★ “The Finborough is ignited by Max Elton’s spot on direction…” Susannah Clapp, The Observer
★★★★ “Max Elton’s fluid and surefooted direction, steers the uniformly excellent performances from all the cast” The Daily Telegraph
★★★★ “Every performance is painstakingly funny…Elton’s direction commands every inch of The Finborough’s tiny space” The Stage
Press for Stripped at The King's Head Theatre (2019):
★★★★★ A Younger Theatre "Max Elton ensures that Stripped is indeed Stripped back. It is a play that shuns excess."
★★★★ Broadway World "Elton directs sensitively...It deserves a bigger stage, not least because of the topic the play explores, but also because of the sheer quality exhibited in all aspects of the production."
Press for The Melting Pot at The Finborough Theatre (2017):
The Guardian "Max Elton's excellent production is alert to the play's topicality"
★★★★ The Arts Desk "Elton's direction sings...top dollar production deserves a bigger stage"
Press for The End of Hope at Soho Theatre (2017):
OFF WEST END AWARD FINALIST FOR BEST NEW PLAY
SATURDAY REVIEW, BBC RADIO 4 - One of 15 selected plays of 2017
★★★★ The Times "freewheeling, majestically entertaining...Elton, wisely opts for a light touch"
★★★★ Evening Standard "There are a lot of gear changes for director Max Elton to handle in just one hour, but he steers a confident path through them"
★★★★★ Matt Trueman, WhatsOnStage "raunchy romcom packs explosives in it's pants"
★★★★ Time Out, ★★★★ The Stage
Press for Big Brother Blitzkrieg at The King's Head Theatre (2016):
★★★★ The Upcoming "Consistently funny and increasingly tense"
★★★★ A Younger Theatre "Gloriously manipulative and cleverly characterised"