Masterclasses

Ruth Pieloor is an established actor, producer, writer, and emerging videographer and screen writer, and recent ‘Screen and Media’ Diploma graduate from the Canberra Institute of Technology. 

Last year her short film FOLLOW YOUR NOSE, won ‘People’s Choice’ Lights Canberra Action, ‘Best Actress’ Veneto International Film Festival, ‘Highly Commended’ Canberra Short Film Festival, and final selection: What The Film Festival, Cannes World Film Short Festival, and Far South Festival. Other film credits include REMEMBERING MUM, a doco short directed by Ash Gray, A JUICY PAIR, a doco short which Ruth produced as part of her final assessment at CIT about comedy duo Sparrow Folk, and short comedy outtakes reel: PAIR-SHAPED.

As a director and tutor Ruth has programmed and facilitated workshops & directed performances over 30 years in corporate settings, schools, communities, and for adults with disabilities, including for: Bus Stop Films, Canberra Youth Theatre, ATYP, Rebus Theatre, Short and Sweet, Radford College of Performing Arts, McDonald College of Performing Arts, Kambala Girls School, Kincoppal, Scotts College, ImproACT, and a plethora of schools throughout Sydney, Canberra, and regional Tasmania. 

 Screen actor training includes Meisner workshops with Scott Williams & Mill Theatre, National Acting School, Beyond the Lens, The Australian Film and Television Academy (TAFTA), The Audition Technique Self Taping School (TAT), Creating Compelling Characters with Greg Apps, various Film Plus courses, a JJ Splice Showreel course, Practical Aestehtics (PAA) and Meisner with Scott Williams. Ruth has and featured in several local short films, including AFTRS award-wining ‘After the Away’. 

Ruth has performed in a multitude of professional stage productions at the Street Theatre, has produced and acted in Short and Sweet festivals in Sydney and Canberra ‘Gala Finals’, awarding her multiple ‘Best Actress’, ‘Best Production’ & ‘Best Director’ Awards. Ruth has published 2 full length plays: UNDER MY BED Australian Plays Transform, and DEMENTED with Currency Press, produced at ‘the Q’, supported by ArtsACT & Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre.

Having gathered a team of actors and writers for a funded Writers Room in 2024, Ruth is currently writing a comedy series for tv. She is an Aus Writers Guild member, proud Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance Ambassador, resident Clown Doctor at the Canberra Hospital for The Humour Foundation, advisory committee member for WTF festival, director and videographer at ACT4Reel, and is studying Screenplay Writing at Uni Canberra, sponsored by Screen Canberra.

Ruth is passionate about inspiring and empowering artists to support one another, to strengthen, diversify, and share best arts practices in our region. She lives on Ngunnawal country with her teenagers, husband, cocker-spaniel and ginger cat.

Luke is the Artistic Director & CEO of Canberra Youth Theatre. He is a graduate of NIDA (Directing) and Theatre Nepean (Acting), and the Artistic Director of Stories Like These. Luke is currently studying for a Masters of Fine Arts in Cultural Leadership at NIDA.

Previous roles include Theatre Manager of New Theatre, Artistic Director of The Spare Room, and a Resident Studio Artist at Griffin Theatre Company.

Directing credits include: Rosieville, The Trials, How To Vote, Dags, Two Twenty Somethings Decide Never To Be Stressed About Anything Ever Again Ever, Little Girls Alone in the Woods, Normal, Possibility, Collapse (Canberra Youth Theatre), Collected Stories (Chaika Theatre / ACT Hub), In Real Life (Darlinghurst Theatre Company), Blink, MinusOneSister, Fireface, The Last Five Years, The Carnivores (Stories Like These), Play House (NIDA), The Pillowman, Waiting For Godot, Don Juan in Soho, Art is a Weapon, After The End, Blasted (New Theatre), 100 Reasons For War, Love and Information, Spring Awakening, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare’s Women, Shoot / Get Treasure / Repeat (AFTT), Lysistrata, The Burial At Thebes, Pool (No Water), 4.48 Psychosis, Eyes To The Floor (Sydney Theatre School), A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Mr Marmalade (CQUniversity), Macbeth, Cyberbile, Embers (AIM Dramatic Arts) and Two Weeks With The Queen (Mountains Youth Theatre).

Tour Director: The Witches (Griffin Theatre Company). Assistant Director: Eight Gigabytes of Hardcore Pornography (Griffin Theatre Company / Perth Theatre Company), Story of the Red Mountains (NIDA), The Boys (Griffin Theatre Company / Sydney Festival), Steel Magnolias (Blackbird Productions / Australian Tour), Assassins and The Crucible (New Theatre).

Luke regularly directs and lectures at various drama schools. He was a member of Directors Lab: Melbourne (Theatre Works / Melbourne Festival) and Playwriting Australia’s Dramaturgy Program and Directors Studio.