Biography

In 1978 Mark received his Diploma of Dramatic Art from the Arts Educational Theatre School in the Golden Lane Theatre situated in the ancient City of London's Barbican.

From 1984-1997 Mark worked at Shakespeare's Globe in London. He created a team of actors who toured internationally with Globe workshops and performances. As a lecturer Mark researched and gave talks on Shakespearean Theatre to over fifteen thousand visitors to the Globe. He lectured primarily at the Globe Education Center but also gave lecture tours and residencies in Germany and France.

Mark has devised and run hundreds of workshops on various Elizabethan Theatre topics including: Performance; Playgoing; Playwrighting; The Theatre Apprentice System; The Printing of Shakespeare's Folio; and many other Elizabethan and Shakespeare theatre-related themes.

In 1995 the opening of the Globe's first season was presented to His Royal Highness, HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Mark wrote, produced and performed in the actor/teacher section of the opening celebrations. Mark Rylance, artistic director of the Globe Theatre, worked with Mr. Knight on the show.

On April 23rd 1994 - a year prior to the Globe's opening season - Mark devised and produced 'Merely Players: Rough but (nearly) Ready' a theatre celebration in the partially completed theatre. The event involved over 200 performers, celebrities and otherwise. Mark Rylance appeared in the show in a piece written by Mr. Knight.

Mark was also honoured to have been chosen to tour with the Sir Peter Hall Company's 25th anniversary production of Sir Harold Pinter's 'The Homecoming'.

From 1988-1991 Mark toured England and Scotland with the world premiere of the Medieval Players' adaptation of Francois Rabelais' 'The Marriage of Panurge' in which Mark originated the characters of Rabelais & Epistemon. Along the way he learned juggling, stilt walking, fire eating, fire blowing, tumbling, card tricks & how to fall off a unicycle.

For over 50 years Mark has appeared in hundreds of plays, both classics and new writing. He toured the UK and Europe many times. Mark has presented plays - his own work, and others - at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival & on London's Fringe Theatre circuit. He has worked on British radio and TV: the BBC, CITV, Anglia TV amongst others.

Now resident in Philadelphia, Mark has worked with some of our finest companies: Peoples Light, The Arden, the Philadelphia Dramatists' Center, Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, the Philadelphia Artists' Collective (PAC) & Egopo Classic Theatre and many more. He is proud to be a 2017 Barrymore winner as part of Egopo's multiple-nominated 'The Seagull'. In 2018 he will be appearing in the 6 month 'LYDIE BREEZE' trilogy by Pulitzer finalist, Oscar nominee, Tony, Olivier, and Obie Award-winner playwright John Guare.
- IMDb mini biography by: Simon Bane