Katie Tranter
multi award-winning Actor, Magician, Puppeteer, Musician & Director.
Katie Tranter is a multi award winning Actor, Musician, Magician, Puppeteer, Skin Performer and Movement Director based in the UK.
She is from the Welsh Borders and works in both English and Spanish. She speaks a tiny bit of Welsh.
WINNER | BEST VARIETY SHOW | LEICESTER COMEDY FESTIVAL 2025 | The Great Divinator
WINNER | CRITIC'S CHOICE | NEWCASTLE FRINGE FESTIVAL 2025 | The Great Divinator
WINNER | BEST CABARET SHOW | THE SPOOKIES 2025 | The Great Divinator
WINNER | AUDIENCE'S CHOICE AWARD | PRAGUE FRINGE FESTIVAL 2019 | Canary
FINALIST | BEST ENSEMBLE | OFFIE AWARDS 2022 | The Canterville Ghost
FINALIST | BEST FAMILY SHOW | OFFIE AWARDS 2020 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED | MERVYN STUTTER'S PICK OF THE FRINGE 2025 | The Great Divinator
Katie has done a bit of everything from commedia dell’arte in Spain to playing an accordion down a mine and puppeteered some real vegetables for an ALDI commercial along the way. Philippe Gaulier told her to get in the bin and a casting director from Cirque Du Soleil said she has a 'good face' (but didn't give her a job because 'they don't work with many female clowns'). She’s performed at the Royal Albert Hall, been a Sontaran on Doctor Who and played opposite Jim Carrey as Tails on Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
She trained with the National Youth Theatre before going on to achieve a First Class BA (Hons) in Drama from the University of Exeter during which time she trained intensively in psychophysical acting with Phillip Zarrilli for six months.
Between 2010 and 2015 she earned her stripes in rural touring, theatre in education, outdoor theatre and community arts before taking two years to train at Escuela Nouveau Colombier in Madrid under some of Europe's top physical theatre masters. There she learned to create, direct and perform using the bold languages of ensemble physical theatre, mime, mask, clown and bouffon. She also trained extensively in suzuki, viewpoints and butoh.
She has trained with renowned clown teachers including Philippe Gaulier, John Wright and Avner Eisenberg.
Since then she has been performing, creating and directing all over the UK with a career spanning the worlds of theatre, magic, puppetry and live music with her unique brand of playfulness, precision and charm.
Selected theatre credits include The Magician's Table Live (Right Angle), Cinderella:A Fairytale (Northern Stage),
The Canterville Ghost (Tall Stories), Recycled Rubbish (Theatre-Rites), Father Christmas (Royal Albert Hall),
Wind in the Willows (Alnwick Playhouse), Rumpelstiltskin (Insane Root), Pirate Bonnie (Fidget Theatre),
Smoosh! (Paraorchestra), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Actor's Church), Tiny Heroes (Daniel Bye),
Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Derby Theatre/Hiccup).
TV credits include Knuckles (Paramount), Doctor Who: Flux (BBC), The Edwardian Farm (Lion Television) and Becoming Elizabeth (Starz).
As a Movement Director & Associate her credits include Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (Paramount), Macbeth (Northumberland Theatre Company), We Cannot Walk Alone (The Arriving Group & Curious Monkey),
Georgian Magic Show (Paul Dewhurst-Magician), Deeds (Five Ring Circus) and Comrades (Exeter Northcott).
Her credits as Musical Director include Jackie & the Beanstalk (Curly Tales & Leeds Playhouse),
Sea of Stories (Seadog & ARC Stockton) and Comrades (Exeter Northcott).
TRAINING
2015-2017
ESCUELA NOUVEAU COLOMBIER
Two year LeCoq training with Arturo Bernal (LASAAD), Jose Piris (Marcel Marceau), Deidi Lucas (L'Ange Fou), Diana Bernedo (RESAD, Tadashi Suzuki) and Denise Perdikidis (Tantztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch).
Intensive training in neutral mask, characters, elements, colours, devising, melodrama, half mask, Commedia Dell Arte, clown, bouffon, full mask.
2007-2010
UNIVERSITY OF EXETER
First Class Honours in Drama.
Modules included: Intercultural Performer Training with Prof. Phillip Zarrilli, Devising Auto(biographical) Theatre with Lorraine Sutherland, Creating Multimedia Performance with Imitating the Dog,
2007 - 2010
NATIONAL YOUTH THEATRE
Training in summer 2007 with Lukas Angelini in Suzuki, Viewpoints and ensemble creation.Â
I was then on the Youth Community from 2008-2009.
2015-2017
HEREFORD SIXTH FORM COLLEGE
A levels in Theatre Studies (A), English Literature (A), French (A), AS level Dance (C) , GSCE Spanish (A)
​
I performed in student productions 'Bed' by Jim Cartwright playing the role of Marjorie and as Bianca 'After Juliet' by Sharman McDonald both directed by Colin Thompson. I played the lead role of Jennie in Kurt Weill's folk opera 'Down in the Valley' singing live with a full orchestra.
2013
ECOLE PHILLIPPE GAULIER
I did the 'Le Jeu' module with Phillippe Gaulier and Michiko Miyazaki Gaulier learning the foundations of play and presence onstage.
2013-ongoing
ADDITIONAL TRAINING
I have trained in clown and comedy with Philippe Gaulier, John Wright, Zuma Puma, Peta Lily and Avner Eisenberg.
Puppetry training with Sue Buckmaster (Theatre-Rites), Finn Caldwell (Gyre&Gimble) and John Barber (Green Ginger).
​
​Mask training includes Vamos Theatre, John Wright.