Lyn Pierse, NIDA Acting Graduate, B.Ed. Drama, teacher of Improvisation has taught a generation of actors, improvisers, teachers, comics & corporates for 40+ years including students at; Actors Centre Australia, NIDA Acting Dept.(22 years), NIDA Voice Masters Program & Open Program original team, Sydney Acting School, AIM DRAMA/ Australian Institute of Music Drama, HUB Studios, Sydney Theatre School, UNE, UNSW AGSM, Macquarie Uni., Sophia University Tokyo, ATYP, Drama NSW, Speech & Drama Teachers’ Association NSW, Genesian Theatre, Darlo Drama, UNESCO Chair Romania. Corporate clients; KPMG, Deloitte, CBA, Westpac, Monkeys Advertising, AGL, Mundi Pharmaceutical, The Energy Council, Alinta, The Leadership Consortium. She has been a long- time adjudicator of Sydney Eisteddfod and St. George Eisteddfod.
As National Coach, Lyn pioneered Theatresports® teaching across Australia and New Zealand for Belvoir Street Theatre. She established Theatresports® and Improvisation ensembles in Japan. She’s staged Improvisation and Charity extravaganzas; Cranston Cup Seasons and Finals, Celebrity, National and International Theatresports® Challenges, Much Ado About Impro Improvised Shakespeare, 30th Anniversary Theatresports® Celebrity Challenge to capacity audiences at Sydney Opera House, Enmore Theatre, Belvoir St., NIDA Playhouse, QPAC, State Theatre South Australia.
She has directed the Children’s Opera Abigail and the Bushranger for the Bennelong Program, Ubu Roi NIDA, staged Rediculous for SIDS atyje State Theatre Sydney, co-directed Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet, Midsummer Night’s Dream Shakespeare- Interactive Schools performances for Young Australia Workshop, Women In Comedy at Cat & Fiddle Hotel, Comics on The Cross and Virgin Comics at Harold Park Hotel.
Her Acting credits include; Lie With Me The Old 505, Three Sisters Sport For Jove, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Pigeons Griffin Independent, Roberto Zucco Old Fitroy, Women Of Lockerbie, The Fabulous Punch and Judy Show, Jason Chin Long Form Impro Project, Tabloid Improvised Musical, The Virgina Monologues Premier Charity Performance, Divinely Irresistible Griffin Theatre, for Sydney Uni. Dept. of Theatre Studies Three Sisters, Miss. Julie, Woyzek, Australian Premier Berkhoff ’s Greek, Rex Cramphorne’s Measure For Measure National Tour, Neil Armfield’s Season At Sarsaparilla and Conquests of Carmen Miranda SATC, Nick Enright’s original Summer Rain. She has been a reader for Playwriting Australia, Playworks, Australian National Playwright’s Conference.
Standup as her alto ego ‘Sr. Mary Leonard’ she has hosted Theatresports® at the Sydney Opera House, Enmore, Belvoir Street,
Virgin Comics, Comics on the Cross and appeared at Melbourne’s Last Laugh Le Joke, the Tokyo British Club, Pumphouse Auckland & ABC TV’s Big Gig.
Her recent film appearances include; 2021 Flickerfest Finalist The Jump, 2017 feature film and webseries Skinford, 2016 improvised feature Lovestuck, 2016 Tropfest Finalist The ATM.
TV appearances include; Rake, Secret Daughter, How Not To Behave, The Balmoral Protection Unit, Going Home SBS, All Saints, Home and Away.
Lyn is the author of Improvisation: the Guide and Director of Improcorp Australia.
