POLLY BENNETT
MOVEMENT / CHOREOGRAPHY / CHARACTER
POLLY BENNETT is a British movement director, choreographer and character coach based in London.
Polly’s unique approach, fusing her extensive knowledge of dance and theatre with her insight into human behaviour and physical psychology, makes her one of the most sought-after creatives scaling the theatre and film world.
Responsible for Austin Butler’s turn in the titular role of Baz Luhrmann’s film Elvis and Rami Malek’s Academy Award, Golden Globe, BAFTA and SAG Award winning portrayal of Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody (Fox), Polly works in the broadest applications of movement in film and television, but notably as a one-on-one movement coach and choreographer.
A vivid communicator Polly is skilled at conveying feeling and transforming individual performances as well as staging, pursuing narrative and physical dramaturgy. Having worked across theatre, music and dance with both amateurs and professionals, Polly’s creative energy and personality expands everyone’s physical awareness and creates greater possibilities for everyone from inmates to the acting industry’s elite.
Currently: Kaos (Netflix), Saltburn (Amazon Prime), The Great (Series 3), The Crown (Series 6)
Film: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Compelling Pictures/Sony), Chevalier (Fox), Lady Chatterley’s Lover (Netflix), Elvis (Warner Bros), Pieces of a Woman, 007: No Time to Die (MGM/Universal), Pieces of a Woman (Netflix), Mogul Mowgli (Pulse Fims), Bohemian Rhapsody (Fox), The Little Stranger (Potboiler) and Stan & Ollie (Fable, as Assistant Choreographer.)
Television: History of a Pleasure Seeker (Disney/ABC), Nolly (ITV), Wolf (BBC), The Crown (Netflix, Seasons 3-5), There’s Something About Movies (Sky One), The Great (Hulu, Series 1-2), Mr Robot (Universal, Series 3), One Normal Night (Sky Arts) and Killing Eve (BBC America) and Gareth Malone’s Best of British (BBC.)
Recent theatre credits include Patriots (Almeida), House of Shades (Almeida), Cyrano de Bergerac (Harold Pinter), Sweat (Donmar & West End), The Lehman Trilogy (National Theatre, Broadway & West End, dir. Sam. Mendes), Venice Preserved (RSC), The Inheritance (Young Vic, West End and Broadway), Peter Gynt (National Theatre), White Teeth (Kiln), The Village (Stratford East), People, Places and Things (National, West End & off-Broadway), Travesties (Menier Chocolate Factory, West End & Broadway dir. Patrick Marber.)
Events: The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee at Windsor Castle (Head of Choreography and Staging), Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 (Mass Movement Choreographer), Sochi Paralympic Opening and Closing Ceremonies 2014 (Mass Movement Choreographer), Paul Smith; A Suit to Travel In (Associate Director and Choreographer), Fazer’s Urban Symphony (BBC) London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony (Assistant Movement Director), London 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony (Mass Movement), London 2012 Paralympic Opening Ceremony (Mass Movement), Shell Fuel Day 2011 (Choreographer), FIFA Club World Cup Opening Ceremony 2009 (Movement and Performer.)
Polly holds a History of Art MA from Edinburgh University, an MA in Movement from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and is Associate Movement Practitioner at the Royal Shakespeare Company and Associate Artist at Bush Theatre. Alongside her movement work she is co-founder of The Mono Box, a creative hub producing training opportunities for emerging theatre makers in UK. www.themonobox.co.uk