
Our Team

Peter Hussey
Artistic Director
Peter established Crooked House is 1993. He is a theatre-maker, lecturer and trainer of actors and directors. He works in universities in Ireland, UK, the EU and Turkey in acting, directing, theatre-making and performance research. He has published on the impact of theatre-making on neurological and social development in young people.
For over 30 years Peter developed the Crooked House style of theatre-making, a type of magic realism in performance that combines physical theatre, choral movement, text, and psychological realism. His work is guided by artistic experimentation and a concern for social and political fairness.
Peter can be contacted by email at: info [at] crookedhouse [dot] ie.

Oğuzhan Şahin
Company Manager
Oğuzhan is an actor who trained in Suleyman Demirel University in Turkey, and a director (Maynooth University). He runs our school and community youth programmes, directs shows with teenagers, and is a theatre-maker with our older company.
He is the Supervisor for international volunteers, and fulfills the role of Company Manager.
Oğuzhan can be contacted by email via: oguzhan.crookedhouse [at] gmail [dot] com.

Emily Ditkovski
Special Projects Manager
Emily was born in California into a family of theatre makers and educators, and carries on the family trade as a facilitator, director, arts administrator, and researcher committed to social justice through the arts. She received a BFA in Drama and MA in Educational Theatre from New York University, and an MA in Arts Administration from Columbia University.
Emily believes in the power of theatre to transform lives and the necessity of equitable access to the arts for all. As Special Projects Manager, Emily leads long-term projects in Ireland and abroad as facilitator, project manager, theatre director, and researcher.
Emily can be conatcted by email at: email [dot] crookedhouse [at] gmail [dot] com.

John O'Hagan
Project Manager
John is a freelance actor, director, and teacher. He holds dual American/Irish citizenship and has spent the majority of his career as a Professor of Theatre and Performing Arts Program Head at a number of universities in the US.
In addition to his work with Crooked House, he maintains an active creative and teaching practice in both Ireland and America. John manages a number of applied, youth, and community theatre projects with us.

Pauline Sartori
Volunteer Manager
Pauline is a French choreographer and arts administrator. She studied in the Regional Conservatories of Metz/Boulogne-Billancourt, Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris, Cours Florent, and Cobosmika in Catalonia. In 2020, she studied Project Management at the Institut d'Études Supérieures des Arts in Paris.
After graduating, she joined Crooked House Theatre Company as an ESC volunteer, where she trained as a Drama Facilitator and practiced administration. She is currently the trainee Volunteer Manager and is developing her skills in international project management.

Yakup Bas
Director
Yakup is an actor who trained in Suleyman Demirel University in Turkey. He worked as a facilitator in different theatres, agencies and Isparta Social Services and Child Protection Institution.
He also took part as an assistant director in several plays. He was an ESC volunteer with Crooked House and is now Director of KiIdare Youth Theatre. He has trained with Corn Exchange, Dublin and Frantic Assembly, London.
In addition to running Kildare Youth Theatre where he facilitates workshops and directs plays, he facilitates socially engaged theatre projects.

Halit Kayacan
Drama Facilitator
Halit Kayacan is a Turkey-born actor based in Ireland, focused on theatre, film, and community arts. Graduating with an Acting degree in 2023, he currently leads youth theatre projects at Crooked House Theatre and facilitates drama workshops.
Halit’s skills in physical theatre, voiceover, and scriptwriting are bolstered by training in screen acting and Commedia dell'arte. His recent roles range from classics like King Lear and Hamlet to experimental pieces such as Here I Am, There I Was.
He has trained with Frantic Assembly (UK) and co-directs our aerial physical theatre programme. Halit is dedicated to creating meaningful storytelling that connects and uplifts both audiences and communities.

Yassine Barkaoui
Drama Facilitator
Yassine Barkaoui is an actor and theater director who trained in the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts (ISAD) in Tunisia. He worked as Drama Teacher in high schools and youth centers in his home country, and as a drama facilitator in different schools in Ireland. He also served as the project manager for the Among Us project, which is an integration project for IPA (International Protection Applicants) with the aim of facilitating their integration in the society using drama workshops to teach English and social skills.
European Soldarity Corps Volunteers
Each year we take roughly 10 volunteers from around the continent as part of the EU's European Solidarity Corps programme. These volunteers, normally young theatre makers, facilitators and artists, engage with and help to run our workshops, productions, projects and so forth. They stay with us for up to a year and bring a fresh perspective to the work we do and to our members. Read more about our ESC programme here.

Abdulselam Tog
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Abdulselam Toğ is an actor and theatre trainer from Istanbul, Turkey. He studied acting at Haliç University, and during his time at university, he participated in numerous projects, including plays, advertisements and series.
After graduating, he worked as a theatre trainer for two municipalities for nearly two and a half years, where he also co-directed a theatre academy and 3 plays.
Later, he appeared in an independent film and a digital platform series for seven episodes.Lastly, he worked at Istanbul State Theatre for almost eleven months before coming to Ireland as a volunteer, where he is involved in several plays

Ilayda Cog
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Ilayda is an actress from Istanbul, Turkey. In 2019, she graduated from the Acting Department of the Faculty of Fine Arts at Uludağ University.
After graduation, she worked as a drama and theater instructor at a private college for two years.
She has acted in one local television series and three professional theater productions.

Tuana Sunar
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Tuana is a theatre-maker from Turkey, graduating from Anadolu University School of Music and Drama in 2019. She studied physical theatre at ESAD de Galicia in Spain during the 2017-2018 academic year.
Tuana has acted in numerous productions before entering university, as well as throughout her university and professional career.
In 2023, she founded 'İkaros Tiyatro,' producing her first play, İkaros, in which she wrote, directed, and acted. Passionate about physical theatre, she enjoys contemporary dance, running, and yoga, embracing movement both in life and on stage.

Serena Giordanengo
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Serena is from Italy and recently graduated in Theatre & Performative Practices from University College Cork. She began her academic journey with an undergraduate degree in Political, Social, and International Sciences at the University of Bologna, followed by a Master’s in Human Rights, Peace, and Sustainable Development at the University of Valencia.
Her experiences living and studying around the world, particularly in Latin America, have profoundly influenced her. She loves connecting with diverse cultures and learning from their unique performing arts.
Passionate about theatre’s power to drive social change, she aims to use performance to amplify marginalized voices and fuel activism.

Anna Dal Ben
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Anna trained as an actress at the Accademia Internazionale di Teatro in Rome for three years. She then studied cinema and digital storytelling at Udine University, Frankfurt University in Germany, and Liège University in Belgium.
Between 2021 and 2022, she trained as a Social Theatre Operator with Oltre Le Parole Onlus, in Italy. Anna’s passion for theatre and storytelling comes from her love of play. She strongly believes that they serve as powerful tools in the fight for political transformation.

Marta Peniza Portela
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Marta is a young student of Performing Arts and Music from Spain.
She began her career at the music conservatory, specializing in piano, in her hometown when she was eight years old. Since then, she has always been clear about her passion for creating artistic projects.
She studied Performing Arts and Music in high school in Vigo (Galicia) and, at the same time, began her collaboration with another European theatre organization, FOCO, working as an Assistant Youth Drama Facilitator and Assistant Theatre-Maker.
She has participated in numerous European projects such as Seen and Heard, Mouthoff, The Wide Rainbow, and Moltóir, alongside the FOCO team.

Tomás Fernández Cruz
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Tomás is an actor from Seville, Spain. After graduating with an acting degree from ESAD Sevilla in 2021, he trained in physical theatre at TNT/Atalaya, film acting with Sebastian Haro, Spanish Golden Age acting in Cía. Siglo de Oro ESAD Sevilla and with a wide range of theatre practitioners; some of them internationally renowned such as Declan Donellan, Claudia Contin and Roberta Carreri.
He has appeared in two national TV series, debuted professionally in three theatre plays and was involved in the production of another three.
Tomás is a nature lover who enjoys practicing Yoga and Qi Gong.

Makis Nanos
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Makis Nanos is an actor, assistant director, and drama facilitator from Athens, Greece. He trained as an actor in Dilos Drama School and graduated in 2019. He has since worked as an actor and assistant director in many productions in theatre and cinema in Greece, Poland, and Ireland.
He also participated in drama and movement workshops in Athens, at the National Theatre of Greece, as well as other organizations, in Poland at the Grotowski Institute, and in Ireland with Crooked House Theatre Company.
Since 2020, Makis has been a member of Kinitiras Youth, a self-organized youth group under the umbrella of the Kinitiras Artistic Network of Performing Arts in Greece. Since 2021, he has worked as a drama facilitator in youth and adult theatre groups in Greece.

Aliki Klapadaki
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Aliki is a 26-year-old actor from Athens, Greece. She started studying Civil Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens but soon realised her true passion was acting. She followed her dream and graduated from Peiraikos Drama School in 2023.
Since then, Aliki has taken part in several acting workshops, including the International Ancient Drama Workshop of the National Theatre of Greece. She loves learning new languages, playing the piano, and exploring music. Aliki is excited about the opportunities and experiences this volunteering year will bring.

Xeni Vasilakis
European Solidarity Corps Volunteer
Xeni Vassilaki is an actress from Athens, Greece. She has studied at the drama schools “Delos” and “Moderni kairoi”. Besides her theatrical studies, she has studied French language and literature at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens as well as at the University of Geneva.
Since 2022, she has performed in three theatrical plays in Athens, Greece and she has participated in two movies. She is member of the female choral ensemble Chores of Marina Satti which aims to promote the wealth of Greek traditional music.
She believes that through the arts people can find the quintessence of life, happiness.
Freelance Staff

Cian O'Náraigh
Project Manager
Cian joined Kildare Youth Theatre when he was 16. After his BA degree he earned a place on a playwriting programme facilitated by Carys D. Coburn. He then trained as a Drama Facilitator with Youth Theatre Ireland.
He co-facilitated the weekly Caliban workshop, and creative writing projects with Kildare Youth Theatre before developing an Irish language project called Nasc. Cian currently is involved in Nasc and some of our other proojects whilst he works as an author and director of his own theatre company, Scaoilte.

Charlie Hughes-Farrell
Project Assistant
Charlie joined Kildare Youth Theatre when he was 12, acting in several plays that travelled Europe and one that was staged in the National Theatre in London. He trained in Film, Digital Media and French in NUI Galway.
He runs English language programmes for our international volunteers, supporting their language skills and offering support for their acting roles in our projects. He also operates the Kildare Youth Theatre Wbesite

Elliot Nolan
Project Manager
Elliot was a member of Kildare Youth Theatre for years before he won a place on the BA Classical Acting degree at LAMDA in London. He is a professional actor who manages our Indigo Project and is the assistant director on Shakespearean productions. He also stands in as a faciltator in some of our workshops and projects.

Anna Galligan
Drama Facilitation Trainer
Anna worked for over a decade with Youth Theatre Ireland, developing policy and best practices for youth theatres nationally, including drama and artistic facilitation. She is the Artistic Director of Carlow Youth Theatre and teaches Performing Arts at Carlow Institute of Further Education and Training.
Anna trains our ESC volunteers in Drama Facilitation and runs some of our training programmes on our international projects.

Matteo Polimanti
Newsletter Editor
Matteo studied Performing Arts in Rome and worked with several Italian theatre organisations to organise festivals addressed to the new generations. He volunteered with Crooked House to acquire some project management and drama facilitation skills for his future projects.
He is currently studying live events’ organization in Milan. He is responsible for Crooked House's monthly newsletter, which can be read on our homepage.

Emre Can Şahin
Digital Media Manager
Emre is a filmmaker from Bursa, Turkey. He graduated from the university's cinema department and has won awards in international film competitions for his documentaries.
Emre worked with our young people in Ireland, creating documentary films for various projects. He is also actively involved in digital media productions. He is now primairly responsible for running Crooked House's website.

Sancar Çaliskan
Filmmaker
Sancar is a filmmaker from Istanbul. He had been working on documentary and commercial films before he arrived in Ireland. He facilitated weekly filmmaking workshops for young people before studying for a Master's in Creative Practice at ATU Sligo.
He films many of the international projects of Crooked House and teaches on some of the training courses for artists. Much of the recent documentaries and work found on the Crooked House and Kildare Youth Theatre YouTube pages were filmed and edited by Sancar.

Abdelmoneim Nassef
Drama Facilitator
Abdelmoneim studied Law before becoming a theatre director in Cairo. He has worked in tour guiding, entertainment, and Escape Room companies, and has directed large-scale shows in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. He is also an actor and a playwright.
He came to Ireland as an ESC volunteer with Crooked House. Now he runs outreach and applied theatre projects around the region.