Our Founders
Hear from Brad Waller on the inception of the Paddy Crean, the flagship IOSP workshop:
Founder | Brad Waller
Brad has been a teacher and fight director with The Shakespeare Theater (Washington DC). He has produced the International Paddy Crean Workshop with such cultural institutions as: The Shakespeare Theater, The Smithsonian Institution, The Folger Library, The Shaw Festival, The Stratford Festival (Canada), and the Banff Centre for the Arts. He is a certified teacher of stage combat with the Society of American Fight Directors, and Honorary Member of Fight Directors Canada. Brad is an internationally recognized scholar in 16th Century fighting systems. In 1995, he was guest curator of "The Sword and the Pen," an exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library exploring the relationship between combat and drama. He hopes to eventually raise the money to mount an expanded version of the show at the Globe Theater in London. He enjoys gardening with his two kids, Lillian and Alan.
Founder | Lloyd Caldwell
Lloyd Caldwell is an Actor, Director, Fight Director, and Consultant to the entertainment industry. Through his company, Bladework, he has provided a wide variety of services to clients such as Universal Studios, Kings Productions, the BBC, and RTE’. In a career spanning 30 years he has appeared off-Broadway and regionally, and in feature films and television. His fight choreography credits include the American Place Theatre, the Roundabout Theatre, The Circle in the Square Theatre, The Red Ladder Theatre, The Prague State Opera, The Berlin Opera, and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Lloyd is one of the founders of the International Order of the Sword and Pen, and in June 2001 he completed a five-year appointment as its first Executive Director. Lloyd is a tenured Professor of the Theatre Faculty of Oklahoma State University, where he serves as the senior Acting faculty, and is a Riata Fellow in the Spears School of Business. As a Fellow he teaches courses in Arts Entrepreneurship and the Arts Management, and serves on various boards. He maintains an active practice as a Fight Director and Movement Specialist.
Founder | David "Pops" Doersch
Pops has been a fight director for over 25 years, working at many of the leading theaters in America, including the Guthrie Theatre, the Dallas Theatre Center, the American Players’ Theatre, the Minnesota Opera and many, many more. As an actor, he has appeared on stage and screen in countless roles. A long time dear friend of Brad Waller, he is one of the founding member of the IOSP and has taught stage combat at dozens of universities, training programs and workshops in the United States, Canada, England, Scotland, Sweden, Estonia, Egypt, South Africa and Japan. Pops is also a professional musician, having toured with his band, Coyote Run, for over 12 years. Currently, he enjoys performing with his wife, Catherine, in their Celtic duo, Picti.