045: Composing and Sound Design with Eamonn O'Dwyer
""could sit in my studio all day and make music and if I've got nobody singing it or acting over it or dancing to it what's the point you know. So that is the absolute joy for me of getting it in the room and going right, let's make this work."
Eamonn O'Dwyer
In this episode of the Shapes in Motion Podcast, Stephen Moynihan is joined by award-winning composer and sound designer Eamonn O'Dwyer. Eamonn reflects on his journey from chorister to composing for musical theatre, creating sound design for immersive attractions, and working across live performance. Together they explore creative collaboration, composing for different audiences and environments, building a diverse portfolio career, and the value of curiosity, adaptability, and lifelong learning in the creative industries.
Eamonn’s Bio:
Eamonn is an award-winning composer and sound designer of Guyanese-Irish origin. His work spans genres from live orchestral to electronica and contemporary musical theatre, and he has worked as an instrumentalist, composer, lyricist and sound designer in theatres all over the world. He is an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, and the winner of the 2025 Black British Theatre Award for Sound Design.
His theatre credits include: Twelfth Night (Theatr Clwyd); Aggy (Park Theatre); Mrs President (Charing Cross); Troilus & Cressida (Shakespeare’s Globe); All The Happy Things (Soho); Spitfire Girls (MAST); The Koala Who Could (Unicorn); Hey! Christmas Tree (Minerva, Chichester); Never Let Me Go (Rose, Kingston); The History Boys (Bath Theatre Royal); The Lion Inside (Rose, Kingston); Guy Fawkes (York Theatre Royal); Brief Encounter (Watermill); Lady Chatterley’s Lover (UK Tour); Twelfth Night and Henry V (Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre, York); It Never Happened (ArtsEd); Mrs Beeton Says… (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School); The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (NYMT, The Other Palace); The Comedy of Errors, Romeo & Juliet and Julius Caesar Re-imagined (RSC, Swan); Flesh & Bone (National Theatre Studio); Grimm Tales and Peter Pan (Chichester Festival Theatre); Jeeves & Wooster (Barn, Cirencester); Stones in His Pockets (Dukes, Lancaster); The Glass Menagerie (Theatre Chipping Norton). He is a frequent musical collaborator at the Rose Theatre in Kingston, where he has written original songs and scores for Beauty & The Beast, The Snow Queen, Hansel & Gretel, The Wind in the Willows, The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe, A Christmas Carol, Tess of the d’Urbervilles and Arabian Nights.
The score for his original musical The House of Mirrors & Hearts won the MTM Award for Best New Score at the Edinburgh Festival in 2010, and after its critically acclaimed run at the Arcola Theatre in 2015 has now been performed in Australia and the US. Mrs Beeton Says and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow are now available for licensing through Samuel French Ltd. In 2021 Eamonn’s new musical Fanny & Stella was featured in the NAMT 33rd Annual Festival of New Musicals in New York, and in 2022 Eamonn made his own NYC debut performing an evening of his work at the celebrated 54 Below Club in Manhattan.
Chapters
Introduction to Eamon O'Dwyer
Early Musical Influences and Boarding School Life
Transition from Performer to Composer
The Shift to Creative Roles
Creating 'House of Mirrors and Hearts'
Dealing with Criticism and Negative Reviews
Understanding the Roles of Composer and Sound Designer
The Creative Process: Composing and Sound Design
Writing for Different Audiences
Crafting Music for Young Audiences
The Joy of Collaboration in Theatre
Expanding Horizons: Music for Escape Rooms and Attractions
The Portfolio Career: Diversifying Musical Talents
Links
Eamonn’s English Website: https://eamonnodwyer.com/
Eamonn’s Instagram: @eamonnodwyer
To get in touch with Sarah visit www.sarahperrymovement.com and follow @sarahperrymovement on Instagram.
To get in touch with Stephen visit www.stephenmoynihan.net and follow @stmoynihan on Instagram.