Makers’ House Hastings was established by Liz Mattey & Chris New as a home for creative teaching.

We invite our favourite artists to stay, work, and teach; all in the hope of spreading the idea that taking yourself and your craft seriously — and sharing your learning with others — is something of value to the world.

Chris New trained at RADA. He made his acting debut in the West End revival of Bent, starring opposite Alan Cumming, receiving rave reviews and two award nominations from both the Evening Standard and the What’s On Stage Awards. He went on to work with Richard Eyre at the National Theatre, played Viola opposite John Lithgow’s Malvolio for the Royal Shakespeare Company, and portrayed Joe Orton opposite Matt Lucas in the West End production of Prick Up Your Ears. He also played Edward II at the Royal Exchange, led the 25th-anniversary revival of Philip Ridley’s The Pitchfork Disney at the Arcola, and has performed at the Young Vic, Sadler’s Wells, Shakespeare’s Globe, HOME, the Soho Theatre, and the Finborough. He transferred Peter Nichols’ follow-up to Privates on Parade, Lingua Franca, to New York, where it received rave reviews. His film debut, Weekend, became an overnight sensation, earning many award nominations, and remains regarded as a modern classic. Chris began teaching with the Royal Shakespeare Company’s education department in 2006 and, in 2013, took up an invitation to run weekly acting classes at the Actors Centre in Covent Garden. In 2020, he moved his teaching practice to Hastings where he has been resident ever since.

Liz Mattey (Vernon) trained as an actor at Drama Studio London while co-parenting her teenage sons. She has directed and produced work at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and spent 20 years as a researcher and producer for the Edinburgh institution Pick of the Fringe. Liz was Head of Drama at Claremont School, Hastings for several years, a role she balanced alongside a parallel career in hospitality and catering. Following the birth of her youngest son, she moved into the role of Visiting Teacher of Performance at Benenden School, where she has now taught for 23 years. She is a member of The Globe Studio Company and, throughout her teaching career, has continued her professional development through training with the National Theatre, LAMDA, Trinity College, the National Youth Theatre, Spymonkey, and the Shakespeare Schools Festival. During Covid, she undertook online director training with Robert Icke and Lyndsey Turner. Liz’s enduring passion for nurturing and unlocking people’s potential has made her a prolific creator of opportunities for others. As a young mother raising two children on a farm, she founded the Crowhurst Drama Group, which continues to this day. She was also a founder member of Souls Bared, the resident company at St Mary-in-the-Castle, has played an active role at the Stables Theatre for many decades, and her Tulip Salon arts events are now a St Leonards institution.