Paul Sirett is an award-winning playwright, dramaturg, musician and teacher. His theatrical works include the Olivier-nominated The Big Life (with Paul Joseph) at Theatre Royal Stratford East & West End, Rat Pack Confidential at Nottingham Playhouse & West End, and Come Dancing (with Ray Davies) at Stratford East. Other works include Bad Blood Blues (Theatrescience and Stratford East) and Worlds Apart (Stratford East), Reasons to be Cheerful (Graeae Theatre Company - published by Methuen Drama), and plays for Soho Theatre; Polka Theatre; Yellow Earth Theatre; Live Theatre, Newcastle; New Wolsey, Ipswich; Dukes, Lancaster; and the Edinburgh Fringe. Awards include, Best Off-West End Musical, Whatsonstage; Best Play, Pearson; Best Production, City Life; Best Writer & Best Play, New York International Radio Festival; and nominations for TMA, Evening Standard and Olivier awards. Paul has also worked extensively as a dramaturg for companies including the Royal Shakespeare Company, Soho Theatre, Ambassador Theatre Group, Trafalgar Entertainment, the Royal Court, and the National Theatre. He is currently an Associate Artist of Soho Theatre, Associate Fellow at the University of Warwick, Literary Associate at Trafalgar Entertainment, and Associate Teacher of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art where he teaches playwriting and dramaturgy.

Lotte is a club singer from Newcastle, who's spent a lifetime singing the songs of Ella Fitzgerald. With two kids to support she sings by night and works by day to make ends meet.
After a series of bad relationships, Lotte meets Michael, a charismatic art dealer from London and her luck seems to have changed for the better. But when he disappears without explanation, she follws him to America where she must make a pilgrimage of her own. Beside the grave of Ella Fitzgerald, the extraordinary events and scenes of Lotte's life are revealed.
Lush Life opened at the Live Theatre, Newcastle in March 2005.