The process of creating work for the stage is a powerful counterpoint to many injunctions of the modern world.
I came to theatre-making in my second act, after two decades in brand consulting. Stepping into this world has been terrifying at times, but invariably a healing experience.
The process of creating work for the stage is a powerful counterpoint to many injunctions of the modern world. These diktats- the need for speed, for reactivity, for ‘more’- get explored in my forthcoming Stuffed (Confessions of a Market Researcher).
Writing Stuffed helped me navigate fraught questions and elusive answers. However, I have come to see the rehearsal act, in all its permutations, to be where the magic really happens.
Here is why this ‘reformed executive’ finds refuge in the rehearsal room.
Creative safety
The rehearsal space, in the hand of a skilled director – enter the brilliant Amy Clare Tasker- becomes a place where it is possible to take risks and make mistakes In a world that gallops toward fast decisions, having the time to explore nuances, rewind, and try again feels like the ultimate luxury. Instead of spitting out a quick answer, we can choose to stay with the question.
Collaborative power
In my two decades as a brand consultant, I thought I had a good grasp on team-building. My riotous three years on and near the stage have given new meaning to this.
Collaboration is so deeply ingrained in theatre. It takes the village, and then some, to get a show on the road. Ensemble pieces clearly show how we need one another, how everyone has a part to play, trite as that may sound. In dialogue with fellow actors, I have experienced the true meaning of something becoming more than the sum of its parts. And even in solo moments, like in Stuffed, I have never felt alone.
Radical resourcefulness
In Stuffed, I question the logic of consumerism and the tyranny of ‘more’. I try to explore the true cost of what we buy, when there is no Planet B.
Theatre making takes the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ to new heights.
The dire reality of arts funding means we are all called to work with very little, in terms of tangible resources. When I set up Buskers Inc., an inclusive, multi-lingual theatre collective, one of its guiding principles was to work with what, and who we have, to the best of our abilities. I see fellow artists creating magnificent pieces with very little, proving everyday that less can be more (although additional funding in this case would not hurt…)
And as a play takes shape, artists are in the constant process of reviewing. Through repetition, we are reusing, revisiting, discovering new nuances in every line.
Why Theatre Heals
The Oxford Dictionary defines "heal" as to cause a wound, injury, or person to become sound or healthy again.
Despite the uncertainty of the industry, theatre-making is a healing process. It has given me a sense of hope and purpose I feared I’d lost. The "glorious mess" of rehearsals suggests that new, collaborative modes of action aren't just possible—they’re essential in a crisis.
This journey has finally given a voice to a disquiet I’ve wrestled with for two decades: Is consumerism an intrinsic evil, or is it a balm? I don’t have all the answers, but I’ve put the questions into a play. Spoiler alert: It’s complicated.
Stuffed (WIP) is on at CPT on Tues 19 May at 7:15pm.
Click here to book
