The Pitfalls of Re/Working

This is a somewhat belated response to the final workshops delivered by Toby last week. I think it is important to highlight a couple of points here now though as they are especially useful for moving forwards in our company and as a framework for the nature of work in progress showings. Firstly, the week was packed full of useful work that did build a pace and enthusiasm amongst us all. There were useful high points and Toby was absolutely inspiring. However, something happened on Friday, when we were encouraged to show work (lets note that such work is fragile, which as I understand that word means that we acknowledge its "newness" and aren't too damning of its quality).

Each of the groups, no, I shall start with my own - my group presented work that was not agitating a contemporary condition, it didn't welcome risk taking and although thought through, we presented work that really was so in development it didn't have to have the audience exposure at the time. To deconstruct it is not wholly necessary but I do resent the pattern of making work under the constraints of time and then presenting something that is not as relevant as I believe performance needs to be, in order to be rigourous, necessary and "good" (lets side step the multiple meanings of that loaded word).

This extends out to the rest of the work which consisted of interesting engaging "moments", stage pictures and useful starting points for potential work but in itself was not narrative lead - and at times relied heavily upon deeply coded semiotics on stage. The use of coca-cola, yes with its loaded meaning (lets say multinational consumerism) was a tool that drew attention to the work but it is not enough to simply put this on stage - I personally need more and don't quite buy into the theory of anything on stage works incredibly hard to making the performance in the mind of the audience.

An apple, (when placed on stage) BECOMES - "The Apple".

However, with the above model, this needs to be conscious, the makers have to then transform the apple, with its coded language and use it to agitate a narrative - in order for the work to have relevance.

Relevant work is key.

The debrief that followed, like so many consisted of us as a group generously reading meaning in to work that was not fully formed and therefore needed to be treated as "in progress" any subjective observations needed to be delivered carefully and we need to learn as a group to treat our rehearsals and rehearsal spaces as labs. Why on earth do we send our "audience" of peers out of the room, only to turn the lights off and then get them back in, does this do anything for us? I personally am more interested in the charging of the space, the construction of the work and think that the more we make our pieces exist within the serious, the conventional theatrical space the more we load these same pieces with an atmosphere of reverence, church like reception.

Let us make work that is light, open and ready to be treated as in progress. Work that if not humorous has been constructed with the audience in mind - welcoming, daring and relevant. In an interesting conversation with the newly formed company we noted how little we have smiled or laughed, even been made to feel light hearted from these small showings?! Is there a formula, a reason a definitive explanation for this?!

I will leave that musing there, (for now).

The Right Things in the Room

Just a gentle musing for now. We have been working with Toby Jones this week, exploring the impulse in making work. Asking questions about beginnings and ends, the importance of breath and overall simplicity, clarity of thought and of expression. Theatre exists in the imagination of the audience, who will always make bold connections inconceivable at times during the making of any performance work. Furthermore, with the addition of sound, text and physical action there is already a strongly coded semiotic language on the charged area defined as stage and the audience can always be trusted to decode and discover their own multiple meanings...

There is also something interesting about the presence of objects in the room, something Alex mentioned in our first few sessions, today I noticed this stack of newspapers, somewhat discreet in the corner of the room and yet I cannot ignore my own interest in keeping newspapers in our work - indeed the strongest moment of drama from today's 30 second project was the throwing to the ground of a newspaper by Liz in the street outside of Central.

The politics of theatre, a theatre of politics...

It certainly feels as if we are in the thick of it once again, after a week of exposure to the expectations of the establishment towards our research projects, we are now, back in workshops and rehearsal rooms. A note on the research heavy first week. There is a trend emerging to spend great amounts of time on the abstract, whether that is academic poster sessions that last for 2 hours and do not even in that time narrow down the boundaries or potential in such a synthesis of creativity and scholarship, through to the 2 days spent listening to research largely from PhD study and therefore (as was mentioned) different by its very nature. I have little reservation in saying that the act of research is one that fascinates and excites me. However, this act, is one that must be time consuming, thorough and rigourous, perhaps also individual. We are being encouraged, yes, to develop and deliver our individual research interest but crucially this must exist within a group culture of up to 5. This group must present at a conference and develop a thorough piece of research that is informative and scholarly.

This conference, like a distant object seen through fog does not even after last week seem to have been fully justified on what is a practice focussed, explorative MA programme. Perhaps the institution is evolving into a research centred hub of practitioners, not necessarily a bad thing but I would not like the singular difference at this school, the potential for risk taking and constructing of performance without having to contextualise, frame, academically appraise the work as you go. I am engaged now in a lifelong research project, that which is centred around a career as a director. These tasks are useful as they do widen your reading habits, they do get you considering the context and future of work but in this same instance, this research project can not overshadow a need to make good work that is relevant now.

To pause here. I am hoping to broaden my own context by:

1. Visiting the new Medieval and Renaissance Galleries at the V&A

2. Picking up more poetry, (ever since the recent RA exhibition on climate change I have been meaning to explore poetry and art forms as narrative devices and provocative stimuli)

3. Go and watch 'The Road'

It has now become the case that if I do not write these lists, whether here or in one of several notebooks, I let them slip. I allow myself to repeat the routines of school, work, home, documentation and forget that the broader context needs to be brought into my work and therefore I need the experiences of the above in order to contextualise my own practice.

I also made the admission over dinner last night that, "the stress of existing on this course is, now, like it has previously, clouding the creative impulses that I have had". Is this really true? I have certainly discovered a stash of scrap paper with scribbled (mostly awful) ideas and yet despite my lack of excitement for them now, I have perhaps stopped making new ideas, or at least recording them. I need to grab some more time to do this, to reflect upon the daily tasks, issues, discussions and then close a door, start a blank page and remember my own place as an artist.

THE ARTISTS REALITY

I am reading at the moment, Mark Rothko's musings on art and art practice, which is a wonderful context for all artists existing within a culture, a society of patronage. The book, which I am still taking time to move through explores Rothko's own philosophies on art but also adds a context to his condition, his own work. Less biographical than I thought, it provides fascinating explorations of processes and reception of art and is a book that I would recommend to performance makers as much as artists working with paint, canvas or sculptural form.

Four's Company(?!)

We have also had the task this week of forming our Practices company - the group of performance makers we most want to work with for the coming months in realising a new piece of work. This was initially organised by finding a second research group that perhaps shared or contrasted one's own interests, however, what seems to have happened is that groups have had quiet conversations and made decisions based upon structures that are not too dissimilar from hierarchical structures so often criticised in our ensemble. I have found myself in one of these structured (but would argue as a result we are incredibly strong and I would not change the group at all). Lauren, Liz, Prae and I are embarking upon a sustained exploration of space, audience, commitment, artistry, collaborative practice, design as integral, supportive rehearsal rooms, role of director, performer and audience, intimate/interactive, experiential performance and are working brilliantly well across Cultural Landscapes, Research & Practices. Yet, would we benefit from another performer, another designer, perhaps two more performers? Can we reconcile the discrepancies with larger companies with many performers and other skills/disciplines represented? Liz and I have begun a discussion, we have agreed that we have formed a company not too dissimilar to professional models and are balanced in that respect - we do however, recognise that the work we make now is to a certain extent defined by those right people in the room. I am a little nervous, but this is also tinged with excitement and will not allow myself to make work that is not "good" (do what you want with that word - I myself am still discovering the right usage and definition).

RE:direction

Well, term two has started, in real earnest and judging by my already diminished sleep and overactive mind when it comes to new projects, ideas, ambitions and interactions it really is set to be a fascinating few weeks. A somewhat busy week, yesterday was a useful introduction to our research module as well as the opportunity to catch up on everyone's experiences over Christmas. The group is still intact, we have lost a course mate yet there was a shared enthusiasm for discovering new work and strengthening stronger collaborative partnerships.

We are also taking part in a research intensive conference of sorts, which lasts until tomorrow and although somewhat heavy handed in its desire to teach us good research practices is the sort of event that does settle somewhere into the back of one's imagination. A stimulating lecture from Matt Adams of Blast Theory, which although a company that I have problems with when considering, 'What is theatre?', did begin a new process of inquiry into where to generate income and how much research should play a part in practice. This was then partnered with a meeting this afternoon with the NT Studio, an informal discussion with the head of the studio focussed around the directions of work, the 'how to' work and workshop at the NT Studio itself and also the opportunity to re focus attention on directing work that is "good" and vital in a diverse landscape of performance.

I have also now, very almost finished my visual essay and as such have been reading a lot of the essays contained within the Routledge/TDR Series published 'Re:Direction (A Theoretical and Practical Guide). The book is a great resource for the contemporary director artist trying to reconcile practice with a broader concern for the postmodern context of performance making - largely focussing for now on the collaborative ensemble work of Lecompte et.al but also taking the time to read as much as possible around the problems and working methods of directors and the companies with which they are attached.

This reading has then also pushed my thinking towards the necessity to build strong working relationships from within the MA group and this means a desire to seek out the working partners with whom I have a shared experience and commitment to performance. Nick lead an open space yesterday where I discussed with numerous others: How to Collaborate (A) and Devising Theatre Methodologies (B). My notes are here:

All in all it has been a varied two days with lots of useful discussion and development of my conclusions from the visual reflective essay. I am now emerging with a desire to understand the director-artist, to develop personal practice and test collaborative working methodologies. All of this is suited incredibly well to the work this term which is made up of a research unit, and company based practices unit, (along with continuation of Cultural Landscapes). As each of these works develops I will endeavour to keep updates posted here.

To Begin Again

So, 2010 is here, it is the second day of this our new decade and how much there is to achieve in the next week before second term begins. Of course at this time of year, strangers and friends inquire after new years resolutions out of curiosity or genuine interest and so perhaps I shall post mine here. Firstly, I am attempting to control theatre in my life so that it does not demand the lions share of my time at least. I want to continue with the same intensity of focus and yet also command more time to experience all else that life around me and the world at large is offering. This then becomes the umbrella for seeing friends more and carving out a social space at home as well as reading more, watching more and experiencing more in this city of cultural opportunity.

Secondly, as is the same every year I seek to push myself ever forwards and towards new experiences, never resting or forgetting that I am directly responsible for any success and by focusing attention now I will be able to settle later. Something about the start of a decade makes one think 10 years down the line to where they want to be and without sharing them here I certainly have a busy few years ahead if I am going to achieve my goals...

Now, on to more pressing matters...the reflection on term one, (the visual essay)

I am, sadly, still rather confused as to how this form is useful here in this assignment. I have been wrestling with it somewhat for the past couple of weeks and it is a tough thing to get a flow of interest in as it just doesn't at its core seem to fit the task. I have tried to plan visually, not merely translating words into images and also tried to frame a question that suits the visual approach but both are not really working. I now have a final week to see how this develops but I must say the chances of me writing 1500 words towards the end of the week are quite high now - I want the visual essay to be useful but right now I just do not feel supported enough in order to do it well and to an MA academic standard. I will post the developing work here online as it progresses....