Treading the Boards

A few years ago, I completed my Masters degree in Contemporary Theatre and thought, what now? I've never wanted to act full time. I was commissioned initially to develop a piece of work that I wrote and direct it in London and Cambridge, and I did that with a really wonderful cast. And then I let work swallow me up, and put my passion to one side.

My friend recently became a published author for the first time, and then subsequently published his first play. He needed a cast to help to workshop it and perform it on stage for the first time. He put out a call for an actress in my age group on facebook, and I thought, why not? 6 months later and many successes and setbacks, and an 80 page play to learn, and we finally performed it in two shows on stage last week!

'My Lot' and is a two act comedy that is a tribute to the modern day family who, despite the issues with 21st century living, can and do still carry the strength and values family life needs. The characters within the piece all represented some sort of stereotype. I played an over the top mother who bullied her slightly downtrodden husband, the other characters included a gay son, a pregnant teenage mother, a very smart and misunderstood daughter, a fussy auntie and senile Grandpa! The seemingly dysfunctional family is struggling with a blackout and have to learn to talk to one another. Little moments and revelations occur throughout during this time that really bring the family back together. The whole play is also thread between the telling of a really long joke! If you'd like to learn more about Darren O Sullivan's work please do click here.

The whole process was a lot of work but I was really honoured to be asked to be a part of it. It sort of filled a gap in my life that until then I had been too busy to notice was there. The play is set in northern England, so I also learned that I can do accents if I really try, something I was convinced I couldn't do before!

Most importantly for me, I met a group of local actors and actresses that are keen to work together on new projects, which is really great. We have decided to revive the piece that I created years ago, through another show in the local area. I'm really excited about this because it is really close to my heart and was a huge achievement for me to direct such a talented cast. The performance is called 'The House of Secrets' and is based within an actual residential house, and was written to raise awareness about sex trafficking. The audience interact with the show by walking round the different rooms, which all have different stories told by actresses in various ways. The feedback we had last time was really moving and I can't wait to develop it even further. You can find out more about this and watch a promo video here. 

Have you got any hobbies you don't get to do enough? Let me know!