Questions and Perplexities

At the first session of the three-day gathering, Richard Gough asked participants to articulate the areas and ideas they hoped would be covered over the weekend in relation to the role of the director. A brief summary of the points that were touched upon.

Exploratory Session with Ruth Kanner: Thursday, 16 April

Exploratory with Mike Pearson, The Directors' Forum.2

Exploratory with Mike Pearson, The Directors' Forum.2
Originally uploaded by Centre for Performance Research

Exploratory session with Veenapani Chawla: Wednesday, 14 April

What is rhythm?, Veenapani asks the half circle of participants that have gathered for a taster of her work and practice. After a few moments' thought and some stumbling lines, the answers trickle out of us: it’s a division of time, a predictable organisation of time, a pattern we come to have expectations about. And where can we find it? In walking, in the rain, sports, and heartbeats. Electricity, the sea, breathing – music, poetry and movement. Architecture, nature, art, dance. Rhythm is everywhere. As performers and directors, this is important to know, as rhythm always is present in performance, whether we perceive it or not.

Olya Petrakova and Bryan Brown Exploratory (ARTEL) at the Directors' Forum.1

Olya Petrakova and Bryan Brown Exploratory (ARTEL) at the Directors' Forum.1
Originally uploaded by Centre for Performance Research

III Exploration Session by ARTELians - - TRICKSTERS & PRANKSTERS

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Ruth Kanner Laboratory, The Directors Forum.1

Ruth Kanner Laboratory, The Directors Forum.1
Originally uploaded by Centre for Performance Research

Reflections on Natalie Hennedige's Laboratory: 9 to 11 April

To call this laboratory a Cake-related one might be a mistake on my part. It took characters from Natalie's extensive creative work as director of Cake Theatre Company as one of its starting points, but the process and exercises used had little to do with her previous work. Both participants and laboratory leader learnt a fair few things during the process of these three days, as we all delved into new material and ways of working. Natalie took the notion of the laboratory as a place of experiment and ran with it, creating a real experiment on her way. This may well be the starting point of a new style of working for her, which seems to tend more towards what Western performance tradition would call 'devised' theatre. For the participants, the chance to see and participate in this exploration was a great chance to learn and examine our own background and work.