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Cre-Actors comes to an end!
Words from the project participants, waiting for future adventures to come

And so, as every beautiful journey, our Cre-Actors’ project has almost come to its end.

The incredible richness not only of the processes and practices shared, but of the participants met and of the partners involved is present and told:

But the way we want to tell you goodbye is through some of the reflections and impressions given at the end of the process by all the participants in their reports and comments (starting from myself): the diversity of perspectives, ideas, backgrounds of this small but great community is what made the process and the project so successful and satisfying, and we want to share a part of it with you in this last article.

Enjoy them, and continue to follow us: new projects are in our desires and visions and will hopefully be started soon!

Micaela
Going back to the beginning, with an overview on the whole project, I can see how much more we attained in respect of what we had written in that application composed during lockdown!
We started in one of the most important theatres in Europe, Théâtre du Soleil, playing with a classical story, on stage, with music, costumes, props, characters, on the path towards the creation of a show; we went on in Bologna at Teatro dell’Argine’s, in alternative venues for creation, experimenting possible practices and ways of making theatre involving people from any background in the community; we finished in a community arts and social centre in Tallaght, Dublin, reflecting through action on Space, Place, Power, and how we can raise questions, work interculturally and generate change through theatre.
We have had special participations that were not provided; all partners did a lot, both in the welcoming and in organizing rich programmes and theatrical surprises that were not required at the beginning; and especially, we have built together a strong community of warm and empathetic companions, skilled colleagues, nice friends, that are able to work and reflect as well as to be agreeably together.

Tatiana
My background is dance, so everything was for the first time. The warm-ups showed huge intersectionality with my work. Working with migrants or those from a diverse background – people don’t think they belong. Same for me – hard for new groups to think the arts are for them. So, bringing these to my practice. Felt like a non-judgemental space. Reassuring after fear at beginning. Level of empathy is high. People became emotional watching narratives. The role of language – language did not become a barrier. Loved challenging of stereotypes and structures of power. Very important to be heard. We feel valued. A horizontal process.

Ida
All three weeks have mixed up: the importance of words. Language so powerful to me. The possibility to express ourselves. How stimulating especially when we can’t understand each other. It gives me a lot. I miss this in my daily work life – we are all Italian in the core group. So having it in Border Crossings is inspiring. Images. Images being described without words in particular. I thought it was impossible. A great experience. Top of my list.

Paolo
During the working session, I noticed how the different groups of partners come from different theatrical contexts: differences in the aesthetics, in the technical words used, in the approaches to the work. And this comparison generates further meanings, new solutions, enrichments in the practices. This kind of meeting is powerful and so rich for everyone.

Vlad
Really enjoyed it. Enjoyed watching the facilitation of the work. Felt there was care. Breaks, non-judgemental space. Lot of comfort between participants. Felt very welcomed. Inspired by range of languages, accommodation of participants and so much achieved exploring it.
Structure can be used to apply to socio-economic themes rather than (just) intercultural. I took a lot of new things and new twists on things I know. I appreciate the time spent on one exercise. Tendency in workshops for things to be rushed through.

Vincent
A really good glimpse of the creative process this [last] week. A good overview of the three creative processes – common points and differences. Formally on a stage, then in a tent, then in this room – a lot of questions about the impact of the spaces. The fact of working without any other concern than that of research should be preserved at the time of creation and rehearsals.

Xevi
I think it is clear that we have focused on the word “interculturality”, I am certainly moving in an environment, where this mixture of ways of thinking, of believing, of living, of to love... and I found it very interesting, the fact of emphasizing this fact, and especially of how society often puts obstacles for this interculturality to happen, which should make us grow and enrich – us through what others can give us, it is often seen as an attack on one’s own culture and then it rejects the other.
We started to work together – we made the journey all together to make a whole scenario from scenes we had all created. The journey is well-drawn. 3 workshops – I’m looking for a common point. They all gave us some tools to start to create something.
Costume, space and music: Paris
Personal experiences/props: Bologna
Images, 2 sentences: Dublin
I am ready to make (work).

Edward
Lots of fun. New twists on work I know. Good to be reminded to find other tempos to sharpen presence, trust, acuity of the mind. We don’t warm up enough at my theatre. I like the combination of writing and devising. Part of my practice – working back from devising back to script – would have liked to work further on this. What I really loved in these workshop days was the process in which we took other people’s stories, ideas, initiatives and developed them, making these stories our own. Which I suppose is essentially the job we do as actors and theatre makers; take stories from others and present them, with our own bodies, our own voices, as our own.

Pauline
Thank you all for having me. I came in with a lot of trepidation because my background is singing, choral work, mental health. That we wouldn’t understand each other. Little acting experience. I immediately went – this is my tribe, this is my people. I was made very welcome and it was fun, which I think is crucial in all work.  It was also great not to be typecast. Being a bit feisty for a change. I have learnt that I can spend a bit longer on things with the groups I teach.

Caterina
It was a great honour and pleasure. I was scared of having to communicate in English (a language I don’t speak very well), but I was welcomed warmly and with an affection that I will never forget. In a certain sense, it is as if I had experienced directly on my skin that communication which is made not only of words but of looks, cares, tricks, desire to understand, listening, spaces, gestures, empathy, understanding. During the work, methodologies, exercises and food for thought were proposed on how to make the theatrical work, both training and staging, “for everyone”: how to approach the “other” through a code no longer or not only linguistic.

Kunle
The combination of France, Italy and Ireland. There was a genuine readiness to channel the energy in the room for constructive active participation of all the workshop participants.
Working with people from different backgrounds, who speak different languages was exciting. The dynamics of the intercultural encounter between the participants heightened the fun.

Sandra
Having devised a number of shows, with some failures – I think it’s a dangerous thing. It can be pretentious, and boring, and meaningless. This felt like a concrete foundation to work from. Sharing and using other people’s stories and images. The group all felt together all the time. Excellent warm-ups – always connected the group. We were presented with clear concrete themes, ideas and direction in which to compose and structure an improvisation or devise a short piece, sharing ideas, images, intermixing ideas and languages. Strongly rooted in sharing, everyone included, all had equal roles resulting in the essence/ethos of theatre itself.

Saboor
First of all I would like to thank the whole team, especially Vincent and Dominique.
But all the others too, because this week rich in work of imagination, and in imaginary journeys, fed me as if I had been hungry for 1 year.
Each person worked well, and each character took me on a journey to see another world other than the real one, the imaginary world, of the lost soul, of magic… it’s that, the magic of the stage. 

Amanda
I hoped to have opportunity to put it all together and find out how to use the tools. And I did. Many of the materials and questions that the facilitators have shared with us have opened doors for us to learn about this very powerful history. At the internship in Bologna we found a profusion of different nationalities in the group of participants who came from several parts of the globe. In Ireland, thanks to the presence in the workshop of even more people of different nationalities (new trainees) the power of the experience was further strengthened.

Alice
I was worried about Political Correctness and I never saw that. I think the exercises helped us avoid this. I really liked the personal story exercise – it immediately provides intimacy.  Another person telling it brings geo-political issues on to the stage. Commonality and dignity in the work. Important to do this work. Looking for the truth.

Hanna
The astuteness of Kunle’s character on the beach photographing the near drowning incident rather than helping out and how no-one on the beach even noticed or reacted to this. He also used the same device but in a different way during the forced deportation improvisation, where he was a protestor filming the state violence. The two improvs sitting next to each other are strongly etched in my mind. Xevi’s giraffe – it was gorgeous. Debbie’s calm stage manager in the tension improv.  Amanda and Tatiana’s molotov cocktails improv. I was there, I felt the whole picture and the tension. My script exercises with Kunle. It was truly a team effort and it was fun. The scenes we created were evocative and stayed with me. The language exercise with Ida and Alice and the heady mix of genuine misunderstandings, laughter and those that were created to shape the scene. Watching a range of improvs in languages I don’t speak and figuring out how much I had understood and when I got it wrong and how spectacularly so sometimes!

Dominique
Great to make work in an atmosphere of trust and non-judgement. I think we worked hard and well.  Difference between 3 companies very interesting. I wish to continue working together if we can. What can we tell and how? Once more, the way that a story or a personal telling can and must be transformed and how it has to be transformed to be performed on the stage. The appropriation of stories is necessary – to be taken and given again.
We have explored a lot. Learned or reviewed many exercises or theatrical games, with confidence and respect for each other and for others which are essential for me to develop creativity and let our imagination work freely.

Michael
Rich in use and exchange of languages. Will continue to consider how our working methodologies will dialogue in the future. Eg. French starting from character and Border Crossings from dramaturgy. The presence of people from the Tallaght community for some or all of the workshop.  It was very gratifying to see how readily the established participants opened up to this new element, and how quickly the community artists were able to become part of our creative process as a result.  The ease of interaction is really important – you can’t just use people as a research tool, you have to work directly with them and offer them ownership of the process in some way.  It’s a very positive side-effect of the week that these participants are so keen for us to return.

Lucy
Many participants who on the first day in Paris seemed slightly overwhelmed to work in English seemed much more confident, after spending a week in Bologna too – English, French and Italian seem quickly fluidly interchanged and we seemed to have really cracked working effortless to ensure everyone understands the process. The room was a joy to be in and felt so rich that we had more than one language. It can be easy to feel we all have to speak the same language and the process really showed how language and culture can really celebrate and explore the world around us. Theatre can make the world accessible, cross barriers, borders, cultures, languages. Abilities and bring people together. Helps us to showcase injustice, provide a platform for voices not often heard.

We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep.
William Shakespeare, The Tempest

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