The two halves of today could not have been more different.
Morning found me in The City. I’ve found a lovely group of people and I am thoroughly enjoying the thing I’m involved in, and learning as I go. There’s so much about The East India Company that I wasn’t aware of, and the dire times in this country, just out of the plague. Elizabeth’s England – mostly we think of it through Shakespeare, but even then we forget the stakes. Her court was a brutal place – you could get killed pretty easily if you weren’t paying attention. Executions were common. Many of the most powerful nobles and her lovers got the chop. She resembled her dad in that way. And yet she was canny enough to rebuild, with careful choice of who she invested in and why. Plague was terrible for us, and we were falling behind on the world stage. The decisions she made indirectly led to the vast and awful empire. Pillaging on a global scale, but generations of economic security for the few who were here and doing well.
A thoughtful day in the sun, largely. The city is quiet on weekends and we were working on site. Occasional shouty window people, but this show is part storytelling part walking tour. It’s a good frame and now I see it from the inside I can see that it fits together nicely.
I love meeting younger actors too, as Lou will attest. I enjoy and remember the possibilities. What will these people make? Where will this strange passion take them. It is always the way that people come in and out of our working life. I’m happy these people have come in, and on and off this might provide joy for the next three years, when I’m not swept up in something out of town. Multiple actors in each role so it is easier to be flexible – the company understand the pressures of being artistic freelance, and the need to be available for that mystery last minute replacement thing that changes everything…
As soon as the clock struck six I got into my car and drove to Scala in Kings Cross, where I put on a rubber inflatable unicorn costume and danced like a maniac for hours. I was absolutely drenched in sweat after about thirty minutes and by the time I got home I had no moisture left. Retro Italian House music. I’ve done it before. They want us back. Thankfully I do it with a friend and we have found a pattern where we don’t get too knackered. But I am pissed off with myself for forgetting a spare t-shirt or two. Next time. I’m absolutely shattered. Running a bath.
AlBarclay 