Gate Theatre’s Chris Haydon pays tribute to those who have mentored and inspired him throughout his career.
David Lan
David is the Artistic Director of the Young Vic, which for my money is the most exciting theatre in the world. He has been an invaluable mentor to me since I took over at the Gate. Despite having what must be an insanely full schedule he is always on hand to give advice and guidance. When I started the job I said to him that I felt like I was on an incredibly steep learning curve and he replied, simply, that it never gets any less steep. I found that oddly comforting – we are all learning all the time. The journey never ends; we just go on to the next thing.
Mick Gordon
Mick and I worked very closely together for six years running a company called On Theatre. He has been an extraordinarily close mentor and friend to me throughout my career. He is a writer, director and producer and has produced several shows that I have directed in the past. His attentiveness to my ideas and willingness to share his creative process with me gave me an enormous amount of confidence early in my career.
Lucy Ellinson
I have worked with Lucy many times, including in my current show ‘The Christians’. She is one of the best actors I have ever come across – in any context. She brings to her work a rare combination of incredible rigour and skill, personal and political empathy and an utter lack of ego. I have seen her mentor many younger artists, be the healing balm in a fractured company and drive herself harder than anyone else I know. If we were all a bit more like her – in life, not just in work – then the world would be a much more awesome place.
Vicky Featherstone
I have loved the work that Vicky has produced at all of the companies she has run – from Paines Plough, through her time at the National Theatre of Scotland (NTS), to now at the Royal Court. ‘Black Watch’ – which the NTS produced in 2006 – is still the best piece of theatre I have ever seen. It has influenced my thinking about my own work in so many ways. Sometimes, if I am ever feeling down about the work I am making, I rewatch excerpts from it on YouTube in order to remember how extraordinary theatre can be!
The National Student Drama Festival
Not an individual, but an organisation that has inspired me for well over a decade. I started going to the National Student Drama Festival (NSDF) as a student and now work as a selector – visiting student companies around the country to help discover the most exciting work out there. I have made many deep friendships and creative partnerships through the NSDF and I am often more excited by the work I see there than that which I see in a ‘professional’ context. It is one of the most invigorating weeks of my year.
Chris Haydon is the Artistic Director of the Gate Theatre.
www.gatetheatre.co.uk
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