In August 1995 Bobby Colvill, an actor/teacher working with Big Brum, attended the International Drama and Education Association conference in Brisbane as part of the UK Standing Conference of Young People?s Theatre (SCYPT) delegation. So began big Brum?s international work which, over the last six years, has led to alliances with artists and educators in South-East Asia, the Middle East and Europe, says Maria Gee.
T
he 1990s saw the destruction of many long established theatre-in-education companies in the UK; we had been working with young people and communities for almost twenty years ? and managed to survive. At the same time, there was a growing interest from artists overseas, in a theory and practice fast disappearing. Supported by SCYPT, we responded to that interest and, in return, have learnt much from fellow artists around the world in places like Bosnia, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, Jordan, Norway and Vietnam. Every collaboration has the same starting point ? meeting fellow artists face to- face and sharing ideas in practice. And those ideas? Theatre itself ? its centrality in exploring the human condition and the world which shapes and is shaped by human action; image, action and word in combination to disturb the equilibrium, provoke new thought and feeling. Theatre-in- education ? an active, participatory art where audiences are co-creators in a drama around the theatre ? as the white of an egg surrounds its yolk.
This is what binds us to theatre-makers in Vietnam, with whom we?re now planning the fifth leg of a trans-continental exchange working towards a co-production. With part funding and support from the British Council and SCYPT, our members have led workshops with professional actors and drama students in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and, in turn, have learnt much about traditional and contemporary theatre in Vietnam. Not touring in the conventional sense, we packed essential props in our luggage and offered a ?scratch? performance in Ho Chi Minh City! We trust each other, share a strong sense of what we can learn from each other, are determined that we will make theatre together and that our audiences/participants will be the richer for it.
Another collaboration is with Jordan?s Performing Arts Centre which began a year ago last August when company members worked closely with actors there exploring theatre-in-education theory and practice. Next Autumn, Ghandi Saber from Jordan joins us for four months as an actor/teacher. We were also invited to work with actor/teachers in Hungary last Autumn, and in 2004 one of those actors will join us for three months.
Our five-year long collaboration with playwright Edward Bond is also attracting attention internationally. Future collaborations with theatre-makers in Belgium and France are at an embryonic stage, with Edward himself keen to play the role of ?midwife?.
Artist to artist, company to company ? this is how we are developing international work. We would love to tour our work too so that it can be shared with audiences overseas, but presently that isn?t possible. If and when that does happen, it will complement the relationships already established with artists. In the meantime, our youth theatre will carry that banner. This August they performed at the Mostar International Festival for Youth Theatres in a piece called ?Asylum?, written by the late Geoff Gillham. Geoff was the driving force behind SCYPT?s embrace of internationalism until his untimely death in June. It is a fitting memorial to him that a new generation of theatre makers will be able to share their work with an international audience.
Maria Gee is Outreach and Development Worker at Big Brum Theatre in Education Company. t: 0121 382 2087; e: maria@bigbrum.freeserve.co.uk