What a last two weeks I’ve had! Despite having toured last year, this year’s tour has been a totally fresh and new experience. Like reading a book for the second time, I’ve gotten completely different things out of the experience thus far and this change has helped me to realise ways in which I’ve changed, and to reflect on and evaluate these.
For example, this year, like the last, I’ve had enough long- and short-term commitments to keep me busy whenever I’m not directly tied down by rehearsals or performances. However, in contrast to last year, this year I’ve made a conscious effort to make time for socialising and chatting with the rest of the cast. This, I have no doubt, reflects a change in my view of the importance of community brought about by various experiences of the past year. With last year as a reference, I can see that this has allowed me to contribute to a better cast dynamic and thus enrich the experience for everyone. Living and working so closely with people you don’t choose, even just for a few weeks, inevitably develops one’s understanding of and appreciation for community.
This year, I’ve also had the opportunity to share a room, an experience that has been nothing but enjoyable. This is my first time ever living with a room-mate and it has greatly prepared me to share a room in the upcoming academic year. The experience has provided me with a model of an ideal room-mate dynamic and introduced me to some potential points of contention between room-mates in a context so safe that the issues are effortlessly resolved.
Touring for a second time has also allowed me to look more critically at what we do and thus to gain a better understanding of our impact on our audiences. For example, last year, I always enjoyed our post-show discussions because they showed me that members of the audience were engaged by our show and demonstrated what they got out of it. I didn’t think anything more of them. However, this year, I have even more of a sense of ownership of the project as a whole and thus I find myself questioning why we have discussions. By doing so and discussing this with the director and other cast members, not only can I better contribute to this aspect of the project, but I also take more out of it and gain a better understanding of the more complex ways that drama can be used in education, not just in a school setting.
