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Art reporter steps out of the stalls and into the spotlight
Arts reporter and theatre critic Nick Ahad has watched hundreds of plays. Now the spotlight's on him as he makes his directing debut.
In the name of supplying an insight into the arts world of Yorkshire I get to meet artists, actors, directors, writers – the whole spectrum of the creative world.
Often directors talk about their projects as accidental creatures: "It started as a conversation over a couple of bottles of wine and here we are making it reality". How true I've learned that to be.
I met Robbie Coke-Woods, a Leeds-based producer and artistic director of his own company, Strange Twig, on a lecture series. To sum up what happened: "It started as a conversation over a couple of bottles of wine and here we are making it reality".
Robbie asked if I would be interested in directing a play for his company. The initial reaction was, "come again?"
Had Robbie somehow confused my role at the Yorkshire Post? I was enthusiastic, made positive noises and thought nothing more of it. At the next lecture, he asked again.
I began to wonder if he might be serious. A phone call a few weeks later, an exasperated Robbie asked "are you interested or what?" and I realised this was not some practical joke. Or if it is, he's waiting a very long time for the final reveal.
The play, Demons with Clean Faces, which I am directing, is being performed at Leeds Carriageworks a week today. There. It's in print. If Robbie is about to go all Jeremy Beadle, he's left it too late.
Rewind to the first week in May and I'm sitting behind a desk at a room in Leeds's Carriageworks Theatre, putting a group of actors through their paces in auditions. Do any of them realise that the most nervous person in the room is the one trying to look like he's done this before; namely me?
In amateur productions I've been on the other side of the audition desk dozens of times. Who knew it was as terrifying this side? I had little idea just how hard it was going to be to cast the play, let actors down and then lie awake wondering if the right decisions had been made. Come the beginning of May we had our cast of nine.
We also had our first problem. Our rehearsal space had fallen through. Panicked calls. Rejection. Inspiration.
The Yorkshire Post MD is a fan of the arts – would he allow us to rehearse in a part of the Yorkshire Post office?
Generosity and salvation. The boardroom booked, six weeks of rehearsals began.
The script, by Leeds-based playwright Luke Smith, was a tough one, but I could see potential. It was only at the first read-through that I realised how good it was – and hopefully how good it would be.
In a nutshell, the darkly comic play tells the story of two men who want to be (coincidence) journalists. They start the play as tramps living on the street. A visitor takes them on a flashback and the story unfolds of how they came to be lying in the gutter, rather than working for the fourth estate.
Because it was a large cast, it was difficult getting everyone in the same room at the same time. Today, a week before opening night, it remains equally so. I once interviewed Sam West, former artistic director at Sheffield Theatres when he was simultaneously starring in and directing Shakespeare. "I'm so tired I don't whether it's Tuesday or Belgium," he quipped. How hard can it be? The director doesn't have to remember lines – he just tells people where to stand. I finally understand Sam's pain.
A director is a nanny, agony aunt, fount of all knowledge, music expert, PE teacher, disciplinarian, motivator and approximately 300 other things to his cast. Over the past six weeks I have cajoled, encouraged, demanded. I have left rehearsals inspired, exasperated, delighted and finally, terrified.
I have fallen asleep at night playing scenes in my head and woken up with costume ideas. I have thought of stage directions in the shower and role-playing games in the car. When not dreaming of the play, I dream of a working day that only lasts 12 hours.
It has all been entirely worth it. I finally understand where the term "luvvies" comes from. I love my cast. They have been a dream to work with. The satistfaction of trying to get an actor to reach a certain point, helping them along and then seeing them get there is one of life's great joys and something not too removed from a sensation of falling in love.
The great Kenneth Tynan said: "A critic is a man who knows the way but can't drive the car."
Several months after the start of this journey, I feel like I've had my first driving lesson. Let's just hope come next week I don't crash.
Demons with Clean Faces is at Leeds Carriageworks, Friday, June 13, 7.30pm. Tickets on (0113) 224 3801. There is a free open dress rehearsal at the Yorkshire Post on Wednesday, June 11, 7.30pm. To attend email nick.ahad@ypn.co.uk, robbie@coke-woods.co.uk or call 07726 841898.
A producer's view – Robbie Coke-Woods
As company director it is my job to ensure that the best people are brought into the company and also to ensure that all those who would like the opportunity provided by the company can take advantage of what we offer.
When I met Nick I could see immediately that he had a professional attitude and, as a critic, had a strong grasp of what he enjoyed.
Always looking to help talent to find confidence I decided to offer Nick the chance to try his hand at directing.
Throughout the process I've found that Nick, although at times bogged down by his own preconceptions of the characters, was willing to give the actors a chance to show their own abilities. At the same time I could see that he was learning that doing this led to a much more natural acting style. Instead of being automatons, he learnt to allow a greater personal expression for the actors.
As a result I began to feel more confident in his abilities to the extent I felt I could leave him to run rehearsals on his own with little or no guidance from myself.
I had no compunction in offering Nick the chance to try his hand at directing, and a number of months down the line I have no regrets in doing so.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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