It's all about the company...

Oh the joy of the Yew Tree Youth Theatre Christmas shows!  It really is the most wonderful time of the year!  Such happiness and accomplishment and entertainment and in such abundance too!  As I sit here typing in a house that is the quietest and sleepiest it has been able to be in weeks I am aware of how fulfilled the whole event has left me…there really is nothing else quite like it…

One of the main reasons for this is the ethos of being a company that runs through everything we do…that sense of unity we have is priceless and provides the foundations that allow anything to be possible.

Let’s start with the artists…having directors of the calibre of Gemma and Danny directing and creating theatre with the expertise of Oz heading up the technical aspects of the show means from the start the bar is set high.  However at the centre of our creative process is an approach that scaffolds and supports the actors journey to meeting that high standard not demands that they reach it on their own.  Week after week we cajole and encourage and signpost the way to better performances, better understanding and better interpretation.  The results of this were plainly there to see in the performances on Wednesday and Thursday and were an absolute joy!

Then there are our volunteers.  Never in all our years of doing this have we had such a set of committed, dedicated volunteers.  They operated sound, they supported young people, they stepped out of their comfort zones, they helped clear up….the list is endless.  I am so exceptionally grateful for their energy, generosity and loyalty as the shows would not have been as good as they were without them. FACT!  It takes real thought and sensitivity to do what they do as well as they do it and so I salute you YTYT volunteers.

Which brings us to the performers…Oh. My. Word. They were stunning! (Little Flutter in joke there, forgive the self indulgence.)  One of the guiding principles of my work is focusing on the distance actors have travelled.  Some youth theatre members literally accomplished marathons in the 3 month process of preparing their plays for performance.  In post show conversations I have reflected on these achievements with such a sense of awe and pride.  Some actors overcame personal barriers they have been fighting for such a long time, some have had really difficult things going on in other parts of their life…some have grafted so hard in spite of having a myriad of other responsibilities.  All of the actors gave their very best and my word their very best is something extraordinarily powerful!

The company doesn’t stop there though as the other element of the performances were the audience that came to see them.  Audiences made up of family and friends and also now admirers of our work – who don’t have anyone in the cast but want to come purely to be entertained.  Also there, and this is the most wonderful feeling, Yew Tree Youth Theatre graduates…those who have left the day to day activities of the youth theatre to study at university, or to work, or to pursue other ambitions.  Some texted me hours before asking if they could come and help…others turned up unannounced…some booked their place weeks in advance…all demonstrating that they value their place in a company that will always welcome and cherish them!  This audience watched, absorbed, clapped, laughed and cheered.  Many of them were generous enough to follow up with messages of praise and appreciation by text twitter and facebook affirming that our efforts had been more than worth it…One parent baked 160 buns to ensure every member in the cast had one…outstanding! 

So now the week is over and all we have left are the photo’s and the memories and a warm feeling inside our hearts knowing that we were part of something immeasurably special…Good work team!