There’s so much I want to say about the difficulties of making radical ‘European’ Theatre in the UK (and outside of London) as a early-mid scale director. I’ve just always felt like I can’t say them because I’ll loose work - and thts why the industry’s fucked, but, *some* things:

Make radical work with young people. Get them while their young. The whole “Young people don’t like experimental theatre” is such bullshit I can’t even begin. Young people are much smarter than we give them credit for.

This is exactly the same with working class communities. There’s so much fear around audience development because there is this idea that radical work scares off audiences. It essentially boils down to thinking working class people are stupid and need help to understand the arts.

Making radical work as someone who is working class is fucking difficult. Don’t blme directors for going a bit more trad because, quite often, it’s the only way you feel like you can get work. Making more European style theatre is a privilege that involves...

... someone having organisations and theatres that already believe in them and their work, or being someone who has money that isn’t afraid to take risks. IMO.

Doing all of this “regionally” when there are limtd buildings & companies who can programme is scary. Taking the steps to start is scary. Fighting to do it it is scary. Actually doing it is scary and then when you do, there is no room for you to fail, which means no room to learn

Things I’ve heard that’s built a fear of making work like this: it’s too ambitious, your work’s confusing, it’s too messy, the young people you’re working with won’t get it (when they’ve made it), maybe choose text that’s more universal, we want to make sure audiences like it.

Please DM if you wanna chat more about this, I’m so desperate to find other early/ mid scale creatives who are also struggling with this/ want to make more work like it.