Make More Noise | Five minutes with the director
19 Jul 2018With rehearsals heating up for Make More Noise, we grabbed five minutes with Young Company Director Lisa Gregan to discuss the influence that theatre can have in the fight for equality.
What can theatre do to affect the fight for equality?
Theatre has a responsibility to represent our citizens and their stories on our stages (and in our communities). We can do this through the actors, directors, writers we work with. Our diversity, as a country, should be reflected in the people we employ and collaborate with. Britain is not just a country of white middle class men and that has to be visible on our stages, in regards to both sexual and racial equality. We can fight for equality by being truly representative.
Why is it important for the cast of this piece to be all-female?
This piece is not only about all the women of the past who have fought for equality, it is about how that impacts us now, as women and girls in 2018. We wanted us to be able to share those experiences with each other and our audience. You can only ever honestly share the stories of how you experience the world. What better way than an all-female cast to truly show our gratitude for all the things we have gained, but also to help us understand (through the personal) WHY things still need to change.
What can we expect to take away from this show?
We hope the feelings will be mixed. We want to people to feel anger about how far we still need to go for true equality, perhaps feeling empowered to be part of the change. However, it is also a celebration of the amazing women of the past (from the Suffragettes to Frida Kahlo and Margaret Sanger), to the women in our lives that we love and admire. It is also hopeful, knowing that the next generation are prepared to keep on fighting for our daughters and their daughters. So in short anger, joy and hope.
Make More Noise comes to Bristol Old Vic from 2 – 4 Aug. Book your tickets here.
