INTERVIEWS WITH OUR DIRECTORS
We sat down to talk to directors Kate O'Connor, Lily Wolff and Bethany Pitts about their experience of the first edition of 'Italy Uncovered’
Kate O'Connor
What was your experience of italian writing prior to the project and how did this change your perspective (if it did!)?
Barely any! I lived in Italy for a few months many years ago, but didn't get the chance to see much theatre. Part of the reason I was so excited to be involved with this project was the opportunity to get to know some playwrights working currently in Italy.
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What were the joys and the challenges of working with these texts?
I worked on 10mg by Maria Teresa Berardelli, and Lost by Greta Cappelletti. I absolutely loved the way both of these writers are not afraid to move quickly between humour and darkness. These contrasts keep you constantly on your toes and unable to guess what is around the bend. I'd say this was also the major challenge, as the actors had to be very nimble in making these quick changes effective.
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What do you think British audiences made of the pieces you directed?
10mg explores the corporate nature of big pharmaceuticals, and the way our access to health is being privatised. Sadly,this theme is highly relevant to audiences in the UK at the moment. There is also a dry irony running through Maria Teresa's writing which I think resonates with the British sense of humour, and audiences at Theatre503 really enjoyed. Lostis in some ways more specific to Italian culture in its exploration of the conflict between two generations. With this piece it was the anarchic mood, larger-than-life characters and plot twists which really charmed the audience and created a highly energised mood in the theatre that night!
Bethany Pitts
What was your experience of italian writing prior to the project and how did this change your perspective (if it did!)?
I had very little experience of Italian playwriting prior to this, and wasn't really aware of any of the writers, but was surprised and impressed by the variety of form and invention in the plays that were part of the festival. I found them much more ambitious and interesting than a lot of English new writing in many ways, and it made me keen to find out what else is out there.
What were the joys and the challenges of working with these texts?
The biggest challenge were some of the difficulties in translation - where there is not quite the right equivalent in English or something is so quintessentially Italian in the text. And then the trickiness of whether to change those things so that they lose some accuracy in terms of the writer's original intention or to stick with it and the English audience perhaps don't quite get it.
The joys - definitely the formal ambition and variety of the texts.
What do you think British audiences made of the pieces you directed?
The response seemed really positive, and prompted a lot of discussion afterwards. Chiming with my own thoughts, many of the audience were intrigued by such original ideas and execution in these plays and definitely seemed to want to see more. A lot of the humour also seemed to translate well in terms of the British audience response too.
Lily Wolff
What was your experience of italian writing prior to the project and how did this change your perspective (if it did!)?
My experience of Italian writing prior to working on Carlotta Corradi’s brilliant new play NEL BOSCO was pretty dusty. When I think of Italian theatre generally I think of Commedia. Goldoni. Pirandello. That kind of thing. Which is so NOT my theatre world at all. I live very much in the new play world. But I also picture young theatre artists occupying historic performance spaces. The impossible dedication of theatre makers who refuse to be stopped just because the government funding has. And I really only think of that because my path crossed with Camilla Brison's during grad school in London. What I really appreciated about Italy Uncovered as a new play producer and director was being able to get specific with my vision of Italian contemporary writing by meeting the playwrights, hearing their work and getting intimately acquainted as a director with one of the plays and its translation.
What were the joys and the challenges of working with these texts?
I’ve always found the most exciting thing about working on new plays is being in the room with the playwright. Getting to play a small role in their process of making something out of nothing. The joy of Italy Uncovered was not only getting to be in conversation with Carlotta but also to work with Edward in the room as the translator and hearing from these British actors as they rolled the words around in their mouths. The translation aspect is both a joy and challenge. How do you maintain the play’s Italian identity while also ensuring that a British audience connects?
What do you think British audiences made of the pieces you directed?
I think they were quite shocked by the subject matter. The subject matter is shocking. The play is based on the Baby Squillo scandal. It’s shocking, but it’s also natural. And no matter how much it may shock us, it’s a product of our society, our human nature and it’s happening all the time whether we want to believe it or not. What I like to think (and what I believe Carlotta’s play does so successfully) is that the British audience members were also deeply charmed by these characters and no matter how shocking they may find their decisions and their actions, they still connected with them as funny, complex human beings.
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Lost
For Your Own Good
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10mg
In The Woods
Variations on Kraepelin's Model
