From March 20–24, the Devised Theatre class will present the annual Devised Theatre Festival. The festival will debut four new shows created and produced by four companies within the class.
Soleil Haughton, a fourth-year devised theatre student, shares that she has been occupied this past year with creating for the festival, taking on many different roles including directing, choreographing, singing, script writing, concept creating, and many more.
“This has been such a difficult but very rewarding experience for me,” says Haughton. “We have been working on our shows since the summer and it is finally all coming together. It is no easy task to create the concept of your show along with writing and performing in it with your classmates. I absolutely have loved this process, while accepting the many challenging aspects that come along with it.”
Kai Osborne is a fourth-year theatre student and has been filling the role of Production Manager for the festival. He says, “I have been involved with the Devised Theatre Festival since my second year, and I am glad to have been given the opportunity to run the festival this year. Devised theatre is such a unique and creative process, and it has been a joy to witness all of these very different shows grow into full productions.”
Osborne expresses that while each production comes with its own set of obstacles, this year has seen some changes due to the strike.
“We made the decision to postpone the festival to give us all more time as we transitioned into a more student-run festival. Reworking the festival as we move into another space has definitely been a challenge, but we have all taken it in stride,” says Osborne. “We have all been working so hard to ensure we have a successful festival and that all the creators get to debut the amazing shows they have been working on since the fall.”
Haughton reflects this sentiment, explaining that continuing amidst the strike has been difficult. Many rehearsals were rescheduled, which resulted in some recasting due to scheduling conflicts.
Osborne continues: “Our year has been through it all. We started in a pandemic and are ending on a strike. I’m proud of everyone for making it this far and persevering through all the challenges that we have faced. We are a strong group of people, and for many, this festival is just the beginning of a long life and career in or outside of the arts.”
“I would like to mention how grateful I am to have had the opportunity to create and perform a show I am so passionate about. Everyone has dedicated so much time this past year into working on their shows. I want others to know that the devised theatre program has so much to offer and if you are a creative person, I highly recommend this stream. If you love to create, act, direct, choreograph, etc, you will enjoy this program,” adds Haughton.
To learn more about the Devised Theatre Festival and to get tickets, click here.
