A portrait shot of Jack Boal in drag. He has a Kabuki white painted face, wearing a red plastic wig, black tinted sunglasses, and a red dress with a long pearl necklace. The background is a blurred Soho street in London.

Jack Boal

A Bit Of A Roundup:

Artist Diary #3

A white performer sits on a red chair. They wear a white t-shirt, blue, denim dungarees and a short, blonde wig. Their white powdered face, blushed cheeks and red nose resembles that of a clown. The performer holds up a baby’s pair of blue dungarees.

Reflections

So that was The Children are Leaving at A Bit Of A Do!

I was pleased to have a warm and receptive audience with familiar and not familiar faces. I actually find the latter in many ways more reassuring that there is reach beyond one’s immediate network.

Performing for the first time, I am always going to find fault and room for improvement especially as it can feel like working through something rather than really sitting in it. So, there’s a sense of relief after completing this initial stage of the show.

Two performers dressed as Teletubbies stand on stage; one is red, the other purple. Both have powered white faces and blushed cheeks and noses. They are both holding a can of beer and their mouths are wide open, as if shouting and cheering.

What will follow is a research stage, speaking with various researchers with the support of University College London’s Museums & Cultures Programme. Speaking to experts in climate research, child psychology and private law, will be an opportunity to hone in even further into the core of the piece.

A white male performer sits on stage in dark shorts and white t-shirt. His white powdered face, blushed cheeks and red nose resembles that of a clown. On his lap is a blue lunchbox and in his hands is a red button which he is about to press.

After some initial conversations, there is already the feeling for further personal reflections on my desire to have my own children. I expect this will take longer than I initially may have thought. The ambitions of the piece also will require some kind of funding. A constant push and pull for independent artists to secure without burning out whilst also keeping the cogs slowly turning on a project.

In black and white. A white male performer stands in a spotlight in dark shorts and white t-shirt. His white powdered face, blushed cheeks and red nose resembles that of a clown. His hands are splayed and gesturing across him, upwards to the right

I am looking forward to slowing down with this work and taking the time to research and develop.

Jack xx

A Bit Of An Update:

Artist Diary #2

A green wall plastered with various blue, yellow and pink post-it notes. The top text over the image is the title of the project, titled THE CHILDREN ARE LEAVING. The middle text reads ARTIST DIARY #2

Progress & Process

As you might be able to tell, I love a post-it note. A staple of many rehearsal rooms at the start of a creative process, these tiny squares force you to be concise and clear; not to waffle. There is only so much room to waffle on a post-it note and I can be quite the waffler. But, thankfully the post-it notes reduced my waffling to a minimum. It has been an amazing learning opportunity working with Robyn Olivia as her experience in puppetry, theatre making and access consultancy has meant that the work is made with access alongside the content and not an afterthought. Rather, it is embedded into the dramaturgy of the piece so that no one element feels out of place.

We are hoping that by exploring our respective practices that use clowning, verbatim theatre and puppetry we will create a truly unique offering for audiences at A Bit Of A Do Festival in October.

The first day of rehearsals started with some updates:

  • A bit of funding didn’t come through (classic)

  • I am talking to a researcher about the project (exciting!!)

A breakthrough decision was that The Children are Leaving would not be a narrative. We felt there is too much within the topics of parenting and the climate crisis to tell with just one, linear, story.

A landscape of a green field, with a hill with a door. There are trees in the background and the landscape is scattered with flowers. A multicoloured text covers the image that says THE CHILDREN ARE LEAVING.

We then danced a lot. Specifically, we took it in turns to dance to some music, the music would stop, and we wrote for 3 minutes following a prompt. Examples of these were:

  • Describe/create/imagine what this show feels and looks like

  • Write a Child’s manifesto for a guaranteed future

  • Describe/create/imagine the characters in the show

This got our minds going and we honed down all our writing onto post-it notes as scenes, essences, or some kind of staged moment. We then made some initial decisions on the WHY, WHAT, HOW of the piece. I will share 1 of each for you here (you’ll have to see the show in October to get them all):

WHY (being the reasons to make the show): To have a better understanding about why I (Jack) want a child.

WHAT (being what may happen on stage, the content of the show): The Teletubbies watch the end of the world.

HOW (being the devices we will use to explore the WHY & WHAT): Puppetry.

Jack, as himself, with shaved head on the left and smiling and Robyn on the right, are holding up the bunraku puppets directly to the camera who are centred. The background is a green wall with a mix of pink, yellow and blue post-it notes.

This is just a small window into where we are at in the making of The Children are Leaving.

We are coming up to the final few rehearsals before the show and I am surprised by our progress. We have time to refine, rehearse and revisit and have fun whilst doing so.

Jack xx

A Bit Of An Introduction:

Artist Diary #1

Jack Boal as his drag persona Grace Fool. She has a Kabuki white painted face, wearing a short blonde wig, a red plastic round nose and a black hoodie. Text over the image reads The Children Are Leaving

Jack Boal

I am a working-class performer and theatre maker from North London. I make work that is inherently political and entertaining, engaging audiences to create dialogue on the present and future through drag, clowning and interactive performance. I explore the forms of cabaret, live art and theatre to communicate the personal and political in one. Motivated by a curiosity of personalities that stir deep emotional reactions, you will find humour, charm and theatricality throughout my work.

My work and practice have been supported by Raze Collective, Something To Aim For, artsdepot, HighRise Theatre, UK New Artists, The Glory, Camden People’s Theatre and the Horizon Showcase.

The Children are Leaving

The Children are Leaving explores my own desires and fears around starting a family of my own. There is tension as a queer person who wants to go down the ‘traditional’ (biological) route of having a family. One that could harbour judgement and hostility as the continued faux-culture wars rage on. Coupled with the ethics of bringing new life into a planet that is becoming increasingly hostile, there is much to unpack and questions to ask in order to reckon with these growing contradictions. My intention is to engage audiences with these big topics through laughter as well as urgency to imagine a future that is hopeful and full of life.

The show was originally supported by Camden People’s Theatre as part of their annual artist development programme, Starting Blocks. Made as a solo show, I found a restriction in creating dynamic characters and scenes on stage. Now, in this new stage of developing the show, I will be working with Robyn Olivia - a theatre maker and puppeteer who incorporates creative access into puppetry working from the social model of disability. Her work has been supported by leading theatre company Graeae Theatre Company and has toured internationally as a performer.

A portrait shot of Jack Boal in drag. He has a Kabuki white painted face, wearing a red plastic wig, black tinted sunglasses, and a red dress with a long pearl necklace. The bottom left text reads JACK BOAL Lead artist
Robyn Olivia, a white woman with ginger hair, wearing glasses, and a dark blue top. She holds up a pencil in her left hand and smiles.Text reads ROBYN OLIVIA - CO-CREATOR & ACCESS CONSULTANT

We met at Rose Bruford College on the European Theatre Arts degree which we graduated from in 2019. By pure coincidence, we live 2 floors apart in the same block on an estate in Battersea. Small world. We are now making an entertaining, accessible show about parenting and the climate crisis. Even smaller world.

We have already begun rehearsals and can’t wait to share with you our progress and puppets with you in the coming weeks.

Jack xx

Next

Tom Marshman