In a current climate where funding for the arts is under question and work as a whole is scarce: particularly for people of my age, I can’t help feeling extremely blessed and privileged to be doing my job.

As I reflect further I begin to realise that one of the keys for me to continue to find work is my ability to adapt.
At the moment I feel like I spend my life running from project to meeting and from meeting to project. Talking, teaching, facilitating, leading, observing and commenting. I go from a workshop with a big group of 9-year old school children, who are attentive and willing, to a small group of 13-year olds who honestly don’t want to be doing drama, but want to be out of the house. I spend one morning with women who have never done drama, some of whom have mental and physical disabilities to an evening with a youth theatre who are energetic and engaged. I morph from enthusiastic drama teacher with high energy and high expectations of those with whom I’m working. To drinking tea, playing scrabble and making collages that we may them write about.

Every session has a plan, an idea, and an objective. But sometimes to follow that plan would be as productive as using a chocolate teapot, often I know that as I’m planning. It’s paramount that I can think on my feet and adapt the session. That I can improvise and be lead by those I’m working with, recognising and meeting their needs on that particular day. This will be much more valuable than me being able to tick off everything that I had planned to do. One of my groups will often start with 45 minutes discussing their week before we even begin to even think about drama, and it’s taken me a while to realise that’s ok. Actually that’s more that ok, that’s needed.

Every group has their own dynamics change from week to week depending on mood, whose in attendance and what the weather is like; They adapt and so must I.