Mental Health Week - Cliff Tops and Tidal Waves

In light of Mental Health week, I wanted to write something personal about my ongoing battle with anxiety, fear and shame. I hope this piece shines a light on these issues and also helps people realise that anyone can struggle with their mental health.

Cliff Tops and Tidal Waves: A Blog about Anxiety, Fear and a New Show About Shame

Part 1: The Voice

"Is this sentence ok? Yeah no, I mean is the sentence right? Like correct. Like good. Have I got it right or is there something wrong with it?...There’s something wrong with it, isn’t there. I KNEW IT."

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"What if they don’t like my work? What if they think it’s crap? Oh god, maybe it is crap? Why did I ever think I could do this…"

*

You might recognise these thoughts. They are pretty common, I think. Any time anyone puts anything out there, whether it’s on Facebook, twitter, whether it’s an article or essay or a three-hour opera, there’s always the risk that someone will judge you. And the fear is, they’ll find you wanting.  

Personally, this fear is like a plague on my mind. It causes bad thoughts to circle round and round and back, over and over again, triggering such a deep sense of distrust with myself that it can be crippling.

I like to call this voice The “You’re Going To Do Something Wrong” Voice.  It goes something like this:

Ok I need to send an email to X and explain Y. It needs to be right and good and perfect because We All Know What You Did Last Time. Yeah ha. Terrible. So make sure you succeed this time. (minuscule pause) HURRY UP you’re taking too long. Just send it you idiot. What kind of person takes this long to send a message?! Jesus. It’s not normal, yeah? It’s not…oh ok well done you sent it. Phew. Well done.

But after the initial relief of sending the message, there is a short pause. Then a louder voice starts up, it’s the “You’re Going To Be Found Out” voice. This one causes a rise in fear. This one makes you feel scared. Scared like you’re standing on the edge of a cliff and someone’s about to push you over. This voice is a real dick.

It sounds something like:

WAIT HANG ON A MINUTE. No no, go back. Read it again. READ what YOU have DONE?!?! That text was too rude. You were too honest. They’re going to think BAD things about you now. GOD WHAT AN IDIOT. They’re going to take it badly. We were trying to avoid it this time and you’ve DONE IT AGAIN. Quickly! Reply NOW, reply now!!! FOR FUCKS SAKE HANNAH clarify what you really meant you fucking idiot. You always do this.

It’s hard to describe this sheer tidal wave of feeling that engulfs me. I’m being tossed around in the waves and I can’t tell what’s up or down. I’m trying to breath but I keep swallowing water. I can’t believe I’ve fucked up this badly and I’m pretty convinced that death itself is imminent.

Part 2: Shame

It took me a while to realise that underneath all this was shame. As Ken Benau explains: ‘shame is about the self and about the other. It’s about how you view the self in relation to the other. And how you think the other views you.’

I view myself as less than worthy. My fear is that I’ll be seen and found out and people will know I’m not good enough. When I’m found wanting by ‘the other’, I’ll be laughed at, talked about, dismissed and cast out. It feels like I might even die.

All the anxiety and turmoil is in place to help me sidestep that situation. Every decision I make is about avoiding the cliff and tidal wave.  But of course, it only makes it worse. In fact, I would argue that the cliff and tidal wave are shame itself. The fear of the unknown brings about the possibility of shame, which brings it on before there’s any real reason to feel it.

So maybe it’s less about actually avoiding the situation and more about finding balance on the cliff top. That way even if you’re pushed, you won’t fall. And maybe it’s about finding a life raft that will help you breathe just long enough to realise that you’re in a paddling pool, not the sea.

Part 3: A New Show

All of this lies at the core of my new autobiographical show about shame. It’s very new at the moment, but we like to call it The Precipice (for now). It’s part autobiography, part movement, part I’m-not-quite-sure-yet. It tries to unpick shame and my hope is that it might help you. I admit that I don’t know any solutions yet, sorry! But I’ve decided that, that’s ok. That does not make me wanting, it doesn’t make me anything. It’s just a fact.

During mental health week, particularly during COVID19 lockdown when many people will be suffering greatly, I want people to know that they’re not alone. You might feel like you’re on the edge of the cliff or like you’re in your own tidal wave.  That’s ok. There is hope. I know it will pass. In fact, what you need might be right there inside you already, if only you could believe it. Go now, try and find it. It’s an old friend waiting just out of sight.

I’m right behind you, searching for mine too.

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The Making of So It Goes: Part 1

SET DESIGN

As ‘So It Goes’ is now available online until 29^th May,  we thought we’d take a trip down memory lane and show you a little of what went on behind the scenes.

First stop: Set design! We chatted to design extraordinaire Emma Tompkins and found out how she created that stunning and iconic final scene, based on Holkham Bay.

Holkham Bay, 2014

“The thing that struck me most about the beach was the horizontal lines that seemed to extend forever at Holkham. A flatness that just wandered into the horizon. We also kept noticing the thin wide shallow pools of water that caused the sand to wriggle into these beautiful patterns.

The biggest challenge was taking the width of such a wide open beautiful place and translating it into a moment that could be made on a stage by Hannah and David in a way that kept the magic but didn't cause the action to lag (something Lecoq training seems to help with in transitions).

Emma's digital mock up of the Holkham Bay design

I knew the set needed to fit in any sized venue, work with festival storage, and be made with the kind of materials you can afford on a fringe budget. The beach scene is also the pinnacle of the story, one that shows a release of feeling. And the first time colour is released into Hannah's world to coincide.

The final beach design in action. Photo by Richard Davenport

I found most of our solutions in the usual place designers on the fringe end up, IKEA, B&Q and my local hardware shop. Garden bamboo poles and canvas held together with the classic combination of gaffa tape and cable ties became the back fan, combined with garden parasole bases and cheap wardrobe railings to keep everything upright, in addition to the trademark cardboard.


The whole thing was made in my front room and painted in the garden. I think the stones still have the paint marks! The design was complete with bags of Tesco value flour rapped with black gaffa to act as stage weights to keep the back piece from falling forward! Were nothing if not resourceful!"

An early mock up of the beach design

Well I think we can all agree that Emma did a fantastic job and that beach was an exceptional finish to the show. 

Watch the set in action (until 29th May)

See more of Emma’s design work here. 

It's coming home

We're thrilled to be bringing So It Goes back to London for performances at the Southbank Centre on March 4 & 5.  We're performing over a weekend of work exploring how we live with death, as part of Southbank Centre's Belief & Beyond Belief season.

After our international adventures, we're delighted to be bringing So It Goes back to home soil. Tickets are available here.

So It Goes in Shanghai

As soon as we got back from Georgia, we took So It Goes to China, to perform at Shanghai Contemporary Theatre Festival.  It was a brilliant trip, where we played to big, friendly audiences as part of an incredibly exciting programme of innovative, international work.

We spoke to audiences as part of a post-show Q&A and also took part in a panel discussion about physical comedy, where we had the chance to talk about the Jacques Lecoq School to a Chinese audience who, for the most part, weren't aware of his work and his legacy.

Massive thanks to everyone in Shanghai and to the British Council!

So It Goes in Georgia

We spent three weeks in Batumi, Georgia recreating So It Goes in a new Georgian-language production, with two Georgian actors.

The show opened to a full house and received a standing ovation.  It will continue to run for a further fifteen performances, as part of Batumi Drama Theatre's repertoire of work. 

A huge thank you to Batumi Drama Theatre, British Council and to the region of Adjara's Ministry For Culture, who made the project possible.

Four stars in The Times for Tell Me Anything

Here's today's four star review for Tell Me Anything from Donald Hutera at The Times.  Book now for performances at Shoreditch Town Hall, London from 20th September to 1 October, or Margate Theatre Royal on 17th September.

Even more tweets...

Final round up of our Edinburgh Fringe Twitter love... Don't forget, the show comes to Shoreditch Town Hall, London from Sept 20th to 1st Oct after a performance in Margate on 17th Sept!

Quietly riveted by David Ralfe's self-performed solo show Tell Me Anything @Summerhallery about the psycho-emo cost of caring...

— Donald Hutera (@DonaldHutera) August 27, 2016

#edfringe is a great platform for creative dialogue about mental health and illness. @ontheruntheatre's Tell Me Anything is a great example

— Abby King (@abbyrking) August 28, 2016

So glad my final #edfringe show of 2016 was a return visit to @ontheruntheatre's Tell Me Anything. Shocking, arresting, and truly special.

— Laura Jayne Bateman (@MissLJBateman) August 27, 2016

#TellMeAnything by @ontheruntheatre is uncomfortably brilliant. Go: it'll make you ask questions about yourself that you need to ask.

— Pint-Sized (@Pint_Sized_) August 24, 2016

Young man with dolphin. Insightful and moving performance. @ontheruntheatre #edfringe2016 @Summerhallery https://t.co/9yoPmUoJHC

— Therese LawlorWright (@Therese_LW) August 24, 2016

Also found 'tell me anything' by @ontheruntheatre refreshing- a modern male look at masculinity and young love

— Ruby Glaskin (@RubyGlaskin) August 23, 2016

'Tell Me Anything' by @ontheruntheatre was not only beautifully written and performed, but also hit uncomfortably close to home.

— Deng MaoHui (@dengmaohui) August 22, 2016