I recently returned from a trip to the United States where I did a lot of things I’ve never done before in the country. I bought something from Goodwill, danced at a community center concert, dived into a lake from a deck, drank beer on a porch while sitting in a rocking chair, visited local fairs, visited a bourbon distillery, and even saw a bear in the wild! And, of course, I conducted and performed in a playback theatre performance on North American soil. It was an intensive two weeks spent doing the playback theatre leadership training, and I am still dealing with jet lag while processing everything that happened.
My objective for this leadership training was to rearrange all my playback theatre knowledge. Like taking all the clothes from the closet , putting them over the bed and get them back in a tidy way. Being there, I reflected on my playback theatre journey and all the steps I’ve taken, both good and bad, while training with eleven other playbackers from sixteen different countries at the Wisdom House retreat center in Litchfield, Connecticut. Each of them had their personal playback path converging there. We shared our different and unique views on the craft while bonding and getting to know each other. We went through the basics and values of playback theatre and the importance of its ritual. However, the main learning was about also about human connection. There is no such thing as perfect playback theatre but earnest connection with each other and with the audience, that’s what makes playback different from the rest of the performing arts. Jonathan Fox said that we are not artists nor therapists, but artistic and therapeutical. And, of course, just humans.
As a playback theatre practitioner, I sense that something has shifted within me. I feel more connected and confident, and I am excited to see where my journey will take me.