Does age matter? Or are we all, in the end, just having human experiences? In 2016, Canberra Youth Theatre presented The Verbatim Project, a work directed by Kate Cawthorne and performed by cast members aged between 14 and 16 and members of Canberra Dance Theatre's GOLD company of dancers aged 65 and over (it stands for Growing Old Disgracefully).The Verbatim Project combines audio interviews, video footage, live commentary and physical theatre.
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It was chosen by Australian Theatre for Young People 's Cameo production season this year and will be touring to Sydney for performances from July 19 to 22 with only one change in the cast. Before that, it is having a short return season at the Courtyard Studio in the Canberra Theatre Centre.
One of the young performers in the cast is Jasper Kilby, aged 14. He is in his second year with Canberra Youth Theatre and enjoys the creative environment and people it provides.
"We do different scenes that form different topics ... love, war, different topics like that," he says.
"Everyone's in all the scenes."
He says the tempos in each scene build in speed and intensity with the CYT performers - five male, five female - providing the fast movement and the GOLD group - five female, one male - providing somewhat less vigorous support.
Merilyn Jenkins, 70, was one of the founding members of GOLD seven years ago. She worked or many years as a teacher before retraining as a naturopath and homeopath (she retired from that at the end of last year). While this isn't her first tour - a group of the GOLDs went on a self-funded tour to Britain and Vienna - she's excited about this one as they were invited to come by Australian Theatre for Young People and some of their expenses are being covered.
As for The Verbatim Project itself, Jenkins says, "It's a very clever form of theatre".
The work draws on the participants' own stories, experiences and feelings. Cawthorne interviewed each of the 16 performers - eight from CYT, eight from GOLD - to obtain material to use in devising it. Audio and visual recordings were made and excerpts selected to be played during the performance.
"There's a simple set of six chairs," Jenkins says.
The movement - of, around, on and with the chairs - as well as light and sound helps to evoke feelings, she says: "anxieties and fears, grief and loss, falling in and out of love".
People have sometimes found the whole process brings up embedded experiences they would rather forget, she says, but other times it's been a happier experience. Still, working on the creation and rehearsal over many months has brought all the participants - young and old - close as performers.
"It's been a fun journey together."
