A retrospective of The Woza Habibi Tour by Lauren Noble
There are very few times in my life that I have proclaimed a sweeping statement as one that is entirely truthful. In fact, many of my students will have heard me in different drama classrooms in Durban and Dubai stating unequivocally that we do not deal in anything remotely resembling a sweeping statement unless such a thing occurs from a character on stage. Why? That's an easy one. Sweeping statements are imbalanced. They are unnuanced. They are emotive. Sweeping statements are therefore most effective when used in dialogue between characters or entities on stage to elicit a sense of conflict, a staple requirement for the creation of theatrical drama according to many performing arts theorists. Of course, such drama is meant to remain on the stage and not become a permanent part of our lived realities. And yet, here I am, a post-tour version of Lauren Noble, about to make a sweeping statement that I believe in wholeheartedly. Are you ready? Alright, here we go...
Antigone Retold - The Woza Habibi Tour would never, ever have happened had it not been for the steadfast power and patronage of our collaborative partners based in and around Durban.
Collab Company relies heavily upon a concept which we have dubbed "cyclical collaborations". This has become our way of reclaiming the view of the collaboration as a negative experience for creatives. At our core we are a company which is managed for creatives by creatives, and part of our mission is to consciously subvert those types of collaborations which which tend to inadvertently (without us even realising it at times) leave the artist or performing arts practitioner in a situation where they have engaged in a significant use of their skill set in return for much less than the original agreed-upon compensation. To overthrow this exploitative energy, we proudly enter into agreements with our collaborative partners and patrons with future returns in mind. This permits us to strategically confirm partnerships and patronage for more than just the collaboration up next within the company. We believe that if an individual or entity was enough to engage us on one project, they remain so for the next project too. Thus, the right of first refusal becomes a functional way of working with our evolving ensemble, both locally and internationally, and ensures that the exploitative cycle is broken in areas which are most negatively impacting creatives and their associated brands around the world. And that's where Project Performer comes in...
Project Performer is a mentoring and development platform based around the concept of developing South African talent and giving them a stepping stone to work in the entertainment and performing arts industry, both locally and internationally. There is a competitive element which plays a role in their annual showcase, but the central emphasis is on the personal growth and development of each individual artist on the program. The artists are involved in tuition from industry experts in disciplines such as music, theatre, filming, voice over, and even advertising. The showcase occurs every year and creates an opportunity for detailed feedback from multiple judges and members of a live audience. The program that Shylo Pereira has built from the ground up has raised over a million rands worth of prizes since 2019, including scholarships, bursaries, cash prizes, potential signing to agencies and countless industry opportunities. Up to 40 industry professionals have been involved in the program itself from all around South Africa alongside the UK, USA and now the UAE.
After locking in our performance venue in Durban at the start of this year, I immediately began conceptualising how we might activate a more immersive experience for an audience sitting in a conventional proscenium arch theatre. One of the ways that came to mind also had a lot to do with knowing how much Anisa Bharmal had done for the live music in the original Antigone Retold at Mawaheb and Emirates LitFest. I wanted a way to say a very large thank you to her by unleashing her true talent as musical director with a live choir. And, thus, the collaborative choir was born. Recruited from within Project Performer as well as through the outstanding work of Meg Logan and Shylo Pereira in music and musical theatre at Thomas More College in Kloof, Anisa finally had her choir and I finally had a way to activate my directorial concept of using music in a cinematic capacity to underscore the live action whilst effectively surrounding our audience.
The excitement in me was palpable every evening as I sat in the sound booth alongside our collaborative choir and watched as the audience members around us slowly started realising that the ethereal music filling the auditorium was coming from the back row itself.
I love theatre like that. The kind that makes the audience part of the creation of meaning in a much more tangible way, encouraging active engagement over passive acceptance of theatrical norms (whatever that means!)
Our work with Thomas More College as our music rehearsal venue and Project Performer as our primary pool of talent was everything we could have dreamed... and more! With Shylo as our Durban liaison, we managed to assemble a group of 15 young performers who not only added value with their beautiful singing but became an integral part of our immersive installations in the lobby as well as in interacting with our audiences throughout each show. I can say with absolute certainty that we learned as much from them as they did from us. A confirmation - once again - that our Collab Company methodology works, accessing higher levels of educational advancement in the arts by being in close proximity with other creatives and allowing a cross-generational, cross-cultural teaching and learning framework to take root. And, truthfully, all this would be more than enough for all of us who proudly advocate for quality arts education but, of course, Collab Company still had the matter of our role in the cyclical collaboration to realise...
Rewind time to just a few weeks before our run at The Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre, and Collab Company spent an entire day at the Project Performer 2024 Showcase in Ballito. The odds of the house we booked for our international cast being just five minutes down the road from The Pumpkin Theatre at La Montagne is something I still cannot quite believe. This event was part of our cyclical collaboration agreement with Shylo who requested that I sit on the judging panel and provide time for one-on-one interviews with all participants later in the afternoon too. This was just one way that we might add our voices to the phenomenal support structure that Shylo had already spent years curating for her students. It also aligned with our views on giving back to the Durban community and added value to Project Performer's ethos of uplifting South African artists with international engagements. Oh, and did I mention the panel of judges for the event?!
Enter the real triple threat: Delia Sainsbury, founder and managing director of Waterfront Theatre School; Samantha Landers, vocal coach for Project Performer and founder of Luminous; and Sandile Sangweni, owner and lead producer of Ethekweni Talent Agency.
Sitting alongside these three powerhouses for the day was an absolute highlight. Laughing over lunch at the collective plight of performers and producers around the world was a moment I will never forget. How wonderful it was to share the struggle with those sneaky feelings of isolation and anxiety as a South African making theatre in the UAE, realising that I was not alone in that rollercoaster of emotion. This is one reason that collaborations are so significant - they unburden us of the notion that we are companionless on our journeys. That sense of community was reiterated a thousand-fold at the showcase that day. Not only amongst the judges who had such unique insights into aspects of the industry that I found myself taking notes every time someone started speaking, but amongst the cohort of participants being put through their performing arts paces on stage for us to judge. The immense level of talent aside, it was the support amongst the ensemble that most lit up the room. I was so inspired that I ended up writing a mini-thesis of a speech to read out as part of my judging later in the afternoon and luckily Lee Logan of Duckhouse Productions caught most of it on film. The words simply poured out of me; such is the power of a space which has been curated from the very top down to be one of camaraderie and compassion. And, Shylo, you did that! We were just fortunate enough to be there for yet another successful moment on the wild ride that has been your trailblazing work with Project Performer.
For all those South African based artists who wish to participate as a member of Project Performer 2025, applications and auditions are officially open. The returns on an investment like this one cannot be overstated. I stole a quick moment this week to ask Shylo Pereira a very important question: if you could tell folks something about Project Performer 2025, what would you want them to know? Her response had me doing the very South African call-and-response all alone in my office, so I thought I should share it with you all too. "Project Performer is not just about honing in on the talent, it's about empowering artists to become their own advocates and innovators. We're creating a transformative space where education meets experience, equipping performers with the tools to not only shine on stage, but to actually thrive in their careers, defining success in the arts. But the next version of Project Performer is focusing on a ground-breaking initiative that unites local talent with global opportunities by aligning with international affiliates.
We're not just enhancing artist development. We're opening the doors to diverse markets, mentorship from industry leaders and collaborative projects that transcend the borders. This is their chance to elevate their craft and also connect to the worldwide community of artists and industry experts.
As you know, the performing arts knows no boundaries. And that is what we're striving for in 2025!"
If 2024 was anything to go by, Project Performer is about to enter another phase that my gaming self would call the level up. And I am so thankful that Collab Company gets a front row seat to the action of everything that entails. Long may Project Performer, the ensemble ethics and everything Shylo Pereira stands for continue in South Africa and beyond...
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
"This is actually the real value of the performing arts in my opinion because yes, of course I can stand up here. I can wax lyrical to all of you about the fact that you are so amazing in terms of the performing arts. How it teaches each of us about event management, aesthetics, technical wizardry, ensemble ethics, conflict resolution, and of course the basics of our craft which - let's be honest - are not basic at all. Acting, dancing, writing, choreo, design, singing, music, stage management, dramaturgy, performance art - the list is literally endless, as is displayed here today.
But the real value in what we do, sometimes, perhaps most times, is the fact that it happens in the places that we least expect it. The quiet glances between two characters that sees more about their strained relationship than pages and pages of dialogue ever could. The assuredness of the bold march across the length of a stage space with no room for apologies, literally showcasing the most acute self-awareness. It's the same self-awareness that life coaches and therapists so often celebrate. The skill it takes to blend your individuality and then merge it into an ensemble, which is what you are today, effortlessly merging the me into the we, and then back again, reminding us how to work together to achieve a chorus of individuals.
This is humanity, guys. You are humanity. You are humanness. It is the very reason that we exist: to connect, to share, to collaborate, to uplift, to serve.
It is also the reason that you are so fortunate to have found Project Performer because Shylo, and everyone who works so hard with her, bring into your space an operating within the knowing how much our industries have, and will continue to, change. And we will proudly, loudly, advocate for the power and potential of the performing arts.
But not as an animate idea. It is what we are advocating for. It is you. It is you that we are advocating for. How you will wield the power for yourself in your own lives, whether you end up on stage in a film, on TV, in a writer's room, or in a very different career. The performing arts and all its lessons are yours. I cannot wait to see what is possible for you when you keep tapping into that potential. And I thank my own lucky stars that I get a seat in the auditorium of Project Performer's life alongside all of yours. So I just want to wish you a very, very well done today and tell you that I have a few very general notes for everyone. They are very quick, I promise, because I know we are running out of time and Shylo is giving me the daggers. I can feel it. Right!
Break down your monologues into beats. Establish things like Stanislavski's objective. What do I want in this moment? Is it physical? Is it emotional? Is it intangible? Or is it actual? What is the obstacle in the way from getting what I want? And what is my tactic to then remove that obstacle? That was one of the main things that I noticed today was just in those quiet moments. There could be so much more happening underneath.
Watch people, guys. People watch. It's such a lovely pastime. The only way you will learn to naturalize your performance, especially your timing, is literally by observing humans and their natural habitat. So watch them!
Humans have the ability to think at lightning speed, but sometimes, in some worlds, for some characters, they are also realizing things as they say them. Please, please, please don't rush through or gloss over this wonderful thinking process. Give us some space as your audience to catch up with your mind.
Don't wear your character like a suit. Embody them. Whether you are singing, dancing, or acting. To do this, we have to go inward before we go outward. I'm interested in the inner workings. How the cogs of your characters' minds are working. I want to see your characters' thinking, not just how perfectly your blocking works out on stage.
Lower resonators for higher pitched voices. Higher resonators for lower pitched voices. Warm up the vocal cords!
Breathe deeply backstage to support your lung capacities, but also to quell your nerves. Do some breathing exercises in the wing.
Leave absolutely nothing on the stage. Come out to perform and give yourself full control, but also validate yourself to just let it all go. Y'all, kick ass up there, but do it on purpose.
We're hearing your pieces for the first time. Is your message or meaning clear, relevant, or worthy of my attention? How? Why?
You are playing a role, even as a singer. Sometimes that role is simply an elevated version of yourself, but still not quite you. Tap into that elevated version, if not a character to completely fit for your song.
And my final comment is (because I had to stop saying all the things) - my final comment is that nothing is impossible in the arts, and please keep dreaming.
For more please check out the official websites for Project Performer. You should also give them a follow on Instagram. Images by the fantastic Rogan Ward of Rogan Ward Photography. Give him a follow on Instagram.
© Lauren Noble for Collab Company | 2024
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