From the 7th Layer

11 October 2024

At Drink & Draw Berlin, Funkhaus

This was an extended version of the play. The original had been 50 minutes long, and this was 2 hours. Having made the first performance in June, I thought wouldn’t it be amazing to stage it in Berlin since that is where my Mother grew up. I imagined she would like that. It happened I had felt inspired to book myself a week in Berlin at the time of her birthday in October. I decided to look up potential places where I might perform such a show, and Drink & Draw Berlin stood out as the obvious choice. They are a big life drawing group who hold performance events which artists draw, and their venue is on the East side which is where my Mum grew up.

They responded positively when I wrote to them and even invited me to perform on Mum’s birthday – 11 October! I was thrilled. Their events offer 2 hours of drawing so I had work to do extending the play. I quickly thought of including material which pertained to the reason my Mum’s family were in East Berlin, since they were not German. I had recorded scenes in 2019 of this nature, using my Grandfather’s memoirs, for my Roots play. They were incorporated in this play too, as well as a new one my brother kindly recorded for me.

Furthermore I used a few scenes from Growing Roots (2020) which explained my youth a bit more; so there were 3 stories in parallel. My Mother’s, my own, and my Grandfather’s. I wanted to hint at how they intersect and reflect each other, echoing themes across time, without stating that overtly. Again the nature of time and physical form were emphasised. This version grew to a more complete picture, and its length and the fact the artists in Berlin expected more stillness, necessitated longer poses between movement sequences.

It was a very rewarding experience, combining 3 of my plays effectively to create a whole. It’s like moving towards writing the complete biography of my life. I was so happy and moved that my family in Berlin were able to come and watch, as well as a couple of friends I have there.

Promotion

Promo flyer by Helene Celine B