10.07

Do What You Love Interview – Neil Bettles

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Skilled, knowledgeable and incredibly talented, Neil Bettles is co-founder and Artistic Director of award-winning theatre company ThickSkin. Renowned for producing heart-stopping visual performances, ThickSkin combines bold Frantic Assembly inspired movement work with sharp, edgy theatre. Since the company launched in 2010, it’s earned a reputation for unearthing and developing new talent and engaging established artists in creating innovative work that inspires and challenges audiences. Do What You Love caught up with Neil to talk scripts, stories and success…

Neil Bettles headshotNeil Bettles 

1. How are you doing what you love? 

I am a freelance director and choreographer and I run my own theatre company too. I love the variety of projects that I get to work on, from small touring shows to large-scale musicals. The best things about my job are the incredibly talented and creative people I get to spend my days with and all the cool places my work takes me to.

2. Tell us a bit about your background; when did you know you wanted to get into theatre?

When I was 16 I started doing drama at school and I had an inspirational teacher called Sally Harris – I owe everything to her really. She would take us to see theatre that wasn’t run of the mill. She was passionate about us experiencing challenging theatre made by ground-breaking companies. It was during a school trip to see the early shows of Frantic Assembly that I realized that this was what I wanted to do with my life. It was totally jaw-dropping watching work that mixed text, movement, music and design in such an amazing way. Afterwards we were lucky enough to have the company visit our school and deliver a workshop on how they make their style of theatre and I loved every minute.

3. How did it happen for you? What’s your story?

First I had to convince my parents that doing three creative subjects for my A-levels was the right thing to do! Following my dream paid off and I went to Middlesex University to continue my studies in performing arts. The theatre world is notoriously hard to get into and after getting my degree there were times when I wanted to pack it all in and get a ‘proper’ job (though I had no idea what that would be!). I’m so glad I persevered. I did some small performing jobs at the Edinburgh Fringe and I toured a bit but my break came when I got a job as Assistant Director on Frantic Assembly’s show Dirty Wonderland in 2004. It was fantastic getting a job with the company that inspired me so much when I was 16. I’m now an associate of the company and I’ve worked with them ever since. In 2010, after years of learning and observing, I found the courage to branch out and form my own company, ThickSkin, with a producer friend, Laura Mallows. We’ve just finished touring our third show Chalk Farm and have been all over the UK and to Brazil and New York with our work.

Chalk Farm - Julia Taudevin and Thomas Dennis. Photo by Tommy Ga-ken Wan 2Chalk Farm starring Julia Taudevin and Thomas Dennis. Credit Tommy Ga Ken Wan 

4. What does the role of Artistic Director involve?

I basically drive the artistic ambitions of the company. I decide what projects we will be working on and make them happen. We have to have a plan that stretches at least five years ahead so we are constantly thinking about future projects whilst working on the current show. I’m also responsible for bringing a creative team together to make each production and help us realise our vision. I direct the show and we collaborate with lighting, sound and video designers on each production.

5. It must be incredibly demanding role, mentally, physically and emotionally – what does a typical day look like for you?

I don’t really have a typical day! When one project ends another usually starts, or they overlap for a short time, which can be quite stressful. Each project will rehearse and play somewhere different so I’m constantly moving around and seeing new places. If I’m rehearsing I’m usually in the gym before we start at 10am. My days can be physically demanding if I’m working on the choreography for a show. There is pressure when you’re constantly creating new and exciting material and there is always limited time to achieve what you set out to make – that’s what makes the role so exciting. When a show goes into tech, where all the technical elements come together, that’s when it gets really tough. We have a gruelling schedule and often work from 10am to 10pm for two weeks before the show opens to the public. It’s a challenging part of the process but I get a strange thrill from knowing that we’ve reached the final hurdle.

6. What have been the highlights of your career so far? What three things have brought you most joy and satisfaction?

It’s hard to name just three – there have been so many! I was really proud of how successful my company was when it launched. Our first two shows at the Edinburgh Fringe won three awards between them, with a Nomination for Best Actor to our leading man in our second play The Static. I’m also proud of our third play Chalk Farm, which has just finished at 59E59 Theatre Off Broadway. It was amazing to fly to New York and see our show playing there. One of my biggest highlights was being Associate Choreographer on The Light Princess at the National Theatre. I’ve wanted to do something at the National ever since I moved to London but thought it was out of my reach. When I landed the job it was a dream come true and a very exciting time in my life.

The Static - Photo by Tommy Ga Ken Wan 2“A dazzling display of current small-scale theatre technique, delivered with outstanding wit and flair”                                  – The Scotsman on The Static. Credit Tommy Ga Ken Wan

7. What are you working on at the moment? What’s the story behind it?

Things are a bit quiet at ThickSkin at the moment as I’m working as Movement Director on a co-production between the National Theatre of Scotland, The National Theatre London and Edinburgh International Festival. Rona Munro has written a trilogy of plays about the James Kings of Scotland – The Key Will Keep The Lock (James I)Day Of The Innocents (James II) and The True Mirror (James III). I’m in rehearsal for them at the moment and it’s all coming together beautifully. It’s the biggest project I’ve ever been involved in so it’s both thrilling – and daunting! – in equal measure. I’m choreographing everything from epic battles to medieval football. The three plays open in August at the Edinburgh International Festival before transferring to the Olivier stage at the National Theatre in September. They’re not to be missed!

8. You like to push the boundaries; can you give us an example?

I like to make work that that messes with conventional forms of theatre and storytelling and which draws on many different styles. The joy in this kind of work is trying to make something that no one has ever seen before. One ThickSkin project called White Noise asked the question: ‘how can two audiences in theatres 300 miles apart experience the same live show, at the same time?’. We had two teams of young performers in two separate locations in the UK – Corby in Northamptonshire and Greenock in Scotland. We made a show that happened at exactly the same time both places and linked the theatres via giant video screens. The actors had to communicate live to each other – like a giant Skype performance. It was a huge challenge and a massive achievement for us.

Making White noise - Photo by Jonnie RiordanNeil directing White Noise. Credit Jonnie Riordan

9. What part does choreography play in telling the story and moving on the plot? Why is it so important?

Words are great and they are the driving force behind any good play but movement can tell a story more acutely and in far greater depth. I use movement to reveal subtext and show how characters are feeling or what they are thinking without saying anything. Choreography can be big and bold or really subtle through body language and the smallest of gestures. Knowing when and where to use movement in theatre is key. When it doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb and an audience goes with it and learns something new from it, you know you’ve got it right! It’s one of the most satisfying parts of my work.

10. Do you always work from a script? How does a production evolve – what’s the process?

The script is always the starting point. Whether it’s a pre-existing play of it’s being devised and written by the company, it’s the foundation of a good show. If the script is rubbish then it doesn’t matter what else you throw at it. In one of our shows no words were spoken at all; the story was told through movement alone. We started by developing the story and writing it down like a script or a storyboard for a film. Although the characters didn’t speak they needed to be fully formed people and this helped map out the way the story unfolded.

We commissioned Davey Anderson to write our second play, The Static.  He took an idea we had and developed the script over a year. We had a few development weeks where we got a bunch of actors together to read certain bits and then it went into full rehearsal. Then it’s about realising the vision of the play and testing ideas in the rehearsal room until something sticks. It’s like doing a big jigsaw; you try one piece and if it’s not right you try another, and another, until you find the one that fits. By the end you have a perfect picture.

Making The Static - Photo by Jonnie RiordanNeil in action: making The Static. Credit Jonnie Riordan

11. What’s next for you? And what’s your vision for the future?

I’m developing a new show for ThickSkin called Games, which will hopefully premiere next year and tour the UK.  I’m also writing a full-length play called Rock, which we’ll start to develop at the end of next year. In the future I want to continue to work on projects that excite me and challenge me to learn new things. I’m always striving to be better at what I do so I never stop learning.

12. If you could turn back the clock, what would you do differently – what advice would you give yourself?

It’s a hard question because I have always followed my heart. All I ever wanted is to do what I love: work in theatre, and be good at it. I’d probably tell my teenage self to worry less about what people think of me; to be someone who doesn’t conform or follow the pack; and to never settle for less.

Neil’s snapshot…

Happiest place: anywhere surrounded by my mates or my family.

Favourite way to relax: eating out because I love food, chilling in the park with a good book or listening to music

Last book read: The Fault In Our Stars (sob!)

Most inspiring bit of theatre seen: Du Goudron et des Plumes by Compagnie MPTA/Mathurin Bolze – AMAZING!

Last play watched: Let The Right One In at the Apollo

Describe yourself as a colour: bight blue, with a cheeky hint of purple!

Best ‘ah-ha’ moment: when the name of my company popped into my head. It’s hard naming a company!

Quote you live by: treat others as you wish to be treated yourself.

https://www.thickskintheatre.co.uk

 

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