How did the idea for Permission to Speak evolve?

The idea for this project came from theatre maker Tamara Saulwick. She approached me with the idea of making a theatre/music work based on interviews with a diverse range of people, with the premise being that we don’t always have ‘permission’ or freedom to say what we want or need to, especially in our most intimate of relationships.

Permission to Speak fuses pre-recorded documentary fragments, speech, song, intricate choral counterpoint, gesture and devised movement under a powerful central theme of voicing the unvoiced. Built from multiple interviews with participants from all walks of life, backgrounds and ages, Permission to Speak embroiders an intimate portrait of the interior voices of those around us. What do we want say to those who are important to us? Thoughts, diatribes, longings, regrets, desires, advice, frustrations, and wishes find voice in Permission To Speak.

Composer Kate Neal

What have you learnt from working with Tamara Saulwick?

Tamara is a thoughtful and rigorous art-maker, and I would say one thing I’ve learnt or needed to employ is flexibility and fluidity in changing material. Throughout the process – right up until the...