Having spent so much time watching people create theatre I have developed a fascination with what these people are like behind the scenes. To the end of exploring the various mindsets of those involved with the theatre business I have decided to conduct some interviews. These interviews are conducted with the aim of discovering what makes creative people tick and will explore the history of their life and their involvement with the creative world in order to do so. Their value judgements and their opinions on both their own work and that of other people in ‘The Business’ will hopefully give us some inspiration and some precious pearls that we can take with us on our own journey, whatever we are aiming for. These humble additions to the blogosphere will take the form of articles based on the interviews conducted by myself and will not simply be the transcript of the interview, though what use I make of that is yet to be subjected to a decision and may appear at a later date in whatever form I deem accessible. The hope is to garner a podcast system that will allow me to upload the recorded original interviews in some form so people can tune in that way. The questions will be largely standard in nature and there will be very little set pattern along the way, with the only narrative arc being that of a chronological approach from beginning to end. The hope is to find some unique and novel perspectives in an entertaining and organic way, letting the interview go its own way and thus becoming individual, allowing the character of the interviewee to come through. The path the interview takes will only be loosely confined to said arc, though. The time I will have will vary from person to person and will not be inexhaustible so the questions themselves will hopefully turn out answers that prompt further questions until the climax of the interview.
At the end of the interview I will employ what has become a classic in the field of questionnaires since being championed by the unsurpassable James Lipton on his Inside the Actors’ Studio interviews. Originally used by the French talk show host Bernard Pivot (and originally developed by Marcel Proust) on his show Bouillon de Culture it found it’s fame in the world of theatre and film when James Lipton adapted it for himself. It is a series of ten questions that are remarkably adept at delving into and exposing someone’s core values and feelings without seeming as if that's what they are doing. I think it is the most wonderful series of questions I know, with the final one being unquestionably my favourite question to ask someone to find out their deeper motivations and opinions. Analysis of the answers can render great insight into the machinations of people's motivations, although I will not analyse the answers in the articles.
The Lipton-Pivot Questionnaire runs as follows:
- What is your favourite word?
- What is your least favourite word?
- What turns you on?
- What turns you off?
- What is your favourite curse word?
- What sound or noise do you love?
- What sound or noise do you hate?
- What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
- What profession other than your own would you least like to attempt?
- If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say to you when you arrive at the pearly gates?
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James Lipton |
The hope is that these interviews will be conducted fairly regularly but will doubtfully be commonplace, so interviews will not be uploaded as frequently as the reviews that will continue to be posted weekly. The people chosen will often tie into the reviews; for example, if I have seen a great show or a great individual performance I may try and interview the performer in question but by and large the people interviewed will be whoever I can gain access to. Hopefully one will lead to another and they will pick up to some degree and develop into a decent body of work. And be fun along the way, of course.
Read and enjoy!
