Everybody’s Talking About…

In general, I think the arts — whether music, film, TV, theatre, literature or any other form can offer a wonderful escape from the real (currently angry and divided) world. It’s an opportunity to disappear into another place, to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, to be moved, informed, uplifted. And creating that experience for the audience is a skill and in many ways a privilege.

A woman I interviewed for my forthcoming book on training for the performing arts (the mother of a West End performer) said she believed that if you’re fortunate enough to live in a country with good education and choices and your child has the talent, tenacity and opportunity, they should be actively encouraged to follow this path — that they almost have a duty do so because people in other parts of the world who might love to do this, don’t have the choice.

Now, in one of the world’s largest democracies, many young people (particularly from diverse or disadvantaged backgrounds) might now be denied those chances and even the privileged ones might have their options severely limited or dictated to them by an increasingly authoritarian and repressive state. Books deemed to have “DEI” messages are now being banned in school districts across the States. I promise, politics won’t generally feature in these newsletters but I think it’s important to acknowledge what’s going on and to confront it on some level.

This Easter, my younger son, Harry, is performing in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie with his youth theatre group, Theatre Studio, in Cheltenham. It’s the true story of a boy who dreamt of becoming a drag queen despite significant obstacles standing in his way, not least judgement, bigotry and hatred. (Jog on, Elon. Nothing to see here. It’s taking every ounce of restraint I have not to describe him in more colourful language).

Anyway, I first saw this musical in the West End in about 2018 and hadn’t heard any of the songs, nor had anyone recommended it to me and I wasn’t particularly a fan of drag. It was just a case of scrambling to get some tickets — any tickets — on a special offer week for families in the West End, so we just grabbed these tickets.

 And then: oh my goodness how we all loved it! 

It was the most wonderful, moving, uplifting story, with such brilliant songs, full of humour and pathos too. I can’t help thinking this is just the kind of show that would be banned or at best just avoided for being too controversial in the US right now.

Art should be free to challenge us, push boundaries and offer new perspectives (without spreading hatred). The arts can and should be a form of resistance as well as a relief/retreat from the current relentless news cycle.

Fortunately for all the kids involved in this production of Jamie, our community is non-judgmental and supportive.

So, good luck to those boys who are putting themselves in someone else’s six inch heels.

Get out there and do this for those who’d love to perform in a show like this but are prevented from doing so.