sustained theatre

By Kamini Gupta

The seeds of my career in the theatre were planted way back in my childhood growing up in Mumbai or Bombay as it was called then, though my aspirations were more on-stage than off. Without the option to study Theatre Design in India I found the next best thing and spent five years at Art College embarking on a career as a Commercial Artist before migrating to Britain in 1986.

1993, Britain was in recession, my flat was sinking into negative equity and I had just celebrated my thirtieth birthday. Having spent the last few years in the crazy world of advertising and publishing, I was itching for a change. Then I picked up an issue of Artists Newsletter and saw an advertisement for the new Theatre Design course at Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama. I made the decision to give up my secure job for a student grant, packed my car and headed for the bright lights of London. It was the last time I would ever have a so-called proper job.

The three years as a mature’student at Rose Bruford were some of the most creatively fulfilling of my life so far. The indulgence of weeks spent researching a project, being immersed in learning with hours spent in the library looking for inspiration and dreaming up new and exciting designs for Shakespeare, Brecht, Chekov and the like… it was sheer heaven after the tight deadlines and schedules of the commercial world. In the second year, I got to design one of the annual Degree Shows and had my first Alice-in-Wonderland moment when I walked into the lifesize constructed version of my set design. After months of staring at scaled downed models, trying to imagine the finished version, the experience was awe-inspiring and that magic of seeing a design transformed has never left me.

It was the mid 90’s by then, Asian and Black theatre was gaining strength, it was the eve of Meera Sayal, Nitin Sawhney, Sanjiv Baskar and Co’s rise to fame and Keith Khan was making waves with Moti Roti. I was in my final year when a professional director approached the college offering a work placement for a design student, preferably with an Asian background. Tick box funding was in full swing and this shiny new ‘Asian’ designer stepped into the box. True to my desi roots I negotiated a fee (no work placement thank you!) and my first professional show The Kiss of The Spider Woman directed by Sita Ramamurthy opened at the Leicester Haymarket Studio in 1996. It was followed a few months later by Nagamandala, also directed by Sita Ramamurthy at the Leicester Haymarket Studio.

I graduated in ’97 with a first class Honours Degree, the word got round that an Asian designer was on the scene, and a string of jobs followed with ‘Asian’ themes. I was happy to have work so felt no reason to complain as, after all, most of my classmates couldn’t find paid work. I never doubted that I got the work on the back of a strong portfolio and having the ‘insider’ view added to my appeal, but after a while I came to realise the bittersweet reality of life in the box.

So with my toolkit of skills and experience, in 2003, I decided to take charge, not stagnate creatively whilst waiting for commissions, and started to generate my own work. Using my graphic design skills I got work that paid the bills whilst I began to do installations, explore my talent for writing and get more involved in community arts projects. I enjoy the creative freedom of experimenting with different media and my story A Visit from the Queen was short listed for the Decibel Penguin Prize. In 2008, I made a film with funding from South West Screen. My work has many influences with my theatre experience informing my desire to transform spaces, create experiences, collaborate with other artists and engage directly with my audience.

Now, in 2009, I finally feel I’ve created my own space in which to follow my interests and creative passions, staying clear as much as possible from the politics of funding and living outside of the box surrounded by green fields and open vistas. I guess like a lot of artists I now have what is called a ‘portfolio’ career – in my book, that’s a ‘proper’ job.

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