Everything started after the Village Conference on the Threefold Social Order in July, 2017. Russ came to me and told me that he would like to perform a play with only one female part, but he was not sure if it would be possible. He said that he thought it would be the perfect role for me. However, he did not want to tell me the name of the play just then. I said I would think about it as I had never been part of a Newton Dee play before and he said that he would send me the script.  I must admit I only skimmed through the script when I got it, so I was not quite aware of what would come towards me when I agreed to take on the lead role in “Saint Joan” by George Bernard Shaw.

I thought long about if before I said yes to the play, whether it would be a good idea to say yes or not. I do not particularly like to act and I am not the most outgoing person. So, weighing up all the pros (personal growth, self-confidence, group experience, fun, etc.) and cons (huge role, loads of text, no free time for the next 3 months) against each other, something in me said “yes”. I wrote to Russ: “I have read the play. I am very excited and really scared at the same time, but I think I’ll do it.”

When the rehearsals started I was not quite as enthusiastic as I wanted to be, mainly because I needed to get used to the role. For quite a while during the rehearsals I was torn between really wanting to manage the challenge of this role and just dropping out. However, I missed the point where I still had the possibility to drop out and then I just had to get on with it. I watched the 1958 Otto Preminger movie and read my lines and started to learn them by heart, but only on the weekend before the performance was I able to speak the whole play without a script. That was when I realised that my character speaks for an entire hour!

Before the first performance on Friday the 8th of December I was so nervous that I had to throw up. Nevertheless, as soon as I went out on stage it was fine and everything was flowing. The feeling afterwards was great!

The Sunday performance for the village was a bit more relaxed but still exciting and nerve-wracking but I was so happy afterwards that all the effort had been totally worth it.

Even though many people congratulated me afterwards for my great acting skills, I must say I did not actually act that much. It came very naturally to me to do this role and I could not have done it in a different way. 

I can say that I am glad I said yes to the play, regardless of all the lines and stressful moments and that I am proud that I managed!