Natasha Cottriall

What are the themes of your play? 

The play explores the idea of home, what that means to different people and how a space that can be safe for one person, can be suffocating for another.  The themes that come from exploring that element of safety are mental health and family relationships, in this case between a mother and daughter.

Why did you write it and why now? 

The play was inspired by a family member’s experience with agoraphobia and conversations with friends who developed real anxieties over leaving the house post pandemic. Over the years I have learned that leaving the house is essential to my wellbeing so I was really interested in what that must be like and where the fear might stem from, how it affects daily life and those around you, especially if you are a mother and whether those fears get past on or does it create the opposite effect. This led me to consider how as the child you deal with that obligation to take on a caring role that may stunt your own life.

My writing practice is concerned with diving deeper into and exploring family relationships as a means to process my lived experience.  My work looks to hone in on that complex marriage within families between duty and honouring yourself. I also wanted to explore my experience of growing up in a small town with no Black influences and a desire to break free and surround myself with diversity and culture. But I also have a real tie to the town and want to highlight places that I feel get forgotten about by the government and establishment. It feels really complex to me to grow up somewhere where I still have family and memories but where there are still a lot of bigoted views amongst some people.  I feel I have to question it through my scripts in order to unpick it.

Which playwrights are you influenced by and why?

I am a massive fan of Beth Steel’s work, especially TIL THE STARS COME DOWN. Her writing is deep, rich, multi-layered and brimming with complex characters that always take the audience on a whirlwind of a journey. I always have this particular play in the back of my mind when I’m writing my own work. For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy by Ryan Calais Cameron is a piece of work that had an enormous impact on me. It’s an outstanding play. I was particularly impressed by the way he plays with form and inspired by his ability to delicately balance emotion, education and humour. I was utterly stunned! I’m a huge fan of Jasmine Lee-Jones. I loved Seven Methods Of Killing Kylie Jenner – it’s dynamic, bold and provocative – all qualities I aspire to weave into my own work. I’m also fascinated by Lucy Kirkwood’s writing and was lucky enough to be part of The Welkin at The National Theatre a few years ago. I’m inspired by the way she is able to build a vivid world and imbue her characters with such idiosyncrasy and detail that they all feel so alive and individual, even when they aren’t speaking. I was also deeply affected by the piece she wrote in response to sexual violence against women. It had a raw power that reminded me of how truly potent an art form theatre can be.

What do you hope to achieve as a playwright?

To share work that feels fizzy, vibrant and bold! To provoke thought and examine difficult questions without alienating the audience. I want to try to understand both the good and the bad in humanity, especially those whose views feel worlds apart from my own. I want to comb through the grey areas – that murky bit in between. I find there’s a power in confronting oppression, examining fear and questioning the driving forces that push us on to survive when the odds are stacked against us.

 

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