In 2009, during the final semester of my undergraduate Theatre degree at Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington, I directed my first play. I ambitiously chose Three More Sleepless Nights by Caryl Churchill, a 40-minute explosive satire of the kind of relationships I had not experienced yet, and which is full of some of Churchill’s most complicated overlapping dialogue. It was a huge learning experience, and it was the first time I realised what it meant to hold space for everyone in a room together. Thirteen years later at the University of the Sunshine Coast I was charged with directing the inaugural production of USC Theatre Company in April 2022. This is a new initiative from the Theatre and Performance programme where our students have an opportunity to stage a dramatic work in a five-week intensive rehearsal process, that is not attached to any coursework or assessment. So, thirteen years later, I once again reached for Churchill’s Three More Sleepless Nights.
Using reflective practice this paper will explore my own theatre making genealogy as I trace the pathway from that first production to the present day. Using my original director’s workbook and annotated script, which I didn’t open until after the 2022 season concluded, I will compare the two processes and dissect my own journey as a director. It is a story of professional and personal growth as I reach through time to hold the hand of my younger self and allow both directors to be present together.