Who Am I?
Marcus, me, is a Scotland-based theatre creator and performer. Having recently graduated from the overly renowned and prestigious Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Marcus finds themselves thrust out into the world presented, as all contemporary artists should be: naked. Naked and not afraid.
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And yes, you read that right 'themselves', as in queer, non-binary, the thing my dear Mum struggles to understand.
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While at the highly decorated Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, their work has interrogated their intersecting identities, that of disability, loneliness, and queerness, as well as questioning how theatre and performance can be used to communicate and build relationships. You can view these projects here.
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Disability is a core aspect of Marcus' life. They wake up autistic, go to bed autistic, eat autistic and, funnily enough, make theatre autistic(ly). This is explored more on the disability page.
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They have worked with: adults who have additional support needs with the theatre group “Wolds Wonders” in the East Riding of Yorkshire, with students in the Easterhouse area of Glasgow devising and using play as a tool for learning, teaching drama to international students in London through the use of process drama and music. These are just some of their notable achievements, they have also been involved in numerous other projects across Scotland, England and America.
Photo Credit: Noel Bridgeman
Who Am I Really?
I know that some of you have probably already read and seen enough. However, as I have mentioned that a few of my works have been about my identity, I feel like I need to share who Marcus is as a person, not just the artist. If you don't care, no worries. I don't blame you.
So here is my life story...
(well a brief history)
I was born and raised in Osnabrück Germany. My Dad (Ian) was, and still is, a medic in the British Army. Dad now serves as a Major or, as I like to say, 'a Major pain in my ass'. When we were living in Germany I lived in British military barracks. The main one that comes to mind is the Bergen-Hohne camp which was a used as Nazi training camp and is located next to the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen. Growing up in these surroundings, the aftermath of WW2 and the Cold War has deeply impacted me. If you would like to read about the Liberation of Belsen the link is here.
I would describe my view on conflict as a realistic-pacifist. War is destructive, and innocent people are murdered and slaughtered. People fighting in wars are subject to extreme levels of distress. Only a select few 'benefit' in war, at the unethical and immoral cost of people, history, and culture. Yet war happens whether we like it or not, conflict seems to be part of human existence. I am a theatre artist, so I don't know any answers to how to stop conflict, but I do hope that we as a species can find a way of existing alongside each other.
My Mum (Michelle) had worked in the civvy side of the army, she worked in offices in the camps but now works as the manager of a Sue Ryder charity shop in the East Riding of Yorkshire, a charity that offers end-of-life care and online bereavement support, more information can be found on their website. I have volunteered and raised money for Sue Ryder, from helping out at events to running a 10k. Like myself and my dad, mum is also a military kid, we are all military kids in this family.
When we started to settle down in England we found ourselves in the York area, it was here that my mum got me involved in a theatre group. I played Popeye. The show had nothing to do with Popeye but he was mentioned in a song. We properly settled in the small market town Pocklington, located between York and Hull. It was here that my passion for theatre really started to develop, learning Brecht, Berkoff and Artaud, just to name a few.
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While living in Pocklington I got involved with a local community theatre group 'Pocklington Productions', I started by directing and starring in a musical adaptation of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' called 'Dream On', which took place not in a theatre but in the town church. I then went on to write, direct and also perform in several other projects with Pocklington Productions.
I had stayed at my local school, bizarrely to study A-levels. Teachers told me to do an acting BTEC, yet I suppose i stayed out of fear. After persisting with the wrong choice for a year, I decided to audition for 'Performing Arts (Acting)' programme at York College. I distinctly remember auditioning with a monologue from Debbie Isitt's 'The Woman Who Cooked Her Husband'. I auditioned with the character of Hilary, traditionally a woman's role. I didn't care about the gender, I just loved the script too much. Turns out the tutor interviewing me also enjoyed the play and said it would be interesting with gender-blind casting. Who knows maybe in the future I'll have the privilege of directing or starring in 'The Woman Who Cooked Her Husband' (Note to any producers, I will only play Hilary, this is non-negotiable).
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I remember performing in the verbatim play 'The Laramie Project' by Moisés Kaufman, a play that looked into the reaction of the murdering of Matthew Shepherd, who was killed for being gay in 1998. Seeing theatre being used as a platform for socio-political issues, and that people all over the world can learn from these real stories, moved me deeply.
When I was studying my 2 year BTEC I got involved with one of the biggest community theatre Projects York has ever seen. 'The York Minster Mystery Plays' directed by Philip Breen. I played Herod Antipas, a Devil, and a Shepherd. To be part of such a large-scale project was incredible. It was the first ever high-budget show that I had been involved in. This was performed in York Minster which was transformed just for the show. It seems like a lot of my theatre experience has been spent in churches.
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After I completed my BTEC I went to America to work for 'Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Central Ohio', a charity that helps young people from underprivileged backgrounds develop their potential. I was stationed at a summer camp in the Hocking Hills called Camp Oty'Okwa, where I worked in an art room, planned talent shows, and many other recreational activities over the summer.. If you would like to see more of what this charity does you can do so by clicking here.
The next chapter of my life wasn't pleasant. I had been accepted to 'The Arden School of Theatre' a drama school in Manchester. I won't go into detail, however, it wasn't the right time for me and I made some very bad choices, causing my mental health to plummet. After completing my first year I returned home.
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I was still in a state and found myself working at a petrol station doing nightshifts. Not the best job when you need to recover, but it's a small town, with not many jobs. It was here where I started working with 'Wolds Wonders', re-invigorating my passion for theatre and performance.
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Covid happened and theatre for a lot of people took a back seat. I was still working at the petrol station, so it never really felt like I had a lockdown. No banana bread, just work, work and work, alongside monitoring how much bread and toilet paper people were allowed to buy. I became very bored, and I knew that I wanted to return to Higher Education, but I was expecting to wait a year. I looked at the world-famous Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, which I had wanted to apply to back when I was in college, yet one of my tutors said to me that I would never be accepted into a drama school so I shouldn't even think about trying. I will admit that I applied on a whim, not expecting much. I got in.
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The years attending drama school have been chaotic, and I wouldn't recommend starting a full-time degree during a global pandemic. During these 4 years, I started to think about how I work as a theatre-maker, with my disabilities, how I work with others, and the type of work I want to create. Which in short can be distilled into "theatre that is accessible, evocative, and has the ability to connect with people."