We (meaning me and the fine folk of DCRT) are a week and a half into rehearsals for POE and there has been a lot of discussion about the inherent difficulty of creating art. There are infinite obstacles that come between us and the creative impulse.
Top of the list (for me, at least) is distraction. There is no disputing that it is easier to scroll through Pinterest for an hour than to rehearse alone in a room with a script in hand.
Then there is the pull of fame, which is rooted in the idea that, if we create a product that people like, we will become rich (!) and famous (!) and we will automatically be creatively fulfilled. Because we are rich (!) and famous (!). But often our creative impulse is vastly different from what is currently popular.
And then there is the difficulty of creation within the rehearsal room. Every play is built upon unfamiliar circumstances. Every character is confronted with unfamiliar and often uncomfortable situations. Our instinct as human beings is to ease all of that tension, to do everything in our power to make the world easier to navigate. But our challenge as artists is to allow every moment to be difficult.
That takes an enormous amount of concentration.
What I'm finding in rehearsal is a lesson that I thankfully learn over and over again - overcoming the obstacle, however difficult, is ALWAYS better than giving into the obstacle and giving up.
