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Actor Andy Manley has connected with audiences “from 9 to 90”  all over the world.  Renee Liang spoke to him ahead of his arrival on our shores with The Ballad of Pondlife McGurk, a story about staying true to your friends.

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Actor Andy Manley has connected with audiences “from 9 to 90”  all over the world.  Renee Liang spoke to him ahead of his arrival on our shores with The Ballad of Pondlife McGurk, a story about staying true to your friends.

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The Ballad of Pondlife McGurk is a story for all ages – a tale of friendship, betrayal and overcoming adversity. A five-star hit at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2012, it takes as its starting premise an all-too familiar situation: being the new kid at school.

As the solo performer of this piece from Scottish theatre company Catherine Wheels, actor Andy Manley has connected with audiences “from 9 to 90”  all over the world.  I spoke to him ahead of his arrival on our shores.

Why did you start making theatre for children and young people?

I was about to leave drama school and Tony Reekie (now Director of the Imaginate Festival) suggested that there was an opportunity to create high quality theatre for children in Scotland. At college we had enjoyed a project creating a show for children, so a group of us, including Gill Robertson (Artistic Director of Catherine Wheels) and Tony, set up Visible Fictions Theatre Company. Our first show was an adaptation of Anne Fine's Bill's New Frock and the show was very successful performing at what was then called Scottish International Children's Festival (now the Imaginate Festival) and subsequently three tours of the US. I think it gave me an insight into creating my own work and I have carried on creating work for children ever since.

Do you have kids of your own? Were they used as test subjects?

No, I don't have children myself. Gill, who directed the piece, does though. And her eldest was approaching the age of the boys in the story at the time we made the show. I often borrow my friends’ children. Particularly when I'm making a show for very small children. If I am babysitting, I go round a bit earlier and see what they find interesting. I have been known to lie on a kitchen floor with the contents of the cupboards around me.

What is it about children's theatre that excites you?

I love the range of the work. Very different ages require very different types of show. But also you can play about with the form and the venue so much more in children's theatre. I have done a storytelling show where I burst into a classroom unannounced, I have performed a near silent show for very small children just with a cardboard box and a watermelon. Later this year I am creating an installation with Shona Reppe called HUFF, which is based on The Three Little Pigs and there will be no performers at all. I love that variety.
Also the contact with the audience that you have in adult theatre is often much less than that in children's theatre. I love that contact - the live-ness of the experience.

How did you conceive the story of Pondlife McGurk?
 
I was working one day and the name Pondlife McGurk popped into my head. I thought it might be interesting to tell a story of someone who took the blame for something they didn’t do and how this might affect them - and I created a little poem:

Pondlife McGurk was a troublesome child
Some called him stupid
Some called him wild
But all called him Pondlife
For that was his name

That’s all it was to start with. I didn’t think about it much, and didn't do anything with it for ages. Then Paul Fitzpatrick the Producer at Catherine Wheels suggested there might be an opportunity to make a storytelling show. I spoke to Rob Evans (Writer) and Gill Robertson (Director) and they liked it so we used that as a starting point for the story. The three of us then plotted out the story in the room. We improvised and then Rob started to write the show.

How much did you draw on your own childhood experience to make this piece?

With Pondlife we chatted quite a lot about our own childhood in rehearsals. I even looked at my old primary school website and found old pictures of my class - it was fun as I'd never done that before and it was weird to see pictures of me and my classmates. It brought back a lot of memories and feelings from school. Some of the characters in the show have names of people from our schools. For instance there was a teacher at my school called Mrs Nangle though she was nothing like the character in the story. Also the character of Martin was partly inspired by a boy who came to my school in second year. I went to school in Birmingham, he came from Scotland and arrived halfway through our time there so it was fun to turn that around in Pondlife: Martin comes from Birmingham to Scotland.

How do you, writer Rob Evans and director Gill Robertson work together? Are your roles well defined or fluid?

We have worked together quite a few times on several different types of projects so we have a good understanding of where the other person is coming from. We do tend to overlap on the roles when making a show as we all perform and direct. Ultimately though you have to realise the role you have been given sufficiently well otherwise the whole thing falls apart. I think on Pondlife this worked particularly well.

What makes a good story for children?

For me personally a story has to be emotionally engaging. That is the number one thing. You have to feel involved in a story otherwise, as an audience, you can think why am I here?  I also think it is vital to make sure the story asks a question of its audience, not simply tries to tell them something. I think it is disingenuous to tell a story which asks a question which you think you know the answer to. For example in Pondlife the events that unfold are very emotional and for the character of Simon deeply upsetting but I don't think it is easy to say that one person is to blame. The show is about standing up for the people who matter to you. It's about being brave and doing the right thing, but how many of us are brave? I think that's why the audience, children and adults alike, like the show. It's complicated - life is complicated.

Can you reveal any tips and tricks that you use to appeal to the emotions of the audience?

I think it is important to always remember the audience for whom you are creating the show. That might sound obvious but it's easy to get caught up in making a piece of theatre and forget that it has to be watched by an audience. Gill at Catherine Wheels always says 'What is the most interesting way to tell the story?' and I think that is a vital thing to have in the room when you are making a new piece of work. There are lots of ways of telling a story and sometimes you have to refresh the audience with a new way of moving the story on.
 

• The Auckland Arts Festival 2013 is on from 6 to 24 March