Jessica Jeffries on making theatre, juggling two careers and her journey into directing.

Jessica Jeffries on making theatre, juggling two careers and her journey into directing.

She recently directed Fold, Jo Randerson’s professional theatre debut written two decades ago and on at The Basement. Incredibly, this is the first time that Fold has been produced in Auckland. A searing expose of the hypocrisy of ‘polite society’, it’s as angry and poignant now as when it was written.

Renee asks Jessica about her work.

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Why do you make theatre?

I make theatre because it is fun. I am a commercial litigation solicitor during the day so it is great to do something completely different outside of work work. I love ideas, I love playing and I love working with fun creative people to do so. I feel like I am the best version of myself when I am making theatre.

How do you juggle the two careers?

While I am directing, I have to be really organised and try plan things as much as possible.  It is actually when I don't have a direct project in mind that it is harder. When I don't have a project it is easy to stick to my normal routine of working and just being a lawyer and time goes by, until I have a moment where I realise I haven't done any creative stuff in ages and I miss it and that I am boring without it. Then it can be hard to motivate myself to get something going when I work all day. 

Though I also believe the skills I have learnt in both worlds can help each other. For example, the discipline I have from being a lawyer is great for directing and producing. Then being comfortable in front of an audience as an actor, also mean I am comfortable appearing in Court.

Tell me about your journey into directing.

I have a BA with a major in theatre from Otago University. One of my papers was directing. For our final assessment we had to direct a short scene. A playwright saw my scene and asked if I could direct her play. So I did. Then another playwright saw that play and asked if I could direct his. So I did. After that I started reading plays myself to find new projects.

How did you come across Jo Randerson's Fold?

I decided to put on a show with my friend Ben Truman, who plays Pascall in the show. He used to be a drama teacher and his dad owns a book store, so he owns a lot of plays and scripts. We spent a few weekends reading plays and came across Fold. We read it and loved it and decided to produce it. 

Has Jo been involved in this staging?

We have sent a few emails back in forth. From what I can tell she seems pretty happy for people to create their own versions and interpretations of the play. 

It’s been more than two decades since it was written - did the script need updating?

Not at all. That is one reason I loved the play, the ideas are still so relevant today.

Have you ever been to the type of parties portrayed in Fold?

Ha, kind of. I mix with a pretty diverse range of people. So that includes a lot of business minded people who can be pretty unsympathetic to those less fortunate than themselves. 

How did you recruit your fabulous cast, and tell me about their day jobs...

I study acting with Michael Saccente and two of my actors are in my class. Another actor came through Michael's recommendation as a past student of his.

Two of my actors are friends through the legal community. One is a criminal public defence lawyer and the other is an intellectual property lawyer. 

My last two actors are friends from the Otago theatre community. One is now an Anglican Deacon and the other is studying dance at AUT.

What are you hoping audiences will enjoy about the play?  Do you expect them to get sad and angry too?

I want the audience to laugh. There are some really funny lines. In saying that some of the best lines are the ones that are the most shocking. I expect those lines to make people laugh, then probably feel a bit bad for laughing... I don't necessarily want the audience to get sad or angry, but just to think. Ultimately I want people to enjoy the chaos of it all. 

Do you believe in theatre as activism?

Yeah of course. But it doesn't always have to be like that. I don't like the idea that theatre always has to challenge you, whereas it is fine to watch TV just for entertainment. Theatre can just be fun too!

What are you working on next?

I like the idea of making a super short 30 second film. Just straight entertainment then over. I have a few ideas. See what happens!