01 May Seamus Finnegan on Mentoring the Playwright
We are delighted to present our opening blog post, written by Seamus Finnegan, playwright, dramatist and lecturer, and more importantly a writing mentor whom I just couldn’t do without… Here, Seamus recounts how our association developed and something about the catalysts for writing my current piece, Learning. I hope you enjoy reading our first post.
A former student from when I taught at JFS contacts me by email……
We arrange to meet for coffee. We talk about her school days at JFS, my four years of teaching there 1974/78, theatre and writing, matters Jewish and Irish, growing up within a strong religious culture, the delights, and challenges of such an experience and how one tries to come to terms with it all.
We get to the conversation we all have with ourselves about how we are made by such influences and what we make of our ourselves. A theme no doubt discussed when teaching/studying the A level text, Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist all those years ago at JFS.
Francesca mentions at our meeting she has been contemplating writing on these themes. I suggest that she writes a series of monologues as a starting point and ask her to send them to me. I read them and find them full of honesty and integrity, an artistic voice struggling to express an important and gut felt response to these perennial and universal themes but all within the cultural and religious context of growing up in a Jewish community in London.
Time passes. The monologues are being woven into a longer more dramatic structure…..a stage play begins to emerge. Then, Covid and lockdown hits. There is a hiatus in contact and progress. But as soon as is possible, a new script arrives, a Zoom rehearsed reading is organised….the project is taking on new life. Some time later a live, semi-staged reading occurs with a small but very talented and committed cast.
My involvement has been merely one of offering the odd comment when asked and allowing the writer to discover what it is they want to say and not to be afraid of trying to compose the truth of the drama, even if it offends some. Trigger warnings are a form of censorship masquerading as concern.
The play, Learning which has become a multilayered piece addressing themes of love, assimilation, integration, rebellion and the search for freedom is addressed within the context of ‘being Jewish and female’, but speaks to all that are human.
I am very excited at the prospect of Learning having a full production. It is an important piece of theatre and especially so at this time.
The Irish and Jews are never ever far away from controversy. This play is in a long tradition of dramatists asking questions and challenging the status quo.
Francesca Rose’s play Learning joins that tradition.
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