Amy has found herself in another receptionist contract when she had vowed never to do it again. She smiles politely, makes the perfect cup of coffee and has a delightful phone manner. Her life is a rut of emails, mundane tasks and ridiculous colleagues.
Until…….
Sam About Town chatted with actor and writer, Katie Lees, to learn more about her Adelaide Fringe production, ‘Temporary’.
SAT: Amy sounds like a character many people could relate to. Could you tell us more about her?
KL: She is kind, honest and driven by her values. One of those people who observes the world around her and tries to make sense of it through stories and humor. She represents the part our society which expects us to fit a certain work pattern, when it really doesn’t suit us at all.
SAT: The ‘birthday cake’ moment sounds pivotal. Without giving too much away, what sparks Amy to begin questioning her life and her surroundings?
KL: When you’ve been following orders from middle management all day, sometimes it just takes one thing to knock you over the edge…
SAT: The show finds humour in the daily grind. Would you describe your show as a comedy or is that too narrow a description?
KL: Temporary initially started as a comedic monologue, but it has grown into so much more so I think comedy is a too narrow description. My director Nisrine Amine pushed me to build the world and the story by building tension and bringing the audience along with Amy on her journey. We have a very similar sense of humour so the comedy came very naturally and during rehearsal we spontaneously discovered things, like clowning sequences and physicalising the characters which not only added to the comedic elements of the show, but made it more relatable to audiences. After all, at work we are often maintaining a smile and getting on with it.
SAT: How did you become inspired to create the character of Amy and this show? Is she modelled on you at all?
KL: The character of Amy is modelled on me. I wrote the initial monologue while I was sitting behind a reception desk trying to financially support my creative life. While the character of Amy isn’t a creative herself, she has to find creative ways not to get stuck. Amy developed into her own person to make the character truly live in the world of the story, however a lot of her thoughts and interactions and certain other characters are definitely based in truth.
SAT: You had a successful debut run at the Sydney Fringe Festival. How did the audiences react?
KL: Audiences responded really positively to the show. As you mentioned earlier, they found it quite relatable with the range of office characters that are found in every workplace and described it as funny, easy to watch and moving. I had people telling me in the bar that it helped them realise that weird workplace dynamics that exist aren’t their fault. Shedding light on how we put too much pressure on each other at work.
SAT: You are well travelled, including touring shows to children in Italy and performing a modern adaptation of Romeo and Juliet in Turkey. What were a couple of the highlights of these unique experiences?
KL: So many! One common theme was seeing how theatre can bring joy to a child in Southern Italy and to a teenager on the outskirts of Ankara. If you put all your energy into the audience, they will give it back to you. I also got a taste of feeling like a celebrity, they often think you are very famous back home 🙂
And of course meeting my team. I met Magda the producer and Lara my techie in Italy and Kay my Stage Manager in Barcelona.
SAT: Could you tell us about your work as a clown and performing to vulnerable children in Europe.
KL: This was an incredibly humbling experience to use my trade to help others. I volunteered with The Flying Seagull Project and did their Miles of Smiles tour. We did clown shows and circus skills workshops in Germany, Hungary and Romania performing everywhere from schools to detention centres to villages. Seeing the children cry with laughter during the shows was so special but seeing their mum or dad grinning and clapping and joining in was something I will never forget. Being in the room together, we weren’t audience and performer or refugee and non-refugee; we were human.
SAT: Have the experiences overseas inspired your recent writing and also influenced your performing style?
KL: My performance style has become a lot more physical, especially with comedy. When you perform to audiences who don’t speak English as their first language you need your body and face to tell the story and connect to them. My experience with The Flying Seagulls influened my attitude towards performing by reminding me how lucky I am to live in a country where, despite minimal arts funding, I am free to pursue this career and make my own work. If they can’t, I will.
SAT: Is this your first Adelaide Fringe?
KL: Yes it is! I am very excited to be here
SAT: What are you hoping your audiences will go away feeling after seeing your show?
KL: I am hoping they will go away feeling less alone in their jobs and maybe have a chuckle next time they see a passive aggressive note in the kitchen. After all, we are all just trying to entertain ourselves through the daily grind!
SAT: Will you be touring ‘Temporary’elsewhere and what do you have planned for the rest of the year?
KL: Temporary tells a very relatable, very human story so I am excited to explore other mediums such as YouTube sketches, web-series on top of further tours. Follow the socials below to stay in the loop!
Temporary is showing
Feb 21-23 at
BASEM3NT Studios at BASEM3NT
Basement Level, 15-17 Featherstone Pl,, off Gawler Pl, Adelaide, SA, 5000
Feb 24-26 at
Loft at A Club Adelaide
109 – 111 Waymouth St, Adelaide, SA, 5000
Tickets can be purchased here:
https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/temporary-af2019
Instagram: @temporarytheplay
