º£½ÇºÚÁÏ

This year marks a special moment for the Nottingham New Theatre (NNT) society as you celebrate 100 years. What are your reflections on this milestone?

Charlotte: “The gala was a really lovely opportunity to connect with our alumni community. As we span a range of generations, it was interesting hearing about what the experiences were like for those, well, students at the time, but also it makes it more tangible about what our futures can go on to be because we have that unified starting point. Hearing what people have gone on to do, and their experiences at NNT, was really lovely. It was amazing to celebrate the fact that as young adults we get these opportunities to pull together in a way to create the theatre we want to see.”

Abbie: “The overwhelming feeling that I got from the event was this really special collective shared memory. It’s great to hear how this community can generate memories which are remembered so many years down the line, and it makes everyone reflect on their experiences in the theatre. Bringing together past and present voices was lovely. I think that was when this figure of a centenary really hit me, I sat back and thought, wow 100 years is something very special that we are celebrating.”

Why do you feel the Nottingham New Theatre society is important to the student community?

Abbie: “The fact that we are student run creates bonds between the students that is quite unlike other drama environments. Being part of this society, you realise that the work you put in directly impacts your outcome, in a positive and rewarding way. It creates bonds in quite a high-pressure environment, and I think that’s what makes this community quite unique in the connections it produces.”

Charlotte: “A lot of the lessons I’ve learned and how I have developed as a person, I attribute to what I have gained from the community I’ve found here. NNT has a full year’s worth of activities so you always feel connected and that your actions make an impact. You never feel lost in a crowd at NNT because everyone has a part to play and that’s really wonderful.”

Looking back, do you have a favourite performance that is a highlight from this year?

Charlotte: “I had the absolute privilege to direct in my final season at NNT. I directed Machinal by Sophie Treadwell, it was a full circle moment for me because it was the play where I first realised I had an interest in drama beyond an acting level, I was interested in the creative decisions and the understanding of the text. I also wanted to do something that would push the technical ambition of what we could offer. All of the production elements were really polished, the actors were so fantastic, and we pulled it all together in four weeks.”

Abbie: “My favourite performance was my role in Machinal, I played the young woman. It was a challenging role to take on but such a fun experience. It was a privilege to be acting but also accompanied by such complex and ambitious tech elements, like having these big spotlights, in a way that we haven’t had in this space before. I very much enjoyed it, it was very fun. It feels lovely to be able to do acting as well as the committee jobs, it’s such a wonderful creative outlet.” 

Charlotte, what have you enjoyed about your role as President and what skills have you learned that you can take forward?

Charlotte: “Being President has been an absolute joy. I’ve learned so much about myself, but also management in general. The President of NNT sits at the head of a 21-person committee, which is one of the largest in the Students’ Union, because of the volume of work we need to keep this operation running. But they are also your peers in a fundamental way. So I’ve learned about the drivers to keep people motivated, such as joy, passion and respect, and pulling everyone together towards common goals. If they feel they want to pull together, they respect the team and they are respected, they are going to want to try their best to support that. So that was a really lovely through-line this year.

“Beyond interpersonal relations, I’ve sat in an outward facing role and talked to people from across the university organisation. I feel I have an understanding of how organisations work and how change can be created in a way that I didn’t know anything about going into this year. Being able to whittle down the society to what our core tenants are, what we need to support ourselves as a business, and the opportunities we can create, is invaluable.”

And what are you going on to do next after graduation?

Charlotte: “The dream long-term is to figure out how I can take what I’ve been doing in an organisation like NNT and translate that into the wider theatre world. I’d love to work in a theatre or venue, but hopefully in a creative role such as in-house producing. If I think what I would love to be doing in the future, it would be something like artistic director of a theatre and helping creatives make their dreams a reality.”

Abbie, what are you most looking forward to about taking on the role of President and what are your ambitions for the next year?

Abbie: “I’m excited! We’ve got a big intake of new people next year on the committee, so I’m excited to welcome this new group of people and figure out as a committee what our direction will be going forward. I also want to take everything we’ve gained this year with Charlotte and the current committee and build on those opportunities.

“This year I was Studio Coordinator, in charge of the show season, which I think puts you in a good position to observe the fundamental part of what we do as a society. So next year I want to encourage people to put on shows and maximise the number of people that can get involved in shows, for example encouraging technical innovation and creativity within production teams. I’d also really like to continue our connections with the university and particularly Lakeside Arts, who we’ve done two collaborations with this year. It was such a learning experience, for example things like event planning which are outside the range of what we typically do, but people had a very positive experience. I think that collaboration will be helpful in establishing the boundaries of what we could do in current, and professional, theatre.

“I’ve found my place at the university within this society, so it feels very rewarding to be making key decisions on something that I know made such an impact in my life and it feels special to be able to pass that on. To make a tangible impact to people’s university experience is genuinely something I feel privileged to be part of and I’m very excited about.”