British Asian actress and director and theatre-maker Sudha Bhuchar is an acclaimed actor/playwright/founder of Bhuchar Boulevard. As co-founder of Tamasha, with Kristine Landon-Smith, their landmark work includes A Fine Balance and the award-winning musical Fourteen Songs Two Weddings and a Funeral. As dramaturg, Sudha recently worked with Nyla Levy on Does my Bomb Look Big in This? and Tuyen Do on Summer Rolls. Sudha is the writer of Final Farewell (Tara Arts July 21), a reflective and collaborative piece honouring the losses people have experienced during Covid. In an exclusive interview with Asian Voice, she spoke about the past, present and future of theatre.
Q - What is the current sentiment in the theatre community?
Theatre people have come together in unexpected ways to make work and help others while keeping faith in the future. The realisation that freelancers are the lifeblood of theatre will hopefully lead to lasting change. There is trepidation too as we navigate the landscape after lockdown ends while cases are mounting.
Q - How can the government and art enthusiasts help the sector to nurture theatres further?
Many theatres/companies have been unable to access emergency Government funding. For the road map to the recovery of ‘live’ theatre, there urgently needs to be Government-backed insurance. Shows are having to cancel at short notice with huge losses. Arts enthusiasts can help by seeing work and advocating/campaigning for the importance of theatre.
Q - How can artists of colour get their due and more work in the arts sector without having to worry about institutional racism?
Many public pledges have been made about eradicating institutional racism but for artists of colour, the proof is in the pudding. We can at last place the burden of challenging institutional racism away from our shoulders. As for getting dues and work, I have never had the luxury of relying on institutions.
Q - Do you have any demands or plans that could help freelancers in the community?
As a freelancer, especially as an actor, I often feel a lack of agency, in how I am represented. It is hugely important to me therefore that the work I make employs and supports freelancers and multiplies opportunities. Bhuchar Boulevard pays people appropriately, promptly and adheres to high standards and good working conditions.
Q - How would you describe the evolution of theatre companies from the time you founded one and now? What has changed?
I have observed that more artists are taking charge of curating their own voices, through forming companies or unusual partnerships for work/movements they want to bring to fruition. There are more projects in non-theatre settings and working in co-creation with communities. For example, my Wellcome Collection/Revolution Arts commission, Touchstone Tales.
Q - What do you think is the future of theatres post-Covid?
This is the million-dollar question that needs a crystal ball. Theatres that think outside the box of just programming their seasons, and focus on their civic role too in the communities that they are based in will hopefully thrive. Being relevant to the constituencies on their doorsteps is ever more urgent.
Q - As a woman with a stellar career in the arts, how would you describe your journey as compared to your male counterparts?
My race/ethnicity as a British Asian shaped my journey as much as my gender and while British Asian men have shared many of the same challenges, they have had more privilege by virtue of their maleness. I have had to forge my own path which continues to be a challenging but scenic route.
Q- Tell us about Evening Conversations and Final Farewell
Evening Conversations is an extended monologue inspired by my banter with my millennial sons, an invitation to let me into their lives. Final Farewell is an audio tour of remembrance- the stories of loss during covid, captured through warm and revelatory monologues that give voice to the deceased through the window of the words shared with me by the bereaved.
