When being a creative is not a choice - it's a way of life.
A little bit of my performance arts background...
My 1st Decade (0-10): It started by complete chance, around the age of 7. I was due to attend Brownies for the first time, we were waiting in the corridor and across the courtyard in another room, I was memorized by a young girl dancing on her toes. I couldn't even hear the piano through the glass but I could feel such a sense of enjoyment to be able to interpret, with beautiful grace what was being played. I tugged at my mum's coat, pointed and whispered, "I want to do that". "That" is what I did the following week, I was hooked and I consequently ended up attending ballet lessons and performances at the Royal Academy of Dance in Battersea, London. The very first time I stepped onto a theatre's stage happened during this time and the sensation that it brought, stamped an indelible mark that resonated deep inside me and I can honestly say, with such fondness, still feel it to this day.
2nd Decade (11-19): The teenage years, for the most part of this decade I lived on the Isle Wight, these were undoubtedly my years of drama theatre exploration. I kept up ballet but attending a school that had a theatre annexed to it, my next chance discovery was drama. No question this was my favourite and best subject at school. However then, and not much difference now, just as I hear from many a young voice today, if you possessed a bit of an academic brain at school, then theatre wasn't encouraged as a career option. Well in retrospect, I can confidently say, you can take the girl out of theatre but you can't take theatre out of the girl! As a friend once observed, I was a complete 'Arty-farty' person. I'll own that!
3rd Decade (20-29): Back in London by the age of 20 and working my way through promotions in corporate office environments. I was not deterred, being the 'Arty-farty' type, I still managed to continue to keep active part time within the performance arts sector by joining an amateur dramatics group and getting involved across the board with theatre productions, mostly at the the Wimbledon Studio Theatre with acting, directing and set design. Good job too, as met my husband-to-be at that drama group and at time of writing now, we've just celebrated 28 years since our first date!
4th Decade (30-39): I moved from London to Gozo. A big change where my efforts were now mostly dedicated to the visual arts, although performing, for me, took to the back burner, I was instead honing my skills in management, arts and crafts and design with my talented, artistic husband. Not wasted years by any stretch of the imagination but I did miss theatre, yet there wasn't much to get involved in drama-wise on Gozo. I had developed an itch that needed scratching and it was time to make things happen. I wanted to become a full time performance arts practitioner, no teachers around this time to tell me otherwise but I could sense that this wasn't going to be easy to accomplish. Got to love a challenge.
5th Decade (40 -49): Although Malta's sister island of Gozo is small and there's not much actual 'dramatic' theatre, there are two large Opera Theatres where operas and musicals have their own seasons in Gozo and I also discovered that the film industry is actually rather strong in Malta. These presented whole new worlds to me. I partook in my first film project in 2015, my first theatrical musical in 2017, co-wrote a play in 2020, decided to set up a small theatre company in Gozo for drama productions in 2022 and then began coaching in 2023. The rest is now, is very much working progress with all of the above.
6th Decade (50 +): It's fair to say at this stage, I'm all in! Better late than never. I have become a full time professional Performance Arts creative, albeit a path that offers less financial stability but undoubtedly brings far greater fulfilment. There is a lot more creativity to come, I'm sure of that, what is evident is, one cannot ignore the artist within, it is a way of life and it has to manifest. At this present time, I am just thoroughly enjoying every opportunity I get, to do, what I was basically destined to do all along. With a good portion of life's experiences on my side now, as I embark on this decade, I can say with absolute confidence...
.... Never give up on a passion!
Actor, director, and coach dedicated to the arts
