Artists in Depth

By Alan Powell, Bill Key

A podcast about mental health in the artistic process. Join us and reflect on your journey & artist within.

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FAQs about Artists in Depth:

How many episodes does Artists in Depth have?

The podcast currently has 33 episodes available.

Artists in Depth episodes:

September 23, 2024 S3 EP7 In Discussion with Bella Merlin
Our guest today is Bella Merlin
http://www.bellamerlin.com/
Bella has been working for over twenty-five years in theatre, film, television and radio. She is Professor of Acting and Directing at the University of California, Riverside and is the author of several books on acting. Including
The Complete Stanislavsky Toolkit, Facing the Fear: An Actor's Guide to Overcoming Stage Fright and Shakespeare & Company: When Action is Eloquence... co-authored with Tina Packer.
Bella is known on the international circuit for her workshops on Stanislavsky and his rehearsal process, Active Analysis. She has held posts in the UK at the university of Exeter. And university of Birmingham (where she received her PhD). She has also taught workshops and directed at a number of drama schools and universities both in the UK and USA.
Her stage acting appearances are numerous and include productions with Shakespeare & Co. in Massachusetts and the Royal National Theatre in London. Her one woman show Tilly Nobody explored identity and domestic violence. Her recent touring production, Lucy Gough’s The Wild Tenant, is currently touring the UK and is what we focused on. With the the continuing theme of domestic violence and her personal connection to her Character, I started the conversation by asking how she took care of her wellbeing when doing such an emotionally demanding play. Bella’s honesty is honorable and her insights into the acting process invaluable.
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30min
July 28, 2024 S3 EP6 In Discussion with Dr. Suzie J. Jarmain
Our Guest today is Dr. Suzie J. Jarmain
https://www.linkedin.com/in/suziejjarmain/
Ph.D. (Theatre Performance), MA Applied Theatre Studies, Pg. Dip (Theatre Directing), BCA (Acting).
Dr. Suzie J. Jarmain is an actor, theatre artist, director, educator, coach, mentor and practice-based scholar with over thirty years of expertise. Specialising in psychological
realism-based character transformation, Suzie holds a Bachelor of Creative Arts in acting from the University of Wollongong (AUS), a Postgraduate Diploma in
Performance Creation from Victorian College of the Arts (VIC), and a Master of Applied Theatre Studies from the University of New England (NSW). She completed her Ph.D. at Monash University supported by a scholarship.
Suzie has worked with worldwide companies such as the National Theatre of Scotland, BBC Scotland, Traverse Theatre (UK), The Arches (UK), North Edinburgh Arts Centre, The Performance Space (AUS), Melbourne Theatre Company, La Mama Theatre (AUS), NIDA, Victorian College of the Arts (AUS), and Union House Theatre (AUS), to name a few. She has undergone professional development training with the Michael
Chekhov Association (US), the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (UK), and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (UK). She has previously certified as a
teacher with Stagecoach Theatrearts (UK) funded by a grant from the British Actors’ Equity Association (UK).
In 2016, she was awarded the Phillip Parsons Prize by the Australasian Association for Theatre, Drama, and Performance Studies (ADSA) for her project ‘Faking it For
Real,’ which explored the autobiographical ‘self’ in character creation. Suzie has presented her research at conferences such as AusAct (AUS) and Performance
Studies International (CAD) and contributed to the PAMA Actors Wellbeing webinar series on ‘Interventions in the Acting Process’ (2024).
Her solo works include ‘Elizabeth Taylor is My Mother’ (2016), ‘The Disappearing Trilogy’ (2019), and ‘Celebrity’ (2023). As a published scholar and researcher, Suzie
continues to explore and innovate in transformative acting practices. Her recent article, "Remember My Name: The Critical Role of Selves in Transformative Acting," contributes to the ongoing discourse on sustainable acting methodologies, highlighting broader artistic concerns related to transformative processes and the identity of the
actor.
In 2023, Suzie founded the Michael Chekhov Studios in Melbourne, Australia, focusing on the Michael Chekhov technique, transformative acting processes, and actor
wellbeing. She is a member of the Association of Acting Coaches and Educators (AACE), a community member of the Actors Wellbeing Facilitators Collective, the
Australasian Association for Theatre, Drama, and Performance Studies (ADSA) and Theatre Network Australia (TNA). Suzie also regularly collaborates with the Melbourne Actors Guild, coaching actors and ensembles at various stages of professional development.
Our discussion covered Chekov’s philosophy of higher and lower ego states in the creation of character, performance & identity, how we create characters for ourselves - not just in acting but in life —and mental health challenges that arise during the actors process of character development.
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30min
May 13, 2024 S3 EP5 In Discussion with Dr. Jessica Hartley (Part 2)
Welcome to part 2 of our two part podcast where we continue our discussion with Dr. Jessica Hartley on Neurodivergence in acting training and educating the educators. If you missed part one in episode 4 I strongly suggest you listen to it first before diving into this one.
Just to recap: Jessica is the Course Leader for the MA/MFA in Actor Training and Coaching at the Royal
Central School of Speech and Drama.
Let’s jump right in and pick up where we left off…
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35min
May 13, 2024S3 EP4 In Discussion with Dr. Jessica Hartley (Part 1)
Our Guest today is Dr. Jessica Hartley
PART 1 of 2

https://www.cssd.ac.uk/staff-profiles/jessica-hartley
Rupturing the cycles of Shame in Education, TEDx Royal Central

Jessica was a successful drama teacher and Head of Drama in comprehensive schools across London and the South East of England and has worked as a freelance director and educator specialising in circus training and contemporary performance.
She trained as a director at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London England under the mentorship of Catherine Alexander, and was subsequently short-listed for the Oxford Samuel Beckett Theatre Trust Award on four separate occasions.
Jessica has worked for Portsmouth University, The University of Greenwich, Brunel University, Tara Arts, Surrey County Arts, The Why Not Institute - and ran a few bars in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. In 2013 Jessica found a permanent home at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama working with pedagogy and risk-taking. Currently she is Course Leader for the MA/MFA in Actor Training and Coaching.
She also delivered the Keynote address ‘Vulnerabilityin a Crisis: Pedagogy, critical reflection and positionality in Actor Training‘ at AusAct 2019 at Queensland University of Technology.
Jessica’s areas of expertise are;
Freedom and coercion in Pedagogy

Consent and boundaries in Actor Training

Dignity and compassion in teaching

Risk, vulnerability, and wellbeing

Oracy

Phenomenology

Clown

Failure

Neuroinclusivity
I’m still getting my head around what we talked about, but I can tell you it covered her areas of expertise, and it rocked my world. For Bill and I, it was an inspiring and very engaging conversation – so much so that I couldn’t edit anything out – so this episode is part one of two… and if you have time after the podcast check out her TEDx talk
Catch part two of Dr. Jessica Hartley in Episode 5 of Artists in Depth.
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34min
April 19, 2024 S3 EP3 In Discussion with Lou Platt
Our guest today is Lou Platt
https://www.artistwellbeing.co.uk/

Lou is Founder & Director of the Artist Wellbeing Company in Birmingham, England.
She began supporting the mental health of those working in creative industries in 2012. Her qualifications and experience in Dramatherapy, Clinical supervision, and Internal Family Systems along with a background as an independent theatre maker & performer synthesized to create her role as Artist Wellbeing Practitioner.
As an Artist Wellbeing Practitioner, Lou has worked with notable theatre companies such as the Globe, Royal Court, Bristol and Old Vic to name a few. In TV and film her client list includes Amazon Prime, BBC, HBO and Netflix among others. Lou also works in dance, visual arts, writing and the music industries.
Our discussion began with Lou’s journey as Dramatherapist into the creative industry working
with theatre practitioners and expanding to actors, writers, directors, crew and actually anyone involved in production.
Lou talked about the challenges of being an Artist Wellbeing Practitioner – which is different from being a therapist - though it’s still personal in nature with its
power to reflect and to potentially transform. We talked about the opportunities for change within the industry and the decisions, we as artists, need to make for a healthier working environment when facing into an industry that needs to accept its dysfunction before it can change.
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26min
March 28, 2024 S3 EP2 In Discussion with Jani Lauzon
Our guest today is Jani Lauzon
https://www.janilauzon.com/
Jani is a Canadian multidisciplinary artist of Métis/French/Finnish ancestry. She’s a Writer/Actor/Director/Musician and Puppeteer.
She is a 9 time Dora Mavor Moore nominated actress, a three time Juno nominated singer/songwriter, a
Gemini Award winning puppeteer, an award winning director, and an artist educator. Jani is the recipient of the 2024 Equity Showcase Woman of the Year award!
She has produced her own theatre work such as A Side of Dreams, I Call myself Princess, and Prophecy Fog through her company Paper Canoe Projects.
Our discussion included rejuvenating practices for self-care, Body memory, wisdom of the body and reading your body. We then moved on to Patsy Rodenburg and her decision to resign form Guildhall which led to us chatting about the craft of acting and that led to the craft of well-being in acting. All in all it was a very grounding
and humbling conversation. Hope you enjoy it…
www.papercanoeprojects.com
https://www.janilauzon.com/
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31min
January 22, 2024 S3 EP. 1 In Discussion with Mariel Pastor
Our Guest today is Mariel Pastor
www.character-mapping.com⁠
Mariel made the more-obvious-than-it-seems progression from entertainment industry executive to mental health therapist - a move she’s never regretted. She is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist based in Portland, Oregon, and an international trainer for Internal Family Systems therapy (also known as IFS) - a powerful psycho-spiritual approach developed by Richard Schwartz that brings wholeness and healing to the "multiple characters in our minds”.
Mariel is the principal author of the official training manual for IFS, and comes to us today with a personal endeavor called Character Mapping - her psychological toolbox that helps actors, writers and directors build comprehensive character backstories with tools for using the storytelling craft for artistic self-discovery.
Our conversation started out with how she works with artists as a therapist and then moved into her work in character mapping and vicarious trauma and the importance of having healthy boundaries between actor and character.
Character Mapping is available as online masterclasses, workshops and customized coaching.
Go to www.character-mapping.com to learn more.
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29min
November 13, 2023 S2 EP.12 In Discussion with Sara Lovett
Our guest today is Sara Lovett.
www.saralizlovett.com
Instagram: @saralizlovett
Facebook: Sara Lovett Author

Sara is a writer, performer, expressive art therapist, and somatic movement educator. She holds a BFA in acting from The University of Texas at Austin, and an M.A. in Depth Psychology with a somatic emphasis from Pacifica Graduate Institute where she is also pursuing her doctorate. Through an art-based movement practice called Inscaping, Sara works with clients on
life transitions, and body image, she also works with actors on their self-care as they deal with emotionally challenging roles. She also teaches writing classes on autobiographical writing and overcoming writer’s block. She is the author of the memoir, The Invisible Bones, and is currently writing the companion workbook, The Friendship Index.
We discussed Sara’s journey of healing through authoring her
memoir ‘The Invisible Bones’, and the significance of boundaries between character and actor and safeguarding personal trauma before embodying a character’s trauma. We began with sara’s decision to be a participant in her own research into actor wellbeing that had her taking on the role of Constance in a monologue from Shakespeare’s King John.
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32min
September 18, 2023 S2 EP. 11 In Discussion with Alexandra Donnachie
Our Guest today is Alexandra Donnachie
https://www.alexandradonnachie.com/

Alex is an award-winning actress, award-nominated writer, theatre maker and voice actor. Her writer-performer credits include the critically acclaimed shows: twenty-eight, When We Died, and 3 Years, 1 Week and a Lemon Drizzle. She’s enjoyed several successful runs at the Edfringe as well as touring the UK.
Other acting credits include stints at the Battersea Arts Centre, numerous audio dramas for Big Finish and Audible and plays series regular, 'Jackie' Tate in the Dark Shadows audio drama series. She also performed in The Suffragettes with Lucy Worsley a BAFTA winning production with BBC One.
She is currently working on a large-scale family show with integrated accessibility with the support of Arts Council England, Battersea Arts Centre and Merton Libraries. She is also developing her fourth play and working on the screen adaptation of When We Died.
I invited Alex onto the podcast to talk about the importance
of a self-care routine specifically her self-care process while she was performing her one woman show about sexual abuse at the EdFringe this year. Including how she safeguards her wellbeing after her emotional performances and having boundaries not only between herself and her character but between herself and those audience members who strongly resonate with the shows themes and want to talk with her afterward. We also touched on the unintentional psychological healing that comes from performing her own work.
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34min
August 03, 2023 S2 EP10 In Discussion with Sarah Bedi
Our guest today is Sarah Bedi.
https://www.sarahbedi.org/
Sarah is a UK based director whose has mounted productions at Shakespeare’s Globe, Brighton Theatre Royal, Arcola theatre, The Young Vic and the oval house to name a few. She
was also co-artistic director of BAZ Productions for 8 years which included overseeing the delivery of their workshops for young people. In fact, Sarah has worked extensively with young people, from directing plays at the Young Vic, and the Unicorn Young Company to facilitating drama workshops for the National Theatre and many others.
They are currently a Trustee on the Board for The Albany , an award
winning arts centre supporting marginalised groups across the UK. They are also an associate at Tonic Theatre helping to drive change
within arts and culture, making the sector more equitable, diverse
and inclusive.
Sarah is a keen researcher developing ways to implement Wellbeing in the Arts, which has included experimenting with arts therapy as part of rehearsal processes, interviews with creatives during lockdown and co-facilitating Directors’ Space, a group exploring resilience and wellbeing, supported by the Young Vic.
In our discussion, Sarah was very open to sharing her past challenges and the journey that motivated her to become not just a director but a responsible artist creating safe rehearsal spaces for her actors.

Additional Interviews:
Shakespeare’s Globe podcast #SuchStuff S8 E2: Being vulnerable
Interview for American Theatre.

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30min

FAQs about Artists in Depth:

How many episodes does Artists in Depth have?

The podcast currently has 33 episodes available.