The journey of navigating mental health challenges and the systems put in place to help you find your way can be scary, distressing, and daunting. Each journey is unique, and some of the unexpected pit stops and bumps along the way are captured in Rebus Theatre’s newest production, Systems and Sanity at Gorman Arts Centre, 15-17 June.
The two-year project has been funded by ACT Health. Director Robin Davidson says the company put a call-out for people who identified as having lived experience of mental ill health, including those who aren’t quite sure if they fit that definition or don’t like that language. The director says people have different experiences with varying success within the mental health system and services, and it was important to invite people to share their stories.
Through discussions, workshops, writings and rehearsals, the theatrical exploration has come together to create what Davidson calls “abstract ideas in human bodies”.
“It’s very human abstract but nevertheless it puts real-life experiences into a form that is relatable for the audience,” says actor Grant McLindon.
Transcending genre, rather than following a linear structure, the play is a series of scenes around individual relations to the mental health system. Some scenes focus on an individual experience of mental ill health, carrying on the precious stories of those people, says Davidson. Others are collective creations or improvisations; some have no language, some have poetry, and all are approached with sincerity and a heartfelt rawness.
“I think it’s designed to show the audience some sort of hard truth about them but in a way that suggests that there’s a very good place we could all go instead of all sorts of things about stigma,” says McLindon.
Theatre for everyone is at the heart of Rebus. To optimise inclusivity, the opening night will be Auslan interpreted while the Friday will be accompanied by an audio description. For those who may not be able to make it to the theatre for the live performance, a discounted ticket allows access to a recording of the production.
With seven cast members hitting the stage and around 20 people behind the creation, Davidson says they understand there is a very specific experience for young adults entering the system who will be treated in different ways to older people; as such, their story doesn’t feature in the production.
Wanting to reach people who have lived experience with mental ill health, those who know nothing about it, and policymakers, they believe the play will be relatable for everyone.
“There’s probably really a fairly small number of people who have neither their own directly or been really close to some direct lived experience will have moments of ‘Okay, there’s something I get that I didn’t get before,” says Davidson.
While they envision everyone in the audience walking away feeling like they’ve had a great night at the theatre, Davison also hopes they also leave with a sense of human solidarity.
“Some of us have had hard times diagnosed and some of us have had interactions with something called the mental health system, some of us haven’t. But, fundamentally, we are all in this sticky, confusing, frequently painful business of being alive together and we need to look after each other,” he says.
Go on a journey through the many facets of mental health in Systems and Sanity at Gorman Arts Centre, 15-17 June; ainslieandgorman.com.au
Canberra Daily would love to hear from you about a story idea in the Canberra and surrounding region. Click here to submit a news tip.
