National Drama Chair, Dr Geoff Readman, speaks to the life and legacy of theatre director Peter Brook, who died aged 97 on 2nd July 2022.
“Peter Brook has been an influential voice throughout my 54 years of teaching and directing.The Open Space (1968) provided a generation of secondary drama teachers with a unique classification on theatre-making; a classification which continues to have relevance and currency.
In my PHD research his discourse on the importance of listening to and hearing the voices of actors was a provocation that improved my teaching. It invited new possibilities on the relationship between theatre form-audience response-cultural social norms. In many ways he will continue to influence what we do in schools. His presence will remain: questioning; informing; listening; exploring. For Brook process was at the heart of his directing, not the text, technique or directorial manipulation. A process for which there are “no secrets”.”
