Being a scribe on Massive's newest production

It was a huge privilege to work with the cast and crew of Massive Theatre Company’s newest production as it entered its first week of development at Piha Beach in Auckland. Like, wow! And so here I am, my fourth year in the industry, post-uni, working alongside senior practitioners. There was some imposter syndrome going on for me. I felt shy and humbled to share the space with these very experienced actor artists.  

My role as ‘scribe’ was subtly but crucially recording everything, including conversations, brainstorms, devised pieces, and sharing of provocations. We spent our time in Piha for most of the first week of the development. It was a very inspiring location for us all and some real magic happened out there that I don’t think would have happened inside the studios.  

Piha was a very talky time and so all I really had to do in the scribe department was press record on the voice memo app. Easy. But the crew invited me to also be a part of the kōrero, and feed in, and respond in any way at any time. I love that about Massive, they are so inclusive. 

We all did a bit of homework coming into this development, but only some parts were shared to the table, which I loved because nothing over the week felt contrived or rigid. Everything flowed the way it did and that told us a story in itself. The creative process was inspiring to me in that way.  

When we arrived back to the Massive whare for the second half of the week, we started to head into more fleshy territories. This was very exciting for everyone, because what was kind of unknown and curious in Piha grew into lots of play and inspiring brainstorming for story and character.  

Again, I fed in when it felt right to, started to video some character showings, but mostly recorded the kōrero that was had again. One of our cast had to leave us on Saturday to go back overseas for work, so we tried to make the most of our time with him.   

Throughout and after this development, our writer will script a play. If he needs to go back to a conversation in Piha he can do so using the recordings and notes I took. Whilst we can’t yet say much about this project, I can say that I am hugely excited for it and think it will be a Massive treat for you when it comes to New Zealand theatres.  

It was a great joy and experience to work with everyone involved. They were all golden. What I loved was the immense openness, captivating stories, and bright presence of those involved. Thanks for having me, Massive. 

MILLIE MANNING