Notes from Today: A Blog

Liz Maxwell is a theatre director, producer of culture, and artistic innovator. I am passionate about the role of the artist in society, interdisciplinary collaboration, and making original work. I believe that the process and product are important, that new ideas are the life-force of society, and that the arts hold a vital role in shaping our collective future. This blog reflects musings on the evolution of theatre, reflections on the process of art-making, and committed observations on what it's like to be a human being these days.

A love letter to Charles Mee

Charles Mee taught me that writing is about translation,

And so that is what I'm working on.

I feel very busy in these days, 

Translating

Words, Stories, Ideas to the modern age. 

I think even Mee's "adaptations" of classics are ultimately about translation.

But right now, I'm working mostly with ideas, and observations about reality,

And trying to translate this into something worthwhile.

Of course, any translation is from the point of view of the translator. 

You don't really have a choice but to use your own filter.

But that's ok. 

Charles Mee taught me that.

And he taught me that this work is important, and that

It's ok to be direct, and that

It's ok to be simple. And

It's an aesthetic, and not everyone may like it. 

But I like it. 

It's helpful to me.

Charles Mee - you have been very helpful to me. 

I'm grateful that you exist.

I'm grateful for you, exactly as you are.

I'm grateful for your work, exactly as it is - 

Unfinished, 

Patched together, 

Random, 

Borrowed, 

Loved. 

Those things feel true to me.

That's the way your work is, and

That's the way the world is, 

And you've given me permission to also experience and regurgitate and translate the world,

As feels best to me.

Thank you.