Gratitude.

Today I felt genuine gratitude.
Grateful to be here.
Being able to experience the Globe stage like that
albeit the short time we had in there, was really a treat.
I've always known that Theatre was home to me. And this reinforces my belief
and my passion for this space.

This sacred space we hold; for each other and the audience.
We share thoughts, opinions and heartfelt moments, surges of passion through the air we breathe
in the space.
It's magical.
And honesty, vulnerability and the willingness
To expose ourselves
helps us connect with one another;
not as a man or a woman,
black, yellow or white,
rich or poor,
but as humans whose hearts beat, blood flow
laugh, cry, mourn and celebrate.

As much as it is the spirit of the theatre,
Shakespeare pays a grandiose homage to these sentiments through
his words with all its vowels, consonants and punctuations.
Gifting the players an opportunity to play, challenge, question him
and ultimately breathe life into the characters
one syllable at a time.

The Globe space itself lends us a sort of freedom to play as well.
The stage is the most vulnerable, leaving the players exposed to judgement
but it is also an invitation from the audience to show them what we have got to share.

Active audience.
We all have a right to opinion in this space.
These people did not come in looking only to be entertained.
They want to pass judgements,
they want to experience firsthand the shadows that were hidden from broad daylight. Their shadows.
Emotions and words not allowed outside the space of the theatre,
put on display by the players on stage.
It's funny, then it's not.
Tragic, mostly.
But they keep coming back for it.
Because no matter how far fetched the stories may seem,
they are still human stories.

Our stories.