The University Dramatic Society (UDS) is setting the stage for their upcoming original production of Glass, kicking off this Thursday night at the Dolphin Theatre.
UDS is a student-run semi-professional theatre company based at The University of Western Australia (UWA) and affiliated with the UWA Student Guild.
Currently in its 107th year, all productions are run entirely by UDS members who are encouraged to create original, new work in a freely creative environment.
This can include plays written by members, as well as contemporary and historical theatre.
Glass explores grief in a bold new play
Glass writer and director, Priya Wilson, says this show was different to shows she has written in the past.
“Usually, I would start with an organic idea, but this one certainly came more from a process of workshopping and building on it.”
Having written and directed two other productions for UDS and writing several shows which were not finalised in the past, Priya was determined to push herself further than ever before to write something vastly different.
“I tried to oppose the idea of tying up a show into something that was easy to digest…I didn’t want to make the characters too likeable.”
The show follows a fractured friendship group in the throes of grief, forced to try reconciling their differences from their latent teenage years.
“It’s about a group of people who, under any other circumstance, would not be put together again, and are forced to air out the dirty laundry,” says Priya.
At the core of the show, is the complexity of grief, and the story explores how these complicated characters all experience loss in various ways.
“I think grief can be a catalyst for people unmasking and becoming quite vulnerable and authentic,” says Priya.
“Grief can come to us in all sizes, shapes and forms, not just in the loss of a person, but the loss of a past self, the loss of relationships, the loss of opportunity.”
The show’s writer says she always writes about grief, whether directly or indirectly.
“It’s a feeling I find to be a great kind of conduit for my creativity.”
Creating a wider community
The longest running theatre company in WA, UDS is based on campus at UWA which is open to students and others alike.
University Dramatic Society Vice-President, Jordy Littlewood-Johnson, says the community has become such a large part of his life.
“In fact, it ended up being just as important to me as my degree and was one of the places I felt most at home at university,” he says.
Whilst Jordy is currently studying Social Sciences at UWA, during his high school years, he always loved writing stories and performing on stage.
“Joining the club was a way for me to engage in these passions while still studying my degree.”
This year, Jordy has also taken on the role of Vice President of the club, becoming more involved in the clubs events and has helped run its committee.
“I’ll be passing the role to the next VP in a couple months, with the beauty of university clubs being the legacy you get to be part of, and hand onto the next group.”
Adding that the biggest thing he has seen UDS strive for is opportunity for all its members.
“The whole idea is that it gets people on or behind the stage who may not otherwise get the chance and has given me and others so many opportunities that I couldn’t have dreamt of while studying a social sciences degree,” says Jordy.
Emphasising how a shared love of creativity and self-expression has the power to bring people together.
“The charm of community theatre is never lost, and our club is no exception,” says Jordy.
