François Matarasso

Friendship and the community artist

When I talk about community art practice with younger or less experienced artists, I often warn against offering friendship to the people you are working with. I say that because, in co-creation’s rewarding intensity, boundaries blur easily, especially where empathy allies with common purpose. But a community artist is there for a time and a…

Renewing opera

The problem of opera Opera is a problematic art. It’s not just the extravagant cost of producing it, or the elitist profile of its audiences; the problems are embedded in the form’s own hierarchies, and the stories that have become its canonical repertoire. The human relations they present are becoming less acceptable to society’s understanding…

Working at another scale in community opera

It is a surprise, in my sixties, to find myself working on opera, as part of the Traction project. This prestigious art form is very far from the community art projects in which I’ve spent my life. It is truly another world. There is common ground, of course, especially as the three Traction projects are community operas,…

‘Cabaret de la Gata’ – Traction takes off

As the pandemic recedes—or perhaps becomes normalised—it is becoming hard to recall the strangeness of those lockdown months, and the mix of politeness and fear that kept everyone apart, masked and confused. Last month, the Traction partners met in Dublin for the first time since February 2020. We have spent two years talking through computer…

Building a bridge

Suddenly, we are there. In the next six months, a series of performances will test everything we have imagined, planned, organised and created. There are dates. There will be audiences

Art with the experience of age

In the new episode of ‘A Culture of Possibility’, Arlene and I spoke with two old friends, David Slater and Alan Lyddiard. Their work is beautiful, in process as much as performance, and I’ve learned a lot from working with them over the years, in different ways and at different times. Here’s Arlene’s introduction to…