Acting out a life-long dream

Acting at a fundraiser hosted by Sharon Stone and collaborating on a theatre production for La Scala were just two of the activities final-year acting student Christopher Roberts undertook during his month-long residency at the Watermill Centre in New York.

Mr Roberts was the only Australian actor chosen to take part in the Centre’s summer program.

Run by American director Robert Wilson, the Watermill Centre functions like an artists’ colony, where professional artists from many disciplines collaborate on a range of different projects with international arts leaders.

Mr Roberts said the residency was an exhilarating artistic experience, largely because of the intense nature of the work and Robert Wilson’s meticulous direction.

“I didn’t know what to expect when I arrived, but I certainly didn’t think I would work so closely with Bob (Robert Wilson),” he says.

Mr Roberts decided to apply for the program after seeing Wilson’s production of I La Galigo at the Melbourne International Arts Festival in 2004.

“It was the first time I saw the actor’s body used as a conduit for the story,” he says.

“I initially trained as a dancer, so I thought the summer program would allow me to augment my training as an actor, because Wilson’s directorial style demanded so much of the actor’s physical skills.”

Mr Roberts spent two months assembling a portfolio to showcase his skills, which included photographs of his performances, extensive written information about his previous work, a detailed CV, and references for his work as an actor commercially and at the VCA.

During his internship, Mr Roberts worked on several different productions including site-specific performance works, a forthcoming production for La Scala of Monteverdi’s opera Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria (The Return of Ulysses to his Homeland) and a new theatre piece with the robotics department of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

“The residency was intense and challenging, and it has had a profound impact on my artistic practice.” Mr Roberts says.

“I grew significantly as an artist because my focus changed, and I became familiar with the creative world outside Australia.

“It allowed me to reassess the way I approach my practice because the demands of Wilson’s direction required me to align my VCA training and experience with the vision of an auteur director while still maintaining my own process in rehearsal,” he says.

Mr Roberts said the presence of artists and thinkers including Dr António Damásio, costume designer Jacques Reynaud, actor Charlotte Rampling and performance artist Marina Abramović also broadened his perspective.

Mr Roberts’ work must have impressed Wilson; he has been invited to work in Paris during January and February remounting a production of Madam Butterfly for the Opéra national de Paris.

He will be involved in rehearsals and will assist the resident director and Robert Wilson.

After he graduates, Mr Roberts will focus mainly on acting in Australia and overseas, but he is also “flirting” with the idea of pursuing a Master’s degree in acting overseas late next year.

“Though I identify as an actor, I’m also drawn to the idea, however lofty, of artistic or festival direction, which is something I will work towards, perhaps though continued association with international companies if I can manage it,” he says.