"Devoted & Disgruntled" Open Space

Devoted & Disgruntled is an open space format that the English theater group Improbable led by Artistic Director Phelim McDermott conceived of 10 years ago and has continued to further develop ever since. Devoted & Disgruntled is developed by theater, dance and performance makers for the needs of this group.

It has been presented to constantly growing audiences and ever-increasing success in England since 2005 and will be presented for the first time in Germany as a preview during the Industry Get-Together of the Independent Performing Arts Community.

Phelim McDermott writes:

Devoted and Disgruntled was born out of frustration. I was frustrated both with theater and with myself. I knew things could be better in theater and I also knew the way I responded to that situation could be more creative. I wanted to stop moaning and actually do something about it. 

The Devoted and Disgruntled events and the community that has developed around them involve people taking responsibility for making better theatre and making theater better. D&D has become a way to engage with the stuff in the wider theater world I only knew how to complain about before.

The events are liberating because they create an environment of possibility. A place where we are confronted with the refreshing yet challenging realization that things will only change if we decide to make them. Often this situation can leave us feeling that we have to do everything on our own. However D&D offers immediate access to the people who might support and help us do it. 

Another great thing about D&D is that it is a very different kind of conference. A place where we meet each other outside of our usual roles. Conversations happen, not mediated through the usual hierarchical structures, but through our passion. Because of the "Law of Two Feet" the people who are not interested are not there to hold us back.

Facilitated by Greg McLaren.

Participants:

Greg McLaren (Improbable)