Depression, cancer, grief…lining up to be made miserable

Why do we plumb life’s darkest depths to make our art – and why do audiences seek out such experiences?
[This is archived content and may not display in the originally intended format.]

Promotional image for I Can Breathe Underwater via The Blue Room

For theatre-makers, as with all artists, there can be many reasons for tackling challenging themes in one’s work. Anger that a particular issue is being ignored by the mainstream media; a personal need for catharsis; the desire to explore a topic with more nuance than is possible when writing an opinion piece for a newspaper.

Unlock Padlock Icon

Unlock this content?

Access this content and more

Richard Watts is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM, and serves as the Chair of La Mama Theatre's volunteer Committee of Management. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, and was awarded the status of Melbourne Fringe Living Legend in 2017. In 2020 he was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize. Most recently, Richard was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Green Room Awards Association in June 2021. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts