Katy's Blog: Life on the Road

The touring life of an actor can be many things; fun, rewarding, challenging, stressful, tiring and full of surprises! We have been on the road with Backhand’s two successful children’s shows, ‘The Velveteen Rabbit’ and ‘Greek Myths for Kids’, since December last year, and as much as I love my job and am grateful to be performing, it is no easy ride. Each performance requires us to be incredibly versatile and easily adaptable to the size, space and in some cases, shape of the venues! So far we have been lucky enough to perform at some truly iconic theatres across the UK (Hull Truck being my personal highlight!) and a different challenge has presented itself at each. It has been wonderful to meet and work with many different people, from the technicians and stage managers, to the box office and front of house staff at each venue. It is important as a cast that we work together, but ultimately respect the decisions of our Team Leader, and when it comes to the logistics of day to day planning, it is crucial that everyone is cooperative, understanding and flexible. The most memorable moment of the tour so far was rocking up at midnight to our digs in South Wales to discover we were staying in a Mexican-themed hostel (yes, you read that correctly!). Not only that, but we were greeted by two rowdy sets of stag do’s! It was an interesting weekend, to say the least. A lot of time is spent on the road, and driving up and down the country can be extremely tiring, but as a cast, we have found that a good Power Ballad CD or old ‘Now That’s What I Call Music’ Album can make the journeys fly by! My advice to having a successful tour? Have fun, look after yourselves, and above all, embrace the challenges!