Caro Meets Theatre Interview

Ella Muscroft: Two Artists In A Relationship

By Caro Moses | Published on Monday 4 July 2022

We’re always on the lookout for the new and interesting stuff from up and coming creators, so when I heard about ‘Two Artists In A Relationship’ from young production company Loud Voices Silent Streets, I definitely wanted to find out more.

The play is the work of the company’s founder Ella Muscroft – who also appears in the show – and it tackles the often thorny issues that affect artists when they are in a relationship.

I spoke to Ella about the play, the company, what led her to this point, and what to expect from her in the future.

CM: Can you start by telling us a bit about the content of ‘Two Artists In A Relationship’ – what story does it tell and who are the central characters?
EM: ‘Two Artists In A Relationship’ centres around Jude, an upcoming theatre director and writer, and Iris, a struggling actress starting to give up on her career.

The play takes place mainly over one night after they have both returned from the first performance of Jude’s play and conflict quickly ensues.

The story focuses on the struggles of being in the arts industry and how much pressure it can put on a relationship, especially when one is becoming successful and the other isn’t.

CM: What themes are explored through the play?
EM: The main themes are jealousy, creative freedom, infidelity, mental health, addiction and ownership.

CM: What was the inspiration for the play? What made you want to create work on this subject, with these themes?
EM: After seeing how much of a devastating impact the COVID crisis had on the arts industry I wanted to write something that not only celebrated the passion artistic people have, but also showed it in a very realistic way.

I have always loved to tackle darker subjects within my writing, and find it is often artists that struggle with mental health, addiction and creative ownership the most, so the play’s setting seemed the perfect way to explore that.

CM: Can you tell us about Loud Voices Silent Streets? How did it come together? What are its aims and ethos?
EM: Loud Voices Silent Streets is an international production company and artistic community that started in March 2020 to allow creatives the chance to perform and tell stories despite the arts industry coming to a complete stop.

The ethos of the company is to provide people from all over the world, at all experience levels and from all backgrounds a safe space where they can talk to other like-minded individuals, create art and build up their careers.

The company has produced two audio drama series, seven short films and one feature film – which have received incredible responses in the festival circuits – and this will be the first theatre production it has produced.

CM: What hopes do you have for it moving forward?
EM: I hope Loud Voices Silent Streets can continue to grow and produce bigger and better productions. I hope we can provide industry talks for our company, tour theatre productions and continue to excel in film festivals. I also hope we can continue to create innovative and emotive productions with diverse casts that can show the best of the arts.

CM: What about the play? Do you have further plans for it after the upcoming run?
EM: We are also making a film version of this play, which is being filmed the same week as the play is being performed. It would also be amazing to take it to the Fringe in the future.

CM: And now can we talk about you a bit? How did you come to be working in the arts? Was it always what you wanted to do? How did your career begin?
EM: Both of my parents were in the arts industry so I grew up loving stories. I started writing scripts when I was nine years old and fell in love with writing and acting. I started to self-produce the films I wrote at the age of seventeen and have been building up my experience, connections and career ever since. It is what I have always wanted to do and I am very excited to see what happens this year.

CM: You’ve written this play and will also be appearing in it – are acting and writing equally important to you? And are there other things you like to do?
EM: Writing is what I love to do the most but I have always loved acting and having the opportunity to combine the two and work with such an amazing team is always a huge honour. I love producing and helping the process of filming and productions come together. Another passion of mine is teaching and I am currently doing a teaching degree alongside my productions.

CM: What aims do you have for yourself for the future? What ambitions do you have?
EM: My number one aim is to be able to make a full time living as a writer and also have the opportunity to continue acting and producing. I would love to make people feel heard through my plays and films and depict important stories and topics that aren’t discussed enough.

CM: What’s coming up next for you after this?
EM: I will be attending a writing school in August and I will be a script supervisor in Greenwich, on the set of a film I wrote, as well as going to Barcelona to represent a film of mine in a festival there. Plus Loud Voices Silent Streets also has a feature film being released in August and many more productions currently in the works.

‘Two Artists In A Relationship’ is on at Bread & Roses Theatre from 9-10 Jul, see the venue website here for more info and to book tickets.

LINKS: www.breadandrosestheatre.co.uk | www.loudvoicessilentstreets.co.uk | www.instagram.com/ellamuscroft