Zena Edwards on her play Security
Zena Edwards brings her many talents to a new one-woman show – Security – at the Battersea Arts Centre until the end of November. The well-travelled writer, spoken word artist and musician – who uses traditional African instruments in her thoughtful performances – has developed a piece that now showcases her acting and storytelling skills.
Catch A Vibe caught up with her recently and spoke about her new show, which tackles the controversial, and sometimes ambiguous, topic of human security in an era of terror threats, youth crime and economic and financial instability.
CAV: What is “Security” about?
Zena Edwards: The show is tackling issues of knife crime, intergenerational conflict and culture clashes. I play 5 characters and it’s a massive step for me as an artist; coming from doing spoken word – standing in front of a microphone – to telling a heartfelt story.
CAV: What was the catalyst for doing a show covering issues related to security, terrorist attacks and what some see as anti-democratic legislation?
Zena Edwards: I started to look at what do we do as human beings to make ourselves feel secure; the only thing we have to be secure with is the notion of change; that things will always change. No matter how much we think “I know how the world functions, I know how I am”. In the show you have a young 16-year old girl who meets this Palestinian man who is exiled from Palestine; and how they meet in the South Bank and change each other’s world. They have something in common: they have both lost a Brother… one to knife crime and another to war in the Palestine conflict. What it does is show we have human frailties in terms of the circumstances we come from.
CAV: You have previewed the show around the country; what has the reaction been?
Zena Edwards: It’s been a fantastic reaction to the show. That’s why we are keeping on going. We’ve done shows in Wales, Warwick, Manchester and Birmingham and I’ve been getting a lot of support from Apples and Snakes [the poetry organisation], Battersea Arts Centre, Birmingham Rep, The Drum; they have given loads of support, so I must be doing something right.
CAV: What differences have you noticed between Security and a spoken word performance?
Zena Edwards: I am playing the all characters. It’s energetic. It’s me one on stage. I stripped the show down to a chair and a bag – that’s my set … the focus is totally on the characters on stage. It’s a very dynamic piece. I have had to study a lot of movement, changing into characters, dialogue, playing two characters at the same time, doing different voices.
CAV: As a spoken word artist’s what’s it like doing this new type of performance?
Zena Edwards: It’s brilliant. I have learnt an awful lot over the last year; I have done physical theatre workshops, tightening up my story as a writer, exploring playing with voice and characters. So as an artist I have learnt an awful lot of lessons… … that will stay with me for the rest of my artistic life.
Security
written by and with Zena Edwards
directed by Anthony Shrubsall
at the Battersea Arts Centre on November 2008
