ABSTRACT
I can still see Philippe's weary eyes on the afternoons when it seemed that his lumbago was particularly bad as he sat hunched over his drum and I'll never forget the terror that I might be the wretched performer doing some exercise up there in front of the rest of the class at whom despair forced him to shout “Amusez-Vous, merde!”. It was often accompanied by a general (and to me terrifying) reminder that accountancy was a better profession for someone who couldn't have fun on stage. It wasn't a tactic guaranteed to put a performer at their ease and fill them with the required spontaneous sense of fun (nor was it very polite to accountants) but in essence it was absolutely the best advice that could ever be given and it has definitely been the element of Philippe's teaching that has affected my work the most. If there is no joy on stage there is nothing. Even in tragedy there needs to be a certain joy in the performance of it. It might sound basic but it is not generally taught as such and perhaps as a consequence it is surprisingly rare to find real pleasure in the theatre. I learnt a number of techniques and skills from Philippe which have affected my work and which I will also discuss but all of it seems to me rooted in this one essential principle: enjoy yourself.
