Nerve | Lauren Watson
I had no idea what to expect coming in to watch Nerve. I was intrigued, excited and ready. To my surprise, the show was a deep dive into the complexities of living with disabilities and neurodivergence. The set was simple but it spoke volumes – disassembled wheelchairs scattered the floor. I felt like the journey of this work was just that, pulling apart frustrations of everyday life living in a world that was built without you in mind.
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The story-telling was captivating, enlightening and confronting – dealing with everyday circumstances such as shopping, moving through crowds and dressing yourself can become moments of irritation for Lauren, which are all simple tasks for an able-bodied, neurotypical person like myself. These moments made me acknowledge my privilege as I did not have to move random boxes of merchandise out the way of my vacant dressing room or feel claustrophobic in the typical rooms you find at most stores.
I felt the frustration for Lauren as her voice plays over the speakers and tells the story of able-bodied humans being an obstruction in her journey of simply moving along the footpath. I think to myself, how ignorant can you be to literally step over someone in their wheelchair because they did not move fast enough. But that is the reality! The reality I do not live with, my only closest but not very close comparison is pushing my child in a pram.
The display of sheer strength and determination shone through this work brilliantly, as Lauren lifts her body onto the Lyra, in which she cleverly pulls from one of the disassembled wheelchairs on set and performs a superhuman aerial routine with impressive shapes as the haze floats peacefully on the surface floor and the mood lighting stunningly highlights her willpower.
My heart felt that - I was there, we all were there with her, the audience watched in amazement. And I did not pity her. This was not a show of pity, it was a telling of her struggles and how she triumphs through those hoops – literally. A story of power.
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As she lands on the floor, sweat hugs her face while catching her breath back she explains how hard and tiring things can be for her. I really enjoyed the raw authenticity that was shown here, as much as we see circus looking effortless – it is not. It requires years of hard work and training and I was captured in that moment, so were the people around me.
With a great soundtrack to move the show along, as a Beatboxer I was particularly impressed with the use of the human voice layered in many of the scenes. The utilization of rope was courageous, literally tying knots around the body and to the wheelchair, bound by societies limitations she is trapped amongst the chain-like visual, as her body was restricted, my body also felt restricted, she falls to the ground struggling to set herself free and I was on the edge of my seat cheering her on with my inside voice. It is safe to say that Lauren’s work transported me to another dimension that I’ve never been to, or had to go to.
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I think this work is an important piece of theatre that educated me in a lot of ways. It highlighted certain situations that we, able-bodied people, otherwise take for granted and if you weren’t raised around a person with disabilities, naturally there are circumstances that you wouldn’t even think about. It was lovely to see so many people with disabilities arrive in the accessible venue at The Diane Cilento Studio, Queensland Theatre, an Auslan Interpreter was also present and it felt very inclusive. The ending piece is a statement in its own and it spoke loudly to me in ways that I’m familiar with - dismantle the systems that try to oppress us.
