The first design component that Jillian dreamed up is a set of boxes, differing in colour and size, to represent the fundamentals, or ‘building blocks’, of unique people. The boxes would be manipulated physically to showcase the changes undergone by the person experiencing emotional manipulation and damage.
Jillian seized the opportunity to be mentored by her previous acting instructor, Christopher Weddell, whom she met while training at the Canadian College of the Performing Arts in Victoria, B.C.
Writing process
The script built on a foundation of propelling questions: How do people get into these kinds of relationships? Why do they stay? Why do they reject, or are unable to hear, reason from concerned loved ones? Why do victims hide their experiences? Why do abusers act the way they do; is it calculated?
The script began as a single act, in the wake created by the termination of an emotionally abusive relationship. Jillian was compelled to tell the story of a strong woman who had been worn down and changed over time, but who discovered the reality of her past and began to rebuild a more powerful self. It became evident that the story of how she got there was too important to omit. It was vital to Jillian to tell the narrative that a confident, intelligent, vivacious person can have these experiences, and to validate that people who do, are neither weak nor dumb. She wanted to show how tricky, subtle, and damaging this abuse is.
The script developed into a fully formed three-act script, portraying the beginning, middle to end, and aftermath of an abusive partner relationship. In September and November 2020, the first private readings of the script were hosted over zoom. Receiving strong feedback on both the original and edited read drafts, Jillian and Christopher worked to get the script ready for new stages of development. The two made their final edits in the early months of 2022.
Next Steps
With script in hand, Jillian is eager to move into the developmental process. The script uses original poetry, song, dance, movement, naturalism, light, soundscape, projection, and unique use of set. Many different art forms coincide to create a physicalized journey of emotional abuse’s effects. It has been her desire since inception to create a space for a group of artists with varying performance and technical skills to cultivate the physical ‘language’ of the piece. The goal is to devise and develop a stylized form of movement, and interaction between the actors themselves and the technical elements. Please contact Jillian if you are interested in joining the exciting process.
Contact Jillian.
I look forward to hearing from you!