Our interview with Alex Oates and Esther Huss highlights their passion for creating the Rude Health Festival, a community-focused arts event in Northumberland...
Hi Alex and Esther, how did you first begin working together?
We met in London. Alex was trying to emerge as a writer while working as a carer, and Esther was juggling running an inclusive dance company with performing as a dancer in spaces like the Royal Opera House and the South Bank Centre. Alex would take a service user to dance lessons with Esther weekly, but it took about 7 years for us to get the chance to be on our own and chat and then fall in love. Alex is from the Northeast and had spotted a place called Cambois where houses were under £45k to buy. We were both ready to leave London, so Alex managed to persuade German-born Esther to stay in the UK, who had been contemplating a move to Lisbon post-Brexit. We married in Cambois in 2019, have had two kids and formed the organisation that would become The Tute.
When Covid happened, and we were trapped in the walls of our home, Esther was looking for somewhere to put a large set she built for a performance piece idea. We came across the derelict Miners Welfare Institute and contacted the person who’d recently bought it. The second we stepped inside, we fell in love with it and agreed to take out a lease on it and find a way to make it work; there began a steep learning curve in funding bids, charity registration and etc. The fact that it’s a mining institute is so significant, our area still carries the scars of the hasty de-industrialisation of the 80’s. These buildings were the centre of the community; they had reading rooms, and people would get together and perform shows – it’s a bit of this spirit we try to capture in our work.
Can you talk us through the core themes of your new festival Rude Health?
Week 1 of Rude Health is Mental Health – and Tim Dalling takes the reigns; he’s designed three days of workshops and performances that will use music to bring joy, spontaneity and freedom to anyone who comes along. Tim is an early member of Kneehigh and a brilliant anarchic theatremaker. Maggie Nicols is a hero of his, a feminist vocal jazz improviser, and Tim used this opportunity to reach out to her and ask her if she’d collaborate. We’re very lucky she said yes.
Thursday night, Maggie is leading a workshop for anyone of any ability who is interested in music making; they can bring an instrument or bring their voice, and it’ll explore improvising in a very user-friendly way. Friday night is a double bill gig by Maggie Nicols and Tim Dalling, showing off precisely what these two artists can do; various guests join them to perform alongside them. Saturday is Musical Boxing Day, where we’re erecting a boxing ring and inviting musicians to play off against each other in bouts. For participants, it promises to be a one-off opportunity to experience the power of working and improvising in a playful, non-competitive way, and for the audience, it’ll be a joyous occasion to witness a night of spontaneity and skill. Everyone is welcome, but we’re particularly inviting groups to address people's mental health challenges.
Week 2 is aging and isolation; we’re bringing Samuel Beckett’s classic play ‘Krapp’s Last Tape’ to The Tute, performed by veteran actor Trevor Fox, who’s just finished a summer in Stratford for the RSC. It’s directed by Tees Valley artist of the year Andy Berriman. It’s a play about an elderly man reflecting on his life, so relevant to our community. We’re taking it into nursing homes and running workshops alongside it with residents who often feel stranded in their homes.
Week 3 is focused on women’s health and features UK pioneer of New Dance Jacky Lansley and co-founder of The Tute Esther Huss, who have been friends and artistic collaborators for 20 years. Their new performance work, HIPS&SKINS, draws on the skills and strategies of dance, performance art, theatre and comedy to explore a shared journey around two very different challenging health situations – Jacky’s full hip replacement and Esther’s second pregnancy after a previous C-section. Using their personal experience with relentless wit in episodes such as ‘The Consultant’ and ‘The Patient’, their performance will enable diverse audiences to engage with important issues concerning women, health and equality.
Week 4 – Planetary health – we couldn’t do a month of health-related things and only focus on our species. That would be too human a thing to do. Because it’s such an important issue, we’re targeting younger audiences with these as we believe they hold the vast potential to make a difference while deserving the utmost care and support from older generations. We’re bringing the stunning Miscreations Theatre to The Tute; they’re bringing a play about the Sycamore Gap tree for younger children. Alongside that, Hilary Elder and Jeremy Bradfield are working with young people at risk of dropping out of education at Bedlington Academy to develop an immersive sound installation, which we’ll present at The Tute over half term.
How can we provide better access & opportunities in arts for communities in North-East England? The big needle movers?
Everyone’s sick and tired of hearing it, but it starts with funding. We’re very fortunate to have secured funding for this through the Shared Prosperity Fund, which is distributed by the local mayoral authority. Arts Council England is so competitive it sends our stomachs churning, and it’s harder and harder to find private philanthropy, so it’s essential that there are funding opportunities for people making this kind of non-commercial and community nurturing work. Ireland is trialing a universal income for artists, which is a brilliant idea. We’re a small organisation, and we pay ourselves a fraction of the hours we’re working, the income we generate personally is a bit over what universal credit would pay us should we sign on.
However, the benefit of that money is that we’re motivated with a sense of purpose to create work that brings something to our community. How many artists are struggling with universal credit? Quite a few; if you were to empower them by paying them a little bit more and call it universal income for artists with a condition they must present work and integrate within the community – we believe you’d see massive public health benefits and much easier access and opportunity for everyone in our community. Arts transform lives; they’re also great for the economy; it’s such a shame that simple thinking can put them in the luxury or superfluous category when it comes to political spending.
You have a tagline of ‘Because Creativity is Healthy’. How do you think that the arts can improve the health of a community?
Esther runs a regular dance group at The Tute, and Alex runs a regular writing group – these are made up of local people being creative, trying new things, coming together, and supporting each other. One stalwart member has learning difficulties and health issues; she hadn’t left the house for 18 months when she signed up for our groups, but she is now exercising, participating and thriving. We have members who are dealing with loss, life-changing illness and employment issues; they’re all supported through having a creative outlet and being part of a group.
When we then present to them artists who have had storied careers like Jacky Lansley, Maggie Nicols, Tim Dalling, etc etc, and we say, ‘These artists want to make work here too’ – it instantly gives them a feeling of pride and boosts their self-worth that they’re part of something valuable. This is an individual and personal benefit, but it applies to a broader community and regional scope. It’s a de-industrialised area with high levels of poverty, and people can quickly feel left behind. Still, our hope is by putting lots of daring and exciting work on their doorstep, the levels of local pride will increase, and health will follow.
What’s caught your attention in culture recently (can be anything: food, dance, theatre leisure etc)?
We have two young kids, so it’s hard to get out as much as we’d like; we do have a Mubi account, though, and recently watched the brilliant film Toni Erdmann; it’s a hilarious and profoundly moving German film by Maren Ade. They’re producing an American remake, but it won't be as good. Whenever we make it to Newcastle, we love going to the Grainger Market, which is fast becoming a foodie paradise full of all kinds of world street food.
Learn more about Rude Health.
Photography via The Tute.