Profile: Robert Softley
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This month we feature Robert Softley, actor and public speaker, to gain an insight to his experience in theatre generally and in its interaction with disability. Robert has had cerebral palsy since birth. |
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Robert was exposed to theatrical involvement from an early age. Since the age of 10, he has been involved with his local amateur theatre group. He has been involved in just about every aspect of amateur theatre – from props co-ordination to lighting/sound design to later producing youth plays and serving on their committee as marketing convenor and business manager.
As a disabled person, the idea of performing to the audience of the Kirkintilloch Players was not a realistic option for Robert. Instead, he explored theatre studies whilst at university. This gave Robert a change to do a small amount of performing. It was after giving a talk to a conference in 2002, run by the theatre company Giant Productions, that Robert was approached by Theatre Workshop to see if he would be interested in auditioning for the company. That year, he took up a one year residency as a professional actor with Theatre Workshop.
Robert’s first professional production was a devised work-in-progress, Nothing Ever Burns Down by Itself, by Theatre Workshop.
Since then, Robert’s work has included:
- Birds of Paradises's Brazil 12 Scotland 0 (2005)
- Theatre Workshop's The Last Little Fish in the Net (2004)
- Theatre Workshop's The Threepenny Opera (2004)
- Birds of Paradise's The Irish Giant (2003)
- Theatre Workshop's I Have Before me a Remarkable Document Given to me by a Young Lady from Rwanda (2003)
In addition to his ongoing relationships with the companies Theatre Workshop and Giant, Robert’s bond with Birds of Paradise has been further cemented through taking on the role of workshop leader in 2004.
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Not one to hide from disability and related issues - 'we should never change who we are to suit anyone' - the inclusion of disabled and non-disabled people in theatre is clearly important to Robert. ‘My disability isn’t even a small part of who I am – I see it more as an extension of myself’.
When it comes to acting, ‘one of a disabled actor's challenges is to help their audience see past their disability enough to let the underlying character seep through while still, where appropriate, utilising their disability as part of their character’. |
Robert is also well practiced in public speaking and has utilised this in the areas of theatre and disability. He has spoken to and for various organisations, on the issues surrounding inclusion in education and the arts. Since October 2004, Robert has also been involved in presenting Disability Discrimination Act 1995 training to corporations. |