Interview with Patrick Morris

As Albatross prepares to soar across the UK on its national tour before landing at Omnibus Theatre, I caught up with writer and director Patrick Morris to discuss climate catastrophe, complicated family dynamics, and the emotional turbulence at the heart of this striking new drama. Rooted in extensive research with Antarctic scientists and wrapped in deeply human storytelling, Albatross asks timely questions about responsibility, sacrifice, and what we owe future generations.

Albatross explores both climate catastrophe and intimate family dynamics. Where did those two worlds first collide for you creatively?

Well Martha wanted to explore the experience of mothers who work in the Antarctic – so right there, in that aim, you have the meeting of the micro and the macro of family life and climate research.

What was the biggest challenge in staging a play that moves between domestic realism and the vast emotional weight of the climate crisis?

As the phrase goes, ‘keeping it real’! This is a domestic drama where one of the characters, Alice, is returning from a long stint working in the Antarctic. She embodies that emotional weight that you mentioned, because she has been living in this world that most of us can only imagine. She lives in the present but struggles to maintain a positive view of the future. Whereas Eve, her mother, lives very much in the present moment and is mainly occupied with looking after Alice’s daughter, while Alice is away.

The play asks “what does one generation owe the next?” Did your own answer to that question evolve during rehearsals?

Yes – I think a lot about what the older generation owes to the next generation and beyond, but I rarely think about what younger generation owe to those that preceded them. This question is really at the heart of the struggle between Alice and Eve and again, what makes it real and exciting is that it’s not theoretical for them – it’s a vital and unpredictable part of their extraordinary relationship. The audience gets to see this played out and it’s what makes the play both so funny and so moving – this is something we’ve discovered more as we’ve been touring it in preparation for coming to Omnibus.

You also play Martin in the production. How different is your approach when directing yourself alongside the company?

I like to think I’m harder on myself than on my fellow actors! In truth, I rely on them and on my Menagerie colleague to provide an additional outside eye, if only to be able to provide another perspective. I of course have to trust my instincts and my vision of how the play needs to be staged, but I’m working with two great actors, Caroline Rippin and Agnes Lillis, whose own instincts are strong and true.

Climate anxiety is increasingly shaping younger generations. Do you think theatre has a responsibility to engage directly with that conversation?

Yes, of course. Theatre is a flesh and blood art form – we embody experience, dreams, nightmares, hopes, terrors and so much more. Climate anxiety is such a general term and in one sense is a banal phrase – Albatross explores the specifics of this family where a child needs to be raised and important work needs to be done. And it asks us very clearly how we’re supposed to square those imperatives. It doesn’t give an answer, but it shows this mother and daughter trying to find their way through an emotional, political and personal morass. Which is what makes it so gripping.

Patrick, what first drew you to Albatross when you read Martha’s script?

The first and last lines of the play.

How important was humour in shaping the emotional rhythm of the play?

Oh humour is vital to the audience’s experience of ‘Albatross’. As I said before, it’s a very funny play, particularly because it’s a family play. Aren’t all families, maybe apart from one’s own, funny? The little games, the different modes of interaction, the shortcuts, the ways in which we can so easily get upset with each other, they’re all in there. Alice and Eve are so different in many ways – there could be a tragedy in that difference, but Martha’s own moral vision is to celebrate that, without skating over the enormous difficulties they encounter with each other. And part of this comes through their class difference – class plays an unspoken, but very much ever-present, role in the play.

How have the design elements helped bring the Antarctic atmosphere into the rehearsal room?

Chris Dobrowolski, the designer, wanted that right from the get-go. We both talked about bringing the Antarctic into the kitchen. Without giving the game away, I think Chris has very obviously, and very beautifully, done that. His visual design complements Michaela Polakova’s composition which also brings the epic into our domestic scene.

The play centres heavily on women’s roles in society and caregiving. Was that always the heartbeat of the story?

Yes. Absolutely.

Touring can completely transform a production. What are you most excited and nervous about when taking Albatross around the country?

We love making and performing the work. We’re proud of it, supremely so, and want people to enjoy and be engaged by it. It’s as simple as that. We’re not really nervous about touring it – obviously as actors, there are nerves before the show, but as a piece, we’re just incredibly grateful to be involved with bringing this piece of writing to life. And it excites us to hear audience reactions – we love it when people come back into the theatre as we’re clearing up to talk to us about the show. What most surprises me is the emotional punch it packs, for so many of our audiences. So many women say that they recognise their relationship with their mother or daughter in there. We’ve had Antarctic researchers who’ve come to see it who connect powerfully with Alice’s experience. Every performance, we hear something new about the show which we hadn’t thought about before.

What do you hope audiences take away on the journey?

We want them to be entertained first and foremost – that’s theatre’s job. We want them to be taken in by the story, by the intensity and hilarity of the relationships, by the questions that the play is asking. And we want them to feel the commitment of Menagerie to creating a new piece of theatre on its very first outing in the world. How exciting is that!

A huge thank you to Patrick Morris for taking the time to speak with us about Albatross. With its timely themes, intimate storytelling, and emotional depth, this is a production that promises to leave audiences thinking long after the curtain falls. Albatross tours the UK until 23 May before its London run at Omnibus Theatre from 26–30 May. Tickets and full tour information can be found via https://www.omnibus-clapham.org/whatson/albatross