Q. Tell us how 'Me Without You' came to be? 

For a long time I’ve been drawn to using voice and speech as a musical starting point for composition. What I mean by this is taking people’s words and the way they say them and treating them as an instrument. This piece began that way too – collecting interviews with people originally on the theme of journey and belonging and then through working with Mella Faye, first as dramaturg and then as writer and director, we dug deep into what the piece was really about. Underneath all the questions I was asking other people we uncovered this secret desire of mine to not only explore other people’s stories but tell my own about my brother, Gus. So gradually it became ‘Me Without You’ – an exploration of grief and what it is to lose someone you love, how our lives are shaped by them and the journey of surviving and continuing living without them.

Q. The production crosses artistic boundaries between music, dance and acting. Where did you begin when the project was first taking shape?

Yes, there are lots of layers! My starting point is always the music, and Mella’s focus was narrative and character arc. We both had a common priority to honour the words and stories of interviewees who form a big part of the show. When casting, we were on the hunt for people who felt comfortable in several roles, even if their comfort zone was primarily in acting, music or movement. Our ethos has been that each element – music, movement, visuals, acting - should either be front and centre, or supportive of the others but never background or sidelined. Also, building a supportive environment to create, rehearse, trust and take risks has been key for us given the subject matter.

'Building a supportive environment to create, rehearse, trust and take risks has been key for us'

Q. Grief can be a difficult and very personal thing to deal with, how did you go about handling the subject matter? 

Yes, extremely personal. As Lyn, one of our interviewees, who’s son Jack died 14 years ago said, ‘You can’t tell people how to grieve. You can tell people how to breastfeed or wean your baby, but you can’t tell people how to grieve.'

We spoke to about 30 people about their experiences of grief – and we tried to incorporate the huge variety of their experiences into the work and some of the ideas and feelings that were somewhat shared too. There are no neat endings, or tying things up with a bow. In a practical sense we built in support structures for both interviewees and the creative team along the way and working in tandem with our 3 co-commissioners (Britten Pears Arts, Opera North and Spitalfields Festival) really helped with this.

For me personally, sharing my story of my brother, Gus and how massive a part he has played in my life and also the impact that his death has had, has been scary and hard at times. But also something I felt I had to do – I realised that to expect other people to trust me and share their stories without doing the same was an imbalance. I take inspiration from their bravery!

Q. Is there a particular part of the piece you enjoy? 

One of my favourite things about the show is that we’ve found a genuine mixture of joy, sadness, humour, fear and safety – this has come from a combination of Mella as writer/director, from the interviewees and their stories, and from the genuine bonds forged between the creative team.

Another highlight has been speaking to the interviewees after the performances – to hear that they have enjoyed the show and approved of how their words and stories have been represented is the most important thing in many ways.

Q. Are you working on anything new you can tell us about?

I’ve got quite a few new projects coming up that I’m really looking forward to: a major new piece for chamber orchestra; a project with Pilot Theatre, who I worked with on A Song for Ella Grey earlier this year (a great company who I’m always happy to work with!), and a new radio project with long-time collaborator, radio producer Beaty Rubens. So, lots of new, exciting challenges ahead!

Me Without You is at Metronome, London on Thursday 4 July as part of Spitalfields Music Festival | More info here.