Alexander, Catherine (2010) Complicite - The Elephant Vanishes (2003/4) - 'The Elephant and Keeper Have Vanished Completely...They Will Never Be Coming Back'. In: Making Contemporary Theatre: International Rehearsal Processes. Theatre: Theory, Practice, Performance . Manchester University Press, Manchester, pp. 59-81. ISBN 9780719074929

Abstract

I have spent much of my working life in the intense environment of Complicite rehearsals and workshops but I still find it nearly impossible to reconstruct the development of each show. The nature of any creative process is that you constantly make and discard: the act of forgetting is as important as that of remembering. As soon as a day, week or month of rehearsal is over, the memory of the process vanishes and you only take forward the vital elements for the performance. Simon McBurney has written about his work over the years but frequently in retrospect where the process can be remembered in a seamless way. For this chapter on 'The Elephant Vanishes' I have returned to my copious notes and rehearsal diaries in an attempt to reflect the creative chaos of the day-to-day work and describe the shape of the creative process from within.