Interview: Joanne Wacha (actor) and Tom Walker (Chair, Abney Park Trust)

Tom: Tell me how you got into being an actor.

Joanne: So I started doing community theatre with an organisation called Public Acts they were in collaboration with the National Theatre.  So I started doing Shakespeare's As You Like It. 

This was more for fun. Well actually, if I'm honest, I didn't really have anything to do in the summer of 2019 and I was doing a drama workshop and one of the workshop leaders said “oh you're quite good at this, we do something in the summer called Public Acts would you like to do it?”  

So I thought ‘alright that sounds like something to do for the day’. That's nice… not knowing it was a full on almost West End type production!  

It was absolutely awesome. It was brilliant. I knew then: I like this acting stuff. I need to do more. 

It so happened that in the audience was the CEO of Graeae Theatre Company.  She’s big in the disabled arts game. For example she produced the opening ceremony of the paralympics in London. And after the show she met up with me and we chatted and then she asked “do you want to be part of our production and our theatre company?”  They took me on. And I've done some voice stuff for them.  And then in Steph Gill from the Abney Park Trust was looking for a voice actor who was blind to narrate Harriet’s story.  

Tom: You started that as an adult?  You didn't do child acting?

Joanne: No I didn’t do child acting.  The only thing I could tell you: number one, I loved doing drama at school.  

But as a person who acquired a disability I didn't know acting was something I wanted to do. I liked it but it wasn't what I was aiming to do. I was aiming to be a journalist.  Or do sports. 

Then I acquired my disability and I was like “oh my God what am I gonna do?”. 

Drama was really cool but I always thought, there’s no way there's anything available there for me. 

I am a wheelchair user. 

I have visual impairment.  

I was a lead role in my primary school production as a non disabled person, and I thought I might be able to do this.  But my dreams kind of got shattered when I became disabled. I just thought it was “no way”.  

There’s no way there’s anything available for me to do drama in.  And then 2019 As You Like It then Public Acts came and there was something I could do.  And then it was like ‘oh… maybe there is stuff I can do’. 

Tom: What is it about Harriet’s story that inspired you?

Joanne: Well, I didn't know who she was. I’ve never heard of her.  So it wasn't any inspiration in terms of ‘oh there’s this person called Harriet’.  I was like… this is a nice gig…  that’s cool.

And then…. I started reading the script and I thought this is a really nice script.  This is actually better than nice.  Can I really do this….?  This is quite an important lady and influential woman, from Hackney, a headmistress.  Blind.  I thought ‘oh my goodness…. They want me to voice this…?’  Oh man. 

The first inspiration was she was a headmistress.  She had achieved a lot before that anyway but I think it was the living with her friend Frankie, but also, earning her own wage, using the stick to get around England in the Empire Days.  She talks about the railway train getting in her way.  It’s just so brave.  Now… that would not happen.  There are so many things we are doing to petition against things getting in our way, like electric cars, having a little bit of noise so we know when they are coming.

But she overcomes it.  She gets to work.  Using the stick.  Braille hadn’t even been introduced when she was born.  She was one of the first people to use Braille in England.  

But what inspires me most is making her own way.  Making her own way.  She didn’t realise she wanted to be a teacher until she got a scholarship.  I feel a bit like myself: I didn’t realise that I would be able to do my acting until somebody saw something I could do.  I didn’t know that was available.  

We both made our way to our love.  Her love for teaching and my love for other people’s lives and bringing them to life.  She too brought love to her pupils helping them to be what they wanted.

What else?  Her friendship.  She had so many friends that she loved and she leaned on.  They helped her.  Even when there were dark times.  I was asked a question during  the launch event: “Harriet seemed really really happy, do you think it was like that?”  

Actually I think it was. But there were sad times for example during the war and her friends and her need for support.  I think she was honest: you know what, we’ll get through, but it is damn hard.  Life is damn hard.  She still got by but with support.  We all need support.

Tom: How do you manage to learn the script when you can’t read visually?

Joanne: So we all do it differently.  My way is really different because I can't read Braille due to medical reasons. Although I have a feeling that Harriet would probably snap it into me and figure out other ways I could read Braille.  I could see her doing that.  

So I have to have darn a good memory.  But the other way is that the person who may be a director or who has written the script (or a support worker or access worker)... we will read through it together.  

So I would've read it say one hundred times and I would get to know that script very, very well.  Not necessarily to know it off hand, because it is a lot of pages.  But I would know it very well.  

Know the story.  

Be the actor.  

Immerse myself into it so when it comes to me and whoever I’m working with I have an idea of what’s going to come ahead.  

They will read a couple of lines and I’ll read them back in my acting way, reflecting the mood.  For Harriet we had a sound engineer there at the same time who could add the breaks and pauses and making it sound good.  It takes longer, but that is what is needed for me to be at my best.  The people around me and support me have got to be on it as well.  Maybe the more I get into this I’ll find different ways but for now, that’s how!

Tom: Then just back to Harriet's life, why is it important to record the lives of visually impaired historic figures?

Joanne: Because we’re part of history.  Just like any other historical figure.  Disabled people are part of history.  I don’t think I need to say anymore.  We are part of history.

Tom: My final question Joanne is what is your message to aspiring actors who either have lost their sight or have a disability?

Joanne: If you're an actor who has a disability or has sight loss: do it!  Keep finding the work.  Put yourself out there.  Tell people.  For a good time I didn’t tell people “this is what I think I can do”, this is what I like to do, because I was worried that people would think I wouldn’t be able to do it.  And to be honest with you, there are a lot of people out there who I know and love who didn’t think I could do it.  And you know what, I am doing it.  I’ve done it!

If you want to try it out: try it out.  Find your allies.  Find the people who can support you. 

We’ve got a lot more disabled actors out there.  Reach out to fellow disabled people and friends.  To theatre companies.  In Britain we have theatre companies in every area.  Reach out to them.  See what they are doing.  Lend your voice to them.  

And you know what, I was told, watch as many shows as you can and get inspired by the show… reach out to that producer… perhaps they have something for you.  Let them know that you enjoyed it, why you enjoyed it and what you might get out of that.