"We are born in terror and trembling. In the face of our terror before the uncontrollable chaos of the universe, we label as much as we can with language in the hopes that once we name something we no longer fear it. This labelling enables us to feel safer but also kills the mystery in what's been labelled, removing the life and danger out of what's been defined. The artist's responsibility is to bring the potential, the mystery and terror, the trembling, back. James Baldwin wrote, "The purpose of art is to lay bare the questions which have been hidden by the answers." The artist attempts to undefine, to present the moment, the word, the gesture as new and full of controlled potential.

I became a theatre director knowing unconsciously that I was going to have to use my own terror in my life as an artist; I had to learn to work in trust and not in fear of the terror. I was relieved to find that the theatre is a useful place to concentrate that energy. Out of the almost uncontrollable chaos of life, I could create a place of beauty and a sense of community. In the most terrible depths of doubt and difficulty, I have found encouragement and inspiration in my collaborations. we have been able to create an atmosphere of grace, intensity and love. I've created a refuge for myself, for actors and for audiences through the metaphor of theatre.

I believe that theatre's function is to remind us of the big human issues, to remind us of our terror and our humanity. In our quotidian lives, we live in constant repetition of habitual patterns. Many of us sleep through our lives. Art should offer experiences that alter these patterns, awaken what is sleep, and remind us of our original terror. Human beings first created theatre in response to the everyday terror of life. From cave drawings to ecstatic dances around numberless fires, from Hedda Gabler raising her pistol to the disintegration of Blanche Dubois, we create hopeful shapes for our distress. I have found that theatre that doesn't address terror has no energy. We create out of fear, not from a place of security and safety. According to the physicist Werner Heisenberg, artist and scientists share a common approach. They enter into their work with one hand firmly grasping specific and the other hand on the unknown. We must trust ourselves to enter the abyss with openness, with trust in ourselves, despite the unbalanced and vulnerability. How do we trust in ourselves, our collaborators and our abilities enough to work within the terror we experience in the moment of entering?

William Hurt, the actor, recently interviewed in the New York Times said, "Those who function out of fear, seek security, those who function out of trust, seek freedom." These two possible agendas dramatically influence the creative process. The atmosphere in the rehearsal hall, therefore, can be imbued with either fear or trust. Are the choices made in rehearsal based on a desire for security or a search for freedom? I am convinced that the most dynamic and thrilling choices are made when there is a trust in the process, in the artists and in the material. The saving grace in one's work is love, trust and a sense of humour; trust in collaborators and the creative act in rehearsal, love for the art and a sense of humour about the impossible task. These are the elements that bring grace into a rehearsal situation and onto stage. In the face of terror, beauty is created and hence, grace.

I want to create theatre that is full of terror, beauty, love and belief in the innate human potential for change. In dreams begin responsibility. How can I begin to work with this spirit? How can I work, not to conquer, but to embrace terror, disorientation and difficulty."

- Anne Bogart