Sue Caudle, DIY’s Artistic Director

Photo of DIY’s Artistic Director Sue Caudle giving a presentation on her doctorate thesis.

Sue giving a presentation on her doctorate thesis at the ‘A Question of Leadership Conference’ in 2018

Sue has been DIY’s Artistic Director almost since DIY began.

We asked Sue some questions about herself:

Tell us one of your favourite things about DIY Theatre Co.

The amazing people involved as actors, artists – the company is all about the people involved.

Tell us one of the things you are most proud of doing at DIY.

I’m really proud of how the DIY community – the members and artists and everyone else involved – responded to the Covid Pandemic – with such a high level of commitment and energy and creativity.

I was really proud of the collaborative projects DIY managed to create early on in the Pandemic – like the film ‘I Wish Everything Was Back to Normal!’ and our ‘Always Connecting’ song. (Visit I Wish Everything Was Back to Normal! show page to watch. For me they really expressed and shared what people were experiencing and feeling during a really challenging and unsettling time.

What else do you do, outside of DIY?

I am a freelance drama worker so I work with other groups. I also do training, research and evaluation for other organisations.

What motto do you live by?

Be the change you wish to see in the world

Tell us about a piece of performance or visual art that has inspired you.

A number of performances by Learning Disability Theatre Companies have inspired me over the years. Too many to mention but some stand-outs are:
  • An amazing show by Strathcona Theatre Company in the 1990s called “Change of Heart” that was all about a young woman who needed a heart and lung transplant but was refused by British  surgeons because she had learning disabilities. It was moving but also beautifully celebratory.
  • A really stunning piece of theatre by The Shysters called “Scary Antics”, again in the late 1990s, which was full of atmosphere, movement and theatricality.
  • A site specific performance by Back to Back Theatre called “Small Metal Objects”  in around 2007, which I saw  at Stratford East Station in London. The show took place on the busy station concourse and the audience experienced  it through headphones.

What makes you smile?

Walking along a coastal path in the sunshine.