To celebrate the beginning of the workshop for No Justice No Peace, we reached out to Kyng Rose, to hear about their new project, influences, and what inspires them as an artist.
Photo: Samantha Blake
What brought you to work in theatre? So to be honest I really didn’t like theatre up until recently - because it never felt like it was for me. I couldn’t relate to the characters on stage, to the stories I was exposed to and the way of acting. But I was cast randomly in a play by Sophie Gee called ‘Levriers’, a play which is based on the true stories of the actors in it and it changed my life. I felt almost betrayed because as an artist who doesn’t have the resources to produce expensive projects like movies, I was presented with a way to show stories that was affordable yet so inaccessible to people like me. And I guess that’s why I started making theatre. Cause I realized I could tell a super hero story without a Marvel budget and help bring the representation I needed as a child to find in love with the medium. What do you think will interest young audiences in the Blxck Cxsper universe? It’s like the Marvel universe except the heroes are actually relatable and sensitive topics aren’t just brushed over, they’re at the very centre of the story. If you had a super power what would it be? I already have a super power, I’m autistic! I can learn things very fast and my creativity knows no limit. I’m constantly surprising myself. But like any super power, if I don’t take care of myself and learn how to control it, it can be very destructive. That’s why I’m always making sure that my mental health is being prioritized. What are things or people that have inspired you recently? These days I’ve been getting super inspired by the tv show adaptation The Last Of Us. I was already a big fan of the video games and I’m fascinated by how beautifully they’ve developed the story in the show. Something I aim to do with the Blxck Cxsper universe is to make violence impactful, you rarely see it but you can feel it and feel its impact on the world and its characters. I think its something The Last Of Us excels at so I’ve been taking notes... What’s your hype up anthem? It changes every few months but right now I have the last Aya Nakamura album playing on repeat. The queen never fails!