Future actors need to be adaptable, curious and committed to continuous learning
Crises in the cultural sector have radically transformed actors’ job fields. Lecturer Anu Almagro is currently working for a project that is looking for tools that promote a sustainable future.
Cuts in the cultural sector, the COVID pandemic, the #MeToo movement, digitalisation and artificial intelligence have all shaken up actors’ work environments in recent years. Changes and crises have raised concern over actors’ coping resources and professional wellbeing, in particular.
Initiated by Professor Elina Knihtilä at Uniarts Helsinki’s Theatre Academy, the Sustainable Actor project addresses these challenges by giving students and professionals in the field the chance to voice their views, with a heavily future-oriented focus.
Artist Anu Almagro joined the project after recently taking on a lecturer position at the Theatre Academy. “The Sustainable Actor project delves into and surveys the work environments, career paths and dreams of actors as we’re heading towards the 2030s,” she summarises.
Almagro describes her own career with words like “fragmented” and “international”: she has worked as an actor, acting teacher and director in Poland and as a visiting lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University and Zurich University of the Arts. Almagro found her spark for pursuing theatre at Kallio Upper Secondary School of Performing Arts, and she later graduated with a Master of Arts (Theatre and Drama) degree from the University of Tampere.
Almagro recounts how she took a particular professional liking to the Polish ensemble theatre tradition, which has reinforced her belief in how significant a holistic and psychophysical approach is in acting.
“My most vivid memories of working in Poland as an actor involve the extremely physical and emotional way of expression and the strong presence of music in each work I was part of. The Polish ensemble theatre tradition emphasises a collaborative way of doing things, which for me has been the key to falling in love with this job,” Almagro explains.
Securing a lecturer position at Uniarts Helsinki brought Almagro back to Finland – here, she got to fulfil her dream of a Finnish workplace community and getting to observe the diverse facets of students’ growth journeys.
During her career, Almagro has gained first-hand experiences of how important it is for actors to take care of their own energy resources. She finds that themes of sustainability resonate personally with all artists, in fact.
“Artists are observant to these themes. Not only that, but they can act as pioneers in building a better world, as long as they have enough energy and mental resources for it,” Almagro says.
Cuts in the cultural sector undermine sustainability
Continuous cuts in the cultural sector weaken the structures that underpin sustainability. “Sustainability relies on sustainable structures, but right now they’re being undermined. This is also reflected on the entire Sustainable Actor project,” Almagro notes.
Weaker structures affect actors’ job opportunities, planning for future and lives in general in a comprehensive way. The Sustainable Actor project strives to find out what kind of an impact the ongoing changes and crises in the field have on actors.
“Our goal is to use a national questionnaire to map out what’s happening in the field from the point of view of actors and to come up with solutions that will improve their wellbeing at work. In our role as an arts university, we want to spark an open discussion and provide support for the field with all these drastic changes going on,” Almagro says.
She argues that people should recognise the role of artistry in changes and in building sustainability more effectively than currently is the case.
“Purely making and experiencing art is enough to strengthen our social sustainability, which is something that goes hand in hand with ecological and financial sustainability, too. The more we support the arts, the more sustainable nation we’re building.”
Curiosity makes it easier to adapt to changes
Students, too, have been given the chance to discuss issues of sustainability. In autumn 2024, a master’s seminar at the Theatre Academy delved into the theme of sustainability from various points of view, which were defined by acting students themselves.
“The evening ended in a discussion, and as I was listening to the students talk, I felt immense gratitude over how multifaceted and profound these soon-to-be master’s graduates were in how they viewed and experienced their work environments and themselves as operators in them and how they have the desire, ability and understanding needed for making the work culture in the field more transparent and sustainable,” Almagro says.
Topics that came up in the seminar discussions included future prospects in the cultural sector, financial uncertainty, as well as global crises such as the COVID pandemic, climate change and wars. The plan is to expand the discussion into a dialogue between alumni and students, with the hope of opening up new perspectives into working sustainably as an actor.
Because the educational sector and job fields that actors operate in are in constant upheaval, keeping up with the changes requires adaptability and a curious mindset. Although some of the changes are very taxing, it is important not to adopt an attitude that is negative towards changes by default.
“Curiosity is an important characteristic for actors in the future, as it makes them capable of accepting and working alongside changes and seeing the ever-changing world as full of opportunities,” Almagro notes. She also highlights the importance of continuous learning as a tool for being inspired by changes.
Humanity and encounter are the core of acting
Even though the field is changing and facing new challenges, including in relation to digitalisation and artificial intelligence, Almagro believes and hopes that connecting to one another as actual human beings will always remain at the core of acting.
“Actors convey emotions and experiences that people have been through. It’s important to be aware of one’s personal vocal and bodily instrument and how it can be used for working sustainably,” she points out.
The Sustainable Actor project explores precisely these fundamentals of being human by offering tools and platforms that help actors to maintain their energy resources both mentally and physically. This way, actors can feel that their work is meaningful and sustainable even amid changes.
Staying true to her professional background, Almagro hopes that psychophysical, embodied and human aspects continue to be emphasised in acting – that theatre stays a place where people see and connect to one another as fellow human beings.
Text: Vilma Ripatti
Photo: Petri Summanen