CUBE CULTURE: LIZZI WOOD-VASHISHTHA

What is your profession? How long have you been in this job for?
I am a professionally trained Performer and am the Founder of Hong Kong FUNtertainment company, Glitter and Gore, with more than 17 years on stage and 'behind the scenes' management experience. Professionally, I have worked around the world, from Hotel Entertainment in Egypt to being an Elf in Lapland (Finland). I started my company (and this role) in 2016. Being the head of the business is totally new to me but I love it, I get to make all the FUN decisions - like my title being 'The Director of FUN'! 

Do you have any special places in Taikoo/Quarry Bay, where you wind down/relax?
I actually live in North Point and my husband and I often walk from home to Quarry Bay promenade and along to Sai Wan Ho and back. I find it a great place to reinvigorate the mind and allow fresh ideas in, which is so important when you have a creative job like mine. Sometimes I take my lunch to the promenade too, it's easy to get to from the back of Cityplaza, I sit and watch people go by and enjoy the sea - I come from a seaside town so it reminds me of home!  I love dogs but don't have one here so enjoy petting the dogs I meet there too!

Have you always been interested in performing arts?
ALWAYS! I began ballet classes at the age of 3 years old, followed closely by tap and modern and then street and contemporary at school. I was always in the school shows and even won a school singing competition that was sponsored by Microsoft - we formed a band called XP and recorded an original song at Abbey Road Studios! When it came to uni I struggled to decide whether to focus on theatre or dance. I ended up choosing the uni for it's personality rather than the course and studied Choreography with Performance Art in a prestigious contemporary arts college, Dartington College of Arts, in Devon - it was perfect for me. 

What drove you to audition for Cube Culture?
A friend of mine, who had worked with Lindsey before, tagged me in a post that Lindsey had posted on Facebook. As the Youth Arts Foundation normally works with under 25's I'm normally too old to work with the legends, that are, at YAF - so I grasped this opportunity whilst I could!! I also, mostly, socialise with people within the theatre/arts circle in Hong Kong and was interested to meet new people and build a new network of friends with similar interests. 

What is your favorite/most memorable part of this project?
As a performer and business founder within the same industry it’s been amazing to work with Lindsey and to experience first hand how a (self proclaimed) theatre goddess works as the pinnacle of the YAF team. I believe we learn from every experience; no matter how big or small, good or bad, and from this amazing project I have learned a great deal that I will carry away with me. 

The most memorable 'moment', however, has to be when Lindsey and Anca first played the David Attenborough VO to us. With 5 minutes to go to the end of the rehearsal Lindsey sat us down and casually told us that this would be played at the start of the show. During that previous week she'd told us that if we didn't know who David Attenborough was to look him up, so when his voice started it was no real surprise but I thought it was going to be sections from things he'd said previously spliced together to create the text Linsdey wanted. When he seamlessly mentioned the 'Cubicles' in 'Tai Koo' and 'Quarry Bay' my jaw dropped and my eyes filled up with the realisation that he was a part of this project! I was completely shocked and super excited at the same time! 

What’s been the biggest challenge?
I guess it has to be attending all the rehearsals and shows alongside running Glitter and Gore. It’s the first time, since launching the company, that I’ve done such a large production outside of Glitter and Gore. I actually run my business single handedly; although I do have freelancers to help on particular projects sometimes, it’s all down to me to keep pushing things forward.
I’m currently busy working on, officially, launching our children’s birthday party service. During production week we had rehearsals/shows every day for 9 days straight (including 2 full weekend days)! It took a lot of energy and motivation to keep on top of everything towards the end of that 9 day stint but, of course, I loved every second of it!

If you were to use an animal to describe your character in the office, what would it be?
A puppy; always interested in the FUN stuff! I’m always interested in what other people are doing and love chatting. I work in a co-working space and I always greet and chat to everyone, just like an excitable puppy - apart from I mostly don't lick people's faces or demand to be stroked!

What’s your favourite musical?
Ghost! I've seen it a billion times, though I was a bit disappointed with the tour version I saw in Macau, it just didn’t have the same spark as the London show. I used to spend a lot of time dreaming about which musical I’d see next but these days I’m much more excited about immersive theatre. Immersive theatre is where the audience is part of the action, part of the performance - it’s so much FUN!

The aim with my company, Glitter and Gore, is to be able to bring the same kind of grand scale immersive experiences that are being produced in the likes of the UK and America to Hong Kong. The production budget required is huge so I’m making small steps with annual Halloween and Christmas experiences teamed with interactive entertainment for corporate events, birthday parties and a bespoke service too. The aim is to keep building up towards those amazing experiences!!