Meet the Parents: Interview with Erin James and Matt Crook

We spoke with Matt Crook and Erin James, the stars of the upcoming Welcome to Your New Life by Anna Goldsworthy, about the development of the world premiere play with music and their own personal experiences of new parenthood.

As a parent yourself, what do you relate to the most in your character?

There are so many elements within Anna’s journey of pregnancy and parenthood which resonate with me. I don’t think there is a way to separate the expansive relevance of her words into one bite-sized moment of connection. It’s all relevant. It’s all connected. Because underpinning the character is all of the inbuilt anxiety and pressure which accompanies the fierce and unfaltering protection of one’s child. That’s universal. Navigating new emotions, new expectations and new relationships. That’s universal. Coming to terms with the fact that becoming a parent immediately exposes us to a kind of emotional vulnerability that no ‘expert’ advice can prepare us for. That’s universal.

(Perhaps though, upon reflection: attempting to balance perfectionism, artistic endeavour and the chaos of sleep deprivation and parenting is a specific correlation which has struck me most during the rehearsal process for this character!)

The best and worst pieces of advice you received before becoming a parent?

BEST: There is no such thing as perfect
WORST: There are too many to list! Everyone’s an expert.

What gave you the most anxiety before becoming a parent?

I think now that I can reflect on it, the anxiety was caused by the ‘unknown’. The dreadful speculative fiction I could create in my mind. But at the time, I was reticent to let myself focus too far into the future – my dreams and hopes for my first born – because I didn’t want to.

What’s the funniest thing you dealt with while navigating first-time parenthood?

Every day brings its own challenges and with the benefit of hindsight, most of those challenges are amusing now. However, being cumulatively showered in baby vomit, then wee and then a poo explosion while holding three bags and pulling a pram to a second-floor apartment as I returned home for the first time with my first born still makes it to the shortlist.

Which moment in the show has been the most fun to rehearse so far?

Probably the composting toilet scene. It’s a doozy.

As a parent yourself, what do you relate to the most in Anna/Nicholas?

As a parent, both Anna and Nicholas are at times very relatable.

Anna’s hyper-vigilance as a first-time parent feels very familiar (it’s uncomfortable, but I’m far enough removed from it that I can laugh about it now).

At one point during the play, Anna fixates on the idea that her mother’s cat may mistake her 3-month-old for a cushion. I too remember having similar thoughts whenever we’d set up Finn in his port-a-cot at friend’s houses. If there were cats there, I’d always double check the door was latched shut to make sure they couldn’t get in. I’d read somewhere on some spurious website that they were attracted to the warmth of a baby and may sit on them… while they slept. I quietly carried that factoid with me for the first two years of his life.

In contrast, the wonderful, delirious and entirely one-sided love and infatuation that Anna and Nicholas hold for their newborn son feels equally familiar. You’re aware there is an element of evolution and survival at play… but you do become a little obsessed. Your child occupies your thoughts day and night or as Anna puts it their “eyes occupy your entire field of vision and they vacuum you into their world”.

The best and worst pieces of advice you received before becoming a parent?

Best advice: sleep while you can. Take every day as it comes and where you can, enjoy every precious moment because the time truly slips through your fingers.

Worst advice: it wasn’t so much advice as it was setting up unrealistic expectations (mostly originating from social media) of what was achievable with a baby.

What gave you the most anxiety before becoming a parent?

Probably a combination of the health and wellbeing of our unborn child and the looming threat of loss of identity. My work as an artist feels so tethered to my identity and although I didn’t know what to expect, I was concerned about how that would change and what I would lose.

It turns out that what I have lost in time to spend on projects I have gained in experience, empathy and emotion.

What’s the funniest thing you dealt with while navigating first-time parenthood?

Leaving out anything nappy related… being a parent for the first time has introduced me to the wonderful world of a child’s developing, idiosyncratic vocabulary.

My son was an endless font of unique phrases and takes on the English language.

Some of our personal favourites include “Special Preats”(Special Treats) “Muskit” (Music) inherited from his cousin and Ettamamade, pronounced Etta Mah Made (Edamame).

My favourite quote of his was when he earnestly asked: “ Does that mean I’m a herbivore now?” (After eating a soursob).

Which moment in the show has been the most fun to rehearse so far?

I have the pleasure of playing Lavinia, a rather staunch Lactation consultant and an amalgamation of two characters from an older draft. Her training session is a lot of fun. She’s a lark!