The healing power of imagination

When Rachel Parish shared a childhood anecdote in a creative workshop, it sparked a series of events and experiences that have culminated in the creation of Superjohn – a family show that's full of adventure and imagination. “Superjohn was in my pre-school class when I was four,” Parish tells me in her quick-talking Louisiana accent “he was a child that was so much fun, always wore a Superman outfit and was just so cool, full of energy. Obviously his name was John but everyone knew him as Superjohn, that was just his name,” she says matter of factly.

“But he’d go away for periods of time and you knew that when was away that he was doing something dangerous. So you were scared for him but you also knew that if anyone could do it, Superjohn could do it because we all believed he had superpowers.” In reality, Superjohn was away from school having treatment for cancer: adopting this additional aspect to his personality was his way of coping.

Parish, Tim Johanson and the team at Firehouse Creative started to explore the role of imagination in dealing with things, and how we all use it in our daily lives. The beginnings of a story emerged, exploring where a child has “a necessity for a deep investment in imagination,” says Parish. “We stuck with that basic frame of the real-life anecdote and then we started drawing influences from a number of old myths, as well as looking at contemporary super hero stories such as X Men and Scott Pilgrim, and built up a new narrative.”

But, as Johansen tells me, creating a play that delved into such an alien subject without really understanding it wasn’t something that the team was willing to do. “We didn’t want to make a play that delved into this world without really understanding it. We did the majority of our work with the Whittington Hospital in North London as well as some medical advisors at Great Ormond Street Hospital.”

Were the medical staff supportive of the request for guidance from this group of artists? “It was exceptionally well received,” smiles Parish. “Whittington’s Pediatric Oncology nurse specialist just opened the doors for us and allowed us to sit in on their weekly clinics. And it was just this whole new world, it’s really unique and it’s absolutely fascinating. You’ve got this massive group of people who are invested in these families, who are woven into their lives; doctors, play workers, nutritionists, psychologists. Everybody would just come in and out and it was very familial and everybody worked simultaneously, but in a way that you didn’t really see when the treatment was happening. It was so networked.”

The team got very involved with the patients, too, running workshops for their whole families and medical professionals which offered them the chance to explore their own creativity. Some of the play's more surreal and fun elements were taken directly from these sessions.

I wonder, after all of their in-depth research, just what sort of show they were left with. Is it a play based in a hospital ward, which could potentially be a rather depressing watch? Johanson is clear: “The word cancer never appears in our play. I’ve never heard the word cancer used in a clinic. It doesn’t mean anything to the kids. All they care about is ‘Why do I have to spend time in a hospital? Why can't I go out with my friends?’ To them it’s a pain in the neck.”

Parish laughs. “We’re not trying to whitewash anything," she says, "but we’ve really told it through the eyes of the children, through imagination. So Superjohn has adventures and fights villains like The Purple Claw and The Blade, there are supernovas and portals that transport him, he has to find the Orb of Invisibility – it’s a real adventure.”

Their hope for the show is that everyone will take something different from it. Parish likens it to the Pixar film Up, with many layers to the story that all ages can enjoy and engage with. “It’s a fun show, the design is kind of Scooby Doo-like with bold colours and it’s very visual.”

But Johanson is interested in getting older kids to see it too. “Although there’s a lot of singing and dancing for the younger kids who will enjoy it at face value, I believe it would be very interesting for eight, nine and ten year olds and upwards who will take something more from it.”

And what of the original Superjohn? Parish tells me: “I heard he grew up to be a graphic artist working on comic books.” Has she been in touch to tell him about the play? “No, no he doesn’t know about it. I absolutely will tell him but I do wonder how I’d frame it: ‘Hi, I was in your pre-school and I’ve made a play about you.’ On one side it could be wonderful and on the other side it could be a little freaky.”