London, 12th of May 2026

👋 Greetings, dear readers.

I’ve learned from dozens of people throughout my life, different individuals who, piece by piece, helped me develop into the professional I’ve become. However, there’s a clear distinction between those who pass on knowledge that help us with performing a specific role and those who really fan our fire and help us commit to it. That is what mentoring looks to me.

I could count on one hand the figures in my life who have had a clear and impactful mentoring role, even if I were a Ninja Turtle. When it comes to applied theatre and theatre in education, that role goes to Tomás Motos. Sadly, Tomás passed away last Sunday, leaving me with a storm of racing thoughts and memories inside my head. And my heart.

Tomás was an eminent figure in the field of theatre pedagogy, a prolific author of books and academic papers, and even a couple of plays. To many, myself included, he was the dealer of the 'gateway drug' for making meaningful and impactful art, using theatre as a tool for social change.

I first met him when he was directing the Postgraduate in Theatre in Education. He showed us how theatre can be a vehicle for transformation, introducing us to tools such as Theatre of the Oppressed and… Playback Theatre, changing and defining my life since then.

Although always from a scholar position, he wanted València to have a Playback Theatre company, so, when he learnt I was an improviser, he invited me to be part of Teatro Playback Inestable. He made me fall in love with playback, setting me on a journey that is still going.

I have so many memories shared with him from that time: long road trips to gatherings, mentoring sessions while he was supervising my Master’s dissertation, and, of course, Playback Theatre rehearsals and performances.

When I graduated with my Master’s in Applied Theatre, he told me he admired my ambition and drive for Playback Theatre. I took those words to heart. Our last encounter was in October 2024, when I attended a Playback performance for his current students. From the teller’s chair I was able to share my story, about how happy I am in London, putting everything he taught me about theatre in education into practice.

I truly hope he knew his work mattered and impacted, not only mine, but so many lives.

Dear readers, treasure your mentors.

Love to you all. 🫶

🎭 The Theatre bit

I was familiar with the show and some of its songs, but I never had the chance to attend a performance of Next to Normal. Last week, I enjoyed a fantastic recording of it from its recent revival in London’s West End.

Mental health is not a usual topic to tackle in musical theatre, so it was no surprise that this 2008 piece by Brian Yorkey and Tom Kitt rocked the United States during its rise to Broadway.

The story revolves around Diana, a woman juggling her roles as a wife and mother while living with a mental health condition that professionals have struggled to diagnose. The musical is emotionally deep and can be gut-wrenching; it explores themes that may be triggering for some, so viewer discretion is strongly advised. However, if you decide to get in, you won’t regret it.

📆 What is coming up

• 🇪🇸 14th of May - Adrià y Amigues (València, Spain). I’ll be back in my hometown doing improv with dear friends. It’s been a while since I’ve done it in my native language, curious about how it’ll be. More info here. 😁

• 🇬🇧 15th to 17th of May - Acaprov at The Brighton Fringe (Brighton, UK). I’m going to be in Spain during this year’s Brighton Fringe but I encourage you to enjoy a batch of improvised musicals at the Brighton Fringe by the hand of my dear friends of the Acaprov cast. Check dates and tickets.

• 🇬🇧 5th to 7th of June - “Is the Personal Story Political?” (London, UK). At True Heart Theatre, we are hosting a Level 2 training led by Michele Chung, focusing on the political dimension of long-form stories in Playback Theatre. Info and registration here.

• 🇬🇧 12th of June - Acaprov at Shoreditch Balls (London, UK). Join us once again for a brand-new improvised musical. What kind of inspiration will we find with summer within reach? Tickets here.

• 🇧🇬 20th-21st of June - Level 2 Playback Theatre Training (Varna, Bulgaria). Excited for going to Bulgaria for the first time to deliver my “Honouring Stories with your Voice” intensive. Looking forward to meeting the Playback Theatre community in Varna. Info here.

📚 🎮 🎥 📺 The geeky dessert

It’s very rare for me to get a game on release, but last week Mixtape took the internet by storm, sparking a debate about what makes a game a game. Being an affordable independent title, I had to dive in.

Mixtape isn't defined by its gameplay, but by its story, a coming-of-age one. Set in the 1990s, the title refers to the way the main character, Stacy, experiences her teenage years and relationships through a selection of different music tracks. A very well curated one, I must add.

The way we experience Stacy’s world is defined through a selection of different songs, spanning artists like The Cure, Devo, Smashing Pumpkins, and Joy Division, among others.

The visual style is on par with titles like K-Pop Demon Hunters, Arcane, or the Spider-Verse movies, opting for a pseudo stop-motion flair that makes it feel like an interactive movie more than a game. Hence the debate it sparked.

It doesn’t matter if it's a game or a multimedia experience; Mixtape is a nostalgia trip for Millennials and Gen Xers that makes us long for our youth. Good story, good characters, good style, and good music definitely can grant a good time.

It is available on all the major gaming platforms.