About the Artist and Commission

Tom Jackson Greaves is a theatre director based in the UK - specialising in creating cross-art-form, collaborative work with movement at its heart. He has a background in contemporary dance and after training at The Place, developed his craft through working as a performer with companies including New Adventures and Kneehigh Theatre. This work lead him to become interested in joyful, narrative storytelling and he has spent the last decade developing his voice as a maker.

Drawing on world-leading interdisciplinary research currently being conducted into critical minerals, sustainable mining and environmental and social justice at the University of Exeter, Tom was based at the Penryn campus in Cornwall for a four-month intensive creative research, development and public engagement process between April-July 2023.

Commissioned by Arts and Culture, University of Exeter and supported by Cornwall based imPOSSIBLE Producing, the project focused on Cornwall’s unique history and future as a global innovator, and saw Tom collaborate with Geologists, Mineralogists, Geographers, and Politics and Humanities academics, who are world-leading experts in their fields, to engage local communities and those further afield.

Taking inspiration from his experiences as a Cornish millennial and working with a team of creative collaborators, Tom fed in the voices of experts and local communities to create 'All That Glitters', a solo live performance performed at the historic East Pool Mine, National Trust in July 2023.

You can discover more about how the process unfolded by watching the short documentary film below.

Research and Development Period

For the early weeks of the commission, the team have focused on talking to academics from the University, including researchers from the Camborne School of Mines and Department for Humanities and Social Sciences.

Alongside this, Tom and the creative team have been travelling around Cornwall with day trips to the Luxulyan Valley, St Dennis and Meadow Barns (Mining and Heritage Centre). Tom has also visited Cornish Lithium to discover more about the work they do and made trips to South Crofty Mine and East Pool Mine where he took part in an all-day bootcamp with Will Coleman from Golden Tree Productions.

Student Workshop

In early June, Tom and Kyla ran a workshop and discussion with Exeter and Falmouth students on the Penryn campus. Together they shared their thoughts, feelings and understanding on the subject of critical minerals.

All That Glitters - The Show

All That Glitters was performed at the miner's dry at the historic East Pool Mine National Trust near Redruth, on Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13 July 2023.

Fiercely fabulous and funny, the show combined two storylines; Tom's personal journey growing up in Cornwall, and that of the newly in demand mineral, Lithium. The piece unfolded through fast paced storytelling, lip syncs, video projection, atmospheric soundscapes and dance to offer an entertaining new perspective on a complex subject matter that many of us are only just discovering.

Creative Collaborators

Kyla Goodey - Co-Director and Collaborator

Kyla is working with Tom during the research and development period and will co-directing the final performance. Kyla is an actor, director, writer and choreographer based in Cornwall. She trained at Desmond Jones School of Mime and Physical Theatre and Clowning with Mick Barnfather. She has performed throughout the U.K and Internationally with various companies. She is creative director of Trifle Gathering Productions.

Anna Maria Murphy - Story Collector, Co-Writer and Collaborator

Anna Maria Murphy will work with Tom and the team researching stories, creating text and collaborating on community events. Anna is writer, playwright, artist and poet. She has extensively with Kneehigh Theatre and written shows for them including Tristan & Yseult (with Carl Grose), The Red Shoes, Don John, and Midnight’s Pumpkin. She also led the Kneehigh Rambles programme, working with young people and communities and co-runs The Story Republic, part of KEAP.

Ciaran Clarke - Sound Collector and Artist

Ciaran is working with Tom and the team on collecting and editing sound for interviews and site visits to create a sound scape for the show. He is a theatre maker and sound designer, living and working in Cornwall. He has worked with Miracle Theatre, Wildworks, Kneehigh, o-region, frequently collaborates with stand-up comedians and has created audio programmes for BBC Radio 4, BBC Studios, and Dave. He is also a Lecturer across the Theatre courses in AMATA at Falmouth University.

Joshua Pharo - Lighting Design and Video Projection

Joshua has been working on lighting and projection design for the show. Joshua has been working as a lighting and video designer since 2011, following graduating from Rose Bruford College in 2010. He has previously won two awards at the Theatre and Technology Awards 2018; Creative Innovation in Lighting Design for THE CLAIM at Shoreditch Town Hall and Creative Innovation in Video Projection Design for THE SHAPE OF THE PAIN at Battersea Arts Centre. He was also shortlisted for a Knight of Illumination award for my work on THE SHAPE OF THE PAIN at Battersea Arts Centre and REMOVAL MEN at The Yard in 2017.

About Critical Minerals

The world is increasingly dependent on critical raw materials for nearly all renewable energy technologies that we need for our drive to NetZero. These materials are also key components for our everyday tech products including our laptops and phones. It’s crucial, therefore, that we can ensure the availability, sustainability and affordability of these vital resources.

Cornwall has a distinct viewpoint into these important issues. Its unique geological landscape contains one of the five largest lithium enriched granites in the world. The experience of Cornwall as a place of mining is deeply engrained at all levels, from the toxicity of the soil and wastewater after past mining exploits, to the cultural, social and heritage makeup and identity of its communities. Advanced plans for tin and lithium mining in Cornwall offer the opportunity to invest in innovation and sustainable mining practices on UK soil. But we also need to explore the contemporary relationships between mining and communities in greater depth, including questions of land use, place, meaning and equity.

Discover more using the links below:

• Countryfile Episode - BBC One - Underground Britain
• Lucy Crane from Cornish lithium - Mining Our Way to a Low Carbon Future, TEDxTruro
• James Churchfield - 25 years since South Crofty closed on BBC Sounds
• Resilience for the Future: The UK's Critical Minerals Strategy
• Critical Minerals Association Website
• News article - The Green Revolution Could Make Cornwall a Mining Capital Again
• The Institute of Cornish Studies - University of Exeter
• Visit the Penryn campus Special Collections and Archives Team. The archives include the Camborne School of Mines Archive, Cornish Poetry Collection, The Institute of Cornish Studies Records as well as performance related archives including Kneehigh, Wildworks and Dartington Arts Special Collections.

About Our Arts Commissions

Our annual Arts Commissions offer support for artists, working in any medium, to take inspiration from the university and develop new work. Alongside 'Critical Minerals' we will also be collaborating with a number of partners on a second commission called 'Musical Passage' which will be announced shortly.