Meet Clove Love

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Clove Love a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Clove, sincerely appreciate your selflessness in agreeing to discuss your mental health journey and how you overcame and persisted despite the challenges. Please share with our readers how you overcame. For readers, please note this is not medical advice, we are not doctors, you should always consult professionals for advice and that this is merely one person sharing their story and experience.

There was a point in my life, not long ago, where I was my absolute biggest hater. No matter how hard I tried, or how successful I was, I did not believe I deserved the opportunities that crossed my path, I did not believe I was good enough. I would tell myself I was a burden and didn’t have anything to contribute to my field. I told myself that my art and creativity would not make an impact. It wasn’t until my Sophomore year of Undergrad that I discovered I just wasn’t doing what truly sparked joy within my soul. I found my love for directing live theatre, and soon my hatred for myself turned into awe. It was ethereal the love I held for myself when I realized what I was meant to do with my life; Advocate and Lead.

I began finding opportunities and funding within my school’s Performing and Visual Arts College that helped expand and create a robust Directing program and funding for student directors at my alma mater for years to come. I also discovered Intimacy Professionalism in Theatre, which aids productions with choreographing intimate scenes while maintaining the actors boundaries. I helped to introduce and continue this work at my alma mater, changing the way faculty and students approach intimate scenes in mainstages, student productions, and class assignments. I learned in my last two years of my Theatre B.A. that I needed to pour into myself, love myself, and support myself. I cannot rely on other people for love and support. Yes, it is great when people want to love and support me, and I am forever grateful to those that have been there for me, but I found if this is my only source of love and support, I can fall into a deep mental hole if that love and support disappears. This happened my senior year of college, leaving me with feelings of abandonment, worthlessness, and betrayal. It took me years to recover and convince myself once more that I deserved to be alive, and even more so, that I deserved to create art.

Finding love for myself is one of the more difficult things I have done in my life. It’s still a process and I am still building love for myself to this day. In the last year, I have found that the most important thing you can do it sit down with yourself and analyze your morals, boundaries, aspirations, and dreams, and then stand up for them no matter how uncomfortable it may feel. I have discovered that I must advocate for myself before I can advocate for others. That, although I am full to the brim with generosity, I need to have discernment in who receives that generosity. I’ve learned to wear my heart in my eyes and ears rather than on my sleeve, believing in actions, words, and reality, rather than my hope of good intentions. Practicing self-love has been life and mind-changing. It has given me the ability to stop taking things personally and truly focus on myself and what I am trying to build in my lifetime. It feels like I’m meeting myself for the first time in my life. And I love every second.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I am a Multidisciplinary Theatre Artist based in Denver, CO. My expertise includes Stage Directing, Intimacy Directing, Teaching, Stage Managing, Producing, Dramaturgy, Playwriting, and Arts Administration work. I am a Director first, but enjoy taking on multiple roles within productions, because it allows me to work on as many shows as I do. This year (2024) I have worked on a total of 17 shows. Out of these, I directed 4, assistant directed 4, intimacy directed 8, stage managed 3, and was the playwright for 1. In addition to productions, I also worked with 3 Arts Organizations this year as a Front of House Representative, House Manager, and Program Coordinator. I enjoy collaborating with theatrical companies in whatever way is available to me and aligns with my skills.

Intimacy Direction is also a huge part of my career. Although new to the world of theatre, intimacy direction is necessary to ensure the safety of all involved in intimate scenes. Intimacy Professionalism also acknowledges the power dynamics between actors and director, and works to alleviate this pressure that actors have to please the director or avoid getting let go. This is particularly apparent in high school theatre departments. These young students can often feel pressured, embarrassed, or distressed going into appropriate intimacy (such as a hug, kiss, hand holding, etc.). These intimacy protocols can extend to Theatre in academia to support and enforce student boundaries, alleviate pressure or embarrassment, and provide options to educational directors that will help them tell the story effectively while maintaining student boundaries. I am taking these ideas to the Colorado Thespian Conference in December, where I will present 6 workshops to middle and high school students and educators about the importance of proper intimacy protocols for not just professional actors, but students that are participating in shows or scenes in class. It is my mission to begin implementing these practices for minors so they can practice and forward these protocols as they move into college and the professional theatre community. I have my Consent Forward Artist Certificate through Intimacy Directors and Coordinators (IDC), am about to receive my Accelerator Program Certification from IDC, and in April, will be completing my full certification in Intimacy Direction with IDC.

My goal is to find resources to continue producing shows that attempt to expand the bounds of theatre as well as continue my research into how movement and intimacy can create new practices for actors that ensure their safety. It is my belief that theatre must stretch to include and collaborate with emerging and young artists, in order to ensure the longevity of theatre for generations to come. Theatre is the creation and presentation of human experiences right in front of the naked eye and there are so many modern experiences that haven’t gotten their time in the limelight. There are so many theatrical practices, methods, and genres that haven’t even been thought up yet, or they have but the emerging artist who came up with it doesn’t have the resources to not only spread their ideas for the good of theatre, but also maintain their intellectual property. I believe that theatre is meant to change and adapt to the times we are living in. Theatre is meant to be absurd, experimental, and exploratory. Theatre should give audiences access to ideas they may not have considered otherwise. Theatre should adapt to attract a younger generation of artists that want so desperately to work but don’t have an outlet for their creativity and skills.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

To me, the 3 most important qualities you can possess as an artist are ambition, generosity, and expression. Ambition is going to fuel your dreams and goals, it is going to keep you going even in the darkest time. It is what can help you believe in your potential, talent, and creativity. Generosity maintains the life of theatre itself. Being willing to help out with tasks on the to-do list, offering care to artists well-being, and extending the ladder down to younger emerging artists are essential to the health of theatre as an art form. That last one is the most important, I can’t emphasize enough how much extending the ladder down, or passing a gig off can do for your network, professional relationships, and future projects. You never know when you might be able to use someone’s skill set in the future and maintaining good relationships can help your artistry in the long run. Finally, without expression, you are not able to make known your morals, boundaries, and intentions in the field. Expression allows you to make your voice heard and get other artists and creatives aware of what you have to offer. Expression is also necessary for the authenticity of you as an artist, and the art you create.

The best advice I can offer to emerging artists is to gain as much experience as you can and PRACTICE. Take classes, training, get certificates, volunteer, create your own work with friends, and offering your services to companies you get to know through your practice. This is one of the major ways I was able to get my foot in the door. I would also recommend college or non-profit programs that advertise internships or apprenticeships that are available to artists during undergrad or after graduation. This can help kick-start your career and give you vital experience on your resume that will help provide momentum into future gigs, positions, and roles.

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?

Finding mentors in the industry was a game changer for me. It gave me a resource to turn to, someone who has been in this industry for much longer than me, and can give me advice when I feel stuck. Finding the people who believed in generosity and extending the ladder just as much as me helped me find my place in the Colorado Theatre Community. I realized that I didn’t enjoy being in exclusive environments that had trouble accepting and accommodating my disabilities. I wanted to be in environments that made me feel capable, worthy, and talented WITH my disabilities, not despite.

However, I noticed that the environments that drew me in, were more often with artists and companies that have been looked down on because of their size, purpose, community, etc. The rhetoric in the professional community seemed to be: these theatres’ aren’t classified as “professional” so they must matter less, the artists must be less talented, and the shows must be lower quality. I don’t believe this in the slightest. There are many hugely talented artists that work on smaller grade theatrical productions, and these productions are building the next generation of theatrical artists. I don’t feel ashamed as an artist that I’m doing community and educational theatre in addition to professional theatre. Anybody who frowns upon it or turns their nose up with judgement is not a true advocate for the continuation of theatrical live performance as an art form for generations to come. These companies are just as important because they are getting audiences excited about coming to the theatre, they provide more financially accessible theatre for the community, and they are providing that third space that so many people need, that isn’t work or home, where they can socialize, learn, and enjoy the arts.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.cloveslove.com
• Instagram: @clovedirects

Image Credits

Personal Photo: Eden Love
1. Eden Love
2. Branden Smith
3. RDG Photography
4. Eden Love
5. Ashleigh Vlieger
6. N/A
7. Branden Smith
8. Eden Love
9. N/A