After a life-changing diagnosis at the age of 57, Ian Sanders decided to try an Introduction to Acting at City Lit. Here, he shares his inspiring journey with us….
Before you started your acting course, had you ever studied drama before?
I had never taken an acting class in my entire life. It wasn’t something I did at school and I didn't do it at college. But it's always been something that's interested me. And now, at the age of 57, it kind of felt like, “If not now, then when?”
Why did it feel like the right time to study acting?
Something that's brought heightened clarity for me is that I'm living with cancer. And that’s given me a sharper sense of what really matters and what's important. I said to myself, “There's something that perhaps you really always wanted to do. So now is the time to do it”.
Video: Ian Sanders
And how did you find out about the course?
My wife Zoe had done an online creative writing class at City Lit and really enjoyed it. She was the one who found this acting course for me.
Did you face any challenges in the course?
My energy levels are severely affected by my cancer treatments. I had a few Tuesday mornings when I just wasn't feeling good and I didn’t think I’d be well enough to travel into London for the afternoon class. But I would always push myself to go, even when it wasn’t always easy. And once I arrived, I threw myself into the class and it always energised me. It was always positive.
How has studying acting enriched your life?
I’m not very good at switching off. My brain is often really busy with work, thinking about cancer treatment etc. The class was really beneficial as it gave me a two-hour ‘container’ that was about my creative expression. It wasn't about “Ian the cancer patient” or “Ian the business owner”. It was about being playful and having a sense of curiosity and fascination. I think we all need that. This is my time, and I can make a choice about how I spend it.
What did you enjoy most about Acting for Beginners?
Most weeks we did some kind of improvisation. I’d never done improv before. I felt so present and alive in it, I just really enjoyed that sense of immersion. Overall, I think I've got a lot of different things out of the course. Every time I came, I had fun. Opening your eyes to the wonderful things that can happen when you go into a classroom at the age of 57 is really positive.
What might you like to do next?
There's a lot of uncertainty about my life, my health, and my cancer. Right now, I don’t know what the future looks like. What I'm trying to tune into right now is being really present, doing the right thing, and staying true to who I am. I know that, whatever happens in the future, I'm really pleased I did this course at City Lit.
What would you say to someone who wants to try something new, like a beginner acting course?
I have this saying, “It’s time to get serious about the now”.
I wonder how much we really think about how we spend our time? It’s so easy for it to slip through our fingers. Being intentional about how we spend our time is an outlook we can all have. When we're curious and embrace a learning mindset, we can get so much more out of life.
Many thanks to Ian for sharing his experiences with City Lit’s Beginner Acting course. Find out about other students’ journeys with art, literature, and massage therapy.
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