Contemporary Women Stage Directors: Conversations on Craft

Description

Contemporary Women Stage Directors opens the door into the minds of 27 prolific female theatre directors, allowing you to explore their experience, wisdom and knowledge. Directors give insight into their diverse approaches to the key challenges of directing theatre, including choosing projects, engaging with scripts, conceptualizing visual and acoustic production elements, collaborating with actors and production teams, building their careers, and navigating challenges and opportunities posed by gender, race and ethnicity. The directors featured include Maria Aberg, May Adrales, Sarah Benson, Karin Coonrod, Rachel Chavkin, Lear deBessonet, Nadia Fall, Vicky Featherstone, Polly Findlay, Leah Gardiner, Anne Kauffman, Lucy Kerbel, Young Jean Lee, Patricia McGregor, Blanche McIntyre, Paulette Randall, Diane Rodriguez, Indhu Rubasingham, KJ Sanchez, Tina Satter, Kimberly Senior, Roxana Silbert, Leigh Silverman, Caroline Steinbeis, Liesl Tommy, Lyndsey Turner, and Erica Whyman. These women are making profoundly exciting theatre in some of the most influential organizations across the English-speaking world—from Broadway to the West End, from the National Theatre in London to Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles. As generally mid-career professionals, they are informed by both their hard-earned expertise and their forward-looking energy. They offer astute observations about the current state of the art form, as well as inspiring visions of what theatre can accomplish in the decades to come. Cover Half Title Title Copyright Dedication Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Interviewees Research Process Organization of the.Book 1 Choosing Projects What Draws You to a Piece? Maria Aberg I need to find myself in it Roxana Silbert The play has got to speak to you at an emotional level Anne Kauffman My work is the way I process the world KJ Sanchez Complicated and ambivalent feelings Leigh Silverman The next good idea Patricia McGregor You can feel the physical and emotional pulse Blanche McIntyre Human behavior explored theatrically Paulette Randall The characters are honest Indhu Rubasingham The unexpected voice Nadia Fall Recognizable yet original Tina Satter Don’t keep repeating what’s “good” New Plays versus Classics Indhu Rubasingham New plays: A magnifying glass to society Lyndsey Turner New plays: Not mere journalistic responses to the world Rachel Chavkin New plays: It doesn’t quite know what it’s trying to be yet Lear deBessonet Classics: No one is the authority Roxana Silbert Classics: You know you have a play that works Blanche McIntyre Classics: Sometimes I have to try not to be a fan Karin Coonrod It’s always about text in space Kimberly Senior It’s a world premiere every night Polly Findlay It’s an irony Influences and Inspirations Kimberly.Senior Influences and inspirations are ever changing Liesl Tommy Taking risks and fighting May Adrales Discovering Asian American characters Rachel Chavkin Suzuki and athleticism Tina.Satter Take your head out of your own tiny hustle On Finding Your Niche Nadia Fall I don’t fit into boxes very well May Adrales I simply work on my own terms Lear deBessonet A personal spiritual shift Leah Gardiner Resisting choosing a niche Polly Findlay Learning by trying out different things KJ Sanchez Specialization Season Planning Sarah Benson What will I invite thousands of people to see? Vicky Featherstone Instinct and urgency and risk Indhu Rubasingham It’s about taste, not “quality” Roxana Silbert Giving us a way to think about how we’re living Erica Whyman Good, bold decisions Diane Rodriguez A parallel universe of art makers Nadia Fall It takes an alchemist Choosing Collaborators Liesl Tommy The vibe Lyndsey Turner Women daring each other Patricia McGregor The greatest gift a director can have is a great stage manager Leigh Silverman Managing ego Leah Gardiner I tend to be a bully Rachel Chavkin The benefits of a company Where to.Work May Adrales Urban and regional audiences Kimberly Senior Relationship to place versus relationship to content Diane Rodriguez It’s the difference between abundance and scarcity Erica Whyman Regional differences in UK audiences Karin Coonrod Working in Europe and working with students Leigh Silverman Broadway Leah Gardiner Pressures of commercial theater Tina Satter Doors are blown open Liesl Tommy Pushing the envelope at Disney Nadia Fall Having an artistic home Polly Findlay The dynamics of different stages 2 Engaging with Scripts and Ideas Analyzing the.Play KJ Sanchez Finding a concept Polly Findlay Finding relevance and an anchor Liesl Tommy Finding and landing the metaphor May Adrales Excavating the values of this world Lear deBessonet Excavating the substructure of a piece Patricia McGregor Finding the rhythm of the scene Diane Rodriguez You have to understand the tone Young Jean Lee Finding the right tone is the challenge Kimberly Senior Inspiration, imitation, integration, and innovation Working with Playwrights May Adrales Build a strong trust Sarah Benson Brutal honesty and trust Leigh Silverman Together groping around in the dark Anne Kauffman You write the play, I write the production Patricia McGregor What’s in the playwright’s head Maria Aberg When the production is allowed to crash into the text Liesl Tommy The “dramaturgical director” Kimberly Senior Directing multiple productions of the same play Vicky Featherstone Enabling playwrights to communicate Leah Gardiner Everyone feels heard and seen Playing Multiple Roles Tina Satter Directing frees you as a writer Young Jean Lee Why play multiple roles? Patricia McGregor Creating pieces that don’t start with.text Paulette Randall Risk in devised.pieces Sarah.Benson There’s a more collaborative model evolving Rachel Chavkin Developing a play with an ensemble Preparing for Rehearsal Diane Rodriguez We breathe.it KJ Sanchez Each production has different.needs Sarah.Benson Research on and with playwrights May Adrales Traveling to the play’s setting Anne Kauffman Enter the room a little unknowing Communicating with the Audience Caroline Steinbeis It’s about sharing the.joke Vicky Featherstone Activating the gap between actor and audience Maria.Aberg Porousness Young Jean.Lee Provoke a multiplicity of responses Diane Rodriguez Once they’re hooked in, then you can take them anywhere Kimberly.Senior The power of an engaged talkback Leigh Silverman Tuning out the audience, then listening to.them 3 Conceptualizing the Visual and Acoustic Discovery in the Design Process Sarah.Benson Finding the play through the design process Blanche McIntyre Serving the.play KJ Sanchez The designer was such a.leader Anne Kauffman Designers are the best dramaturgs Young Jean.Lee Helping me articulate what.I want Nadia.Fall Tone: Sometimes clear, sometimes elusive Lyndsey.Turner Developing the script with the designer and playwright Paulette Randall Getting a sense of environment Rachel Chavkin Discovering the world with designers and.actors Liesl.Tommy Integrating design and tech into rehearsal Visual Storytelling Blanche McIntyre The stage picture tells half the.story Anne Kauffman The central metaphor of the play is encapsulated in the.space Rachel Chavkin The text doesn’t mean anything Maria.Aberg Illustrative design is being asphyxiated Tina.Satter The authenticity of rehearsal objects Lear deBessonet Storyboarding Acoustic Storytelling Anne Kauffman Language creates the.space Rachel Chavkin Music isn’t that different from.text Nadia.Fall You can achieve liftoff with.song Karin Coonrod Listening and silence Tina.Satter Listening to the.rhythm Polly Findlay Subliminal.cues Lear deBessonet The meeting of perfect order and complete.chaos Body and Movement as Spectacle Rachel Chavkin I love being lied to, but I don’t like.faking Patricia McGregor The physical life pallet of the production Tina.Satter Sculpting the stage picture Anne Kauffman A blank envelope for the actors to write.on Blanche McIntyre Spectacle amplifies Performer–Audience Relationships Caroline Steinbeis Come with us, we’ve got.you Blanche McIntyre A human-sized art.form Diane Rodriguez Surprising the audience Anne Kauffman Busting out of the.box Sarah.Benson I don’t care what the set looks like, I care what it.does Karin Coonrod The closed door leaving us all together Kimberly.Senior The play found its right.home Rachel Chavkin Space between the actor and character 4 Collaborating in Rehearsal Casting Caroline Steinbeis Opening a dialogue in auditions Kimberly.Senior Auditions should feel like the first day of rehearsal Patricia McGregor Both the facility and the appetite Young Jean.Lee Charisma Leah Gardiner Shaping the cast dynamic Maria.Aberg Cross-gender casting Lear deBessonet Casting unconventional.casts Paulette Randall Now we can.play Setting the Tone for Rehearsals Nadia.Fall Fear management Sarah.Benson We’re here to fail.big Maria.Aberg Infecting everyone with your love of.ideas Roxana Silbert A playful, anarchic atmosphere Erica.Whyman Doing something that matters Caroline Steinbeis Doing is always.better Anne Kauffman The rhythm of language combined with the rhythm of human activity Kimberly.Senior Informing the work by drawing from the world around.us Leah Gardiner Just go to.work Empowering.Actors Anne Kauffman Give space for the actors’.ideas Blanche McIntyre Elasticity and ownership Diane Rodriguez Helping the actors be storytellers Caroline Steinbeis Opening up the right channels Young Jean.Lee Every actor’s self-awareness is different Kimberly.Senior “What do you want to.do?” Maria.Aberg Approaching difficult sequences Karin Coonrod Owning the vision and deliberately derailing.actors Paulette Randall Understanding who and where you.are Nadia.Fall Through repetition, actors are released Erica.Whyman What matters about the.play Tina.Satter You can operate in a deeply coded.way Liesl.Tommy Clarity, specificity, and ferocity Shaping the Process Karin Coonrod Baptizing the.space KJ Sanchez Spreading out table.work Liesl.Tommy If it’s not in the play, it doesn’t.exist Nadia.Fall Starting small and building.up Anne Kauffman Throwing spaghetti at the.wall Patricia McGregor Finding the physical vocabulary Young Jean.Lee Creating the piece with a choreographer Lear deBessonet Bringing large casts into the imaginative.world Kimberly.Senior Making actors feel.unsafe Sarah.Benson Individual actor preferences Leigh Silverman Dress rehearsals and previews Using Research in Rehearsals Maria.Aberg Keeping the themes present in the.room Paulette Randall Experiential research Kimberly.Senior Talking about it in their language Liesl.Tommy You have to have context for.depth KJ Sanchez Misunderstanding of “leave your homework at the.door” Leigh Silverman Dramaturgs hold the big picture 5 Building a Career Discovering Directing Patricia McGregor Curating the audience experience Lear deBessonet An eleven-year-old’s.vision Lucy.Kerbel I thought actors just got up there and did their.thing Leigh Silverman “You’re a terrible actress” May Adrales A little push in the right direction Caroline Steinbeis The atmosphere in a rehearsal.room Karin Coonrod “Where have you.been?” Erica.Whyman Directing is everything Getting Established Lear deBessonet Assisting directors who can teach you something specific Blanche McIntyre Fringe as training.ground Nadia.Fall A catalyst for amazing.things Patricia McGregor The benefits of an MFA program Leigh Silverman Learning to keep all the plates spinning in a conservatory Roxana Silbert Finding a niche in new writing Indhu Rubasingham I accidentally fell into.it Lucy.Kerbel It’s much, much harder.now Caroline Steinbeis Cutting your teeth in.London Young Jean.Lee Hustling Mentorship Young Jean.Lee Assistants should be asked what they.think KJ Sanchez Director training Diane Rodriguez Sharing your experience Kimberly.Senior Finding mentors outside of.school Getting.Work Diane Rodriguez Become a spherical.artist Roxana Silbert It’s a slower.burn Blanche McIntyre Self-starting Anne Kauffman Juggling a freelance schedule Lucy.Kerbel You’re outside of the decision-making process Erica.Whyman Have confidence in your.idea Vicky Featherstone Conviction Indhu Rubasingham What I look for in a.pitch Leigh Silverman Be proactive Lear deBessonet Building a new department at the Public Theater KJ Sanchez Tell your story in a positive.light Work–Life Balance Nadia.Fall Our job is to portray life so we ought to live.it May Adrales Look at your life as a.whole Leah Gardiner Parenting and directing Kimberly.Senior I’m a better artist since becoming a.parent Lucy.Kerbel The loop of visibility Blanche McIntyre Getting squeezed.out Roxana Silbert People who leave directing.behind Leigh Silverman You can’t do it only a little.bit Success Vicky Featherstone Giving an audience an exceptional experience Leigh Silverman This is what you’ve signed.up.for Leah Gardiner Admiration for other directors Blanche McIntyre You’re excited about the piece and pushing yourself Paulette Randall It’s like a heat.change Nadia.Fall You get better with practice and.time Polly Findlay The problem with star-based reviews Indhu Rubasingham Your artistic journey Artistic Leadership Sarah.Benson The role of the artistic director in the UK and the United.States Anne Kauffman Pushing the envelope Blanche McIntyre The skills of an artistic director Vicky Featherstone Creating worlds for people to flourish.in Diane Rodriguez The track to becoming an artistic director Lucy.Kerbel Fitting into the industry Indhu Rubasingham Giving back to the industry Roxana Silbert Become the person who makes decisions Community and Support Kimberly.Senior I’m my own traveling institution Anne Kauffman A director’s residency retreat Maria.Aberg Peers Nadia.Fall My partners in.crime 6 Navigating Gender, Race, and Ethnicity Obstacles Leigh Silverman It’s not an equal playing.field Sarah.Benson Gender divide between commercial and nonprofit theaters Lucy.Kerbel Men leapfrogging.ahead Vicky Featherstone Different.paths Roxana Silbert Demographics of young directors Leah Gardiner You were born on the wrong side of the.tracks Paulette Randall As a black woman, I’m always perceived as.a.risk Young Jean.Lee My ethnicity and gender gave me a.boost Diane Rodriguez Connections and perceptions KJ Sanchez Bias among gatekeepers Strategies for Increasing Equality Nadia.Fall Nothing is going to change without direct.action Maria.Aberg It’s not just going to go.away Lucy.Kerbel Tonic Theatre Paulette Randall It goes back to whoever is batting it.my.way May Adrales Diverse casting Kimberly.Senior Speaking in their own.voices Leah Gardiner Do bits at.a.time Young Jean.Lee The limits of the subscription.model Diane Rodriguez The Latinx Commons and open platform leadership Liesl.Tommy Relentless pressure Roxana Silbert The artistic directors are genuinely concerned Lyndsey.Turner Each generation’s.role Erica.Whyman We need to not give.up Confidence and Authority Anne Kauffman Your personhood is the.grease Kimberly.Senior Being a female director is my superhero.cape Leah Gardiner It’s like being directed by.my.mom KJ Sanchez Dominance and gratitude Liesl.Tommy I come from a very direct community Maria.Aberg The performance of confidence Lucy.Kerbel The circumstances we’ve.built Erica.Whyman State clearly that you could and would deliver Roxana Silbert Generational differences in confidence Vicky Featherstone We can never stop talking about feminism Nadia.Fall Hold your.nerve Benefits of Diversity Diane Rodriguez Solidarity and understanding make us good leaders Roxana Silbert Diversity opens up more diversity Nadia.Fall We need that alternative.gaze Tina.Satter Realizing what you take for granted Indhu Rubasingham Attracting a different community of collaborators Lucy.Kerbel There can be different types of.good Gendered Aesthetics Kimberly.Senior What is essentially feminine about.me Maria.Aberg Exploring an area of vulnerability Erica.Whyman An urgency to be in the room together Blanche McIntyre My antennae are not.great Caroline Steinbeis Putting a gender label on things would be missing the.point KJ Sanchez It’s fine for a man to be.obtuse Tina.Satter Trying to break down the paradigm 7 Theater Today Changing Aesthetics Roxana Silbert European influence in.the.UK Caroline Steinbeis A marriage between Brecht and Stanislavski Maria.Aberg Questioning the superiority of language Blanche McIntyre I grew up with words as my comfort.zone Lyndsey.Turner New approaches to Shakespeare Vicky Featherstone Theater must not be.boring Sarah.Benson Going beyond naturalism Tina.Satter Grants can shape theater too.much Kimberly.Senior We don’t have to reinvent the.wheel Diane Rodriguez New leadership in American theater Changing Audiences Erica.Whyman New obstacles, new appetites Caroline Steinbeis Hungry for new experiences Tina.Satter Speaking to younger audiences Karin Coonrod Giving the audience a whole lot in a short.time Leah Gardiner Hope for diversity Kimberly.Senior We need to really know our audiences Vicky Featherstone There’s no such thing as an audience Blanche McIntyre Theater has become fractured Roxana Silbert Growing gap between London and the regions The Director’s Shifting.Role Polly Findlay Director as organizer Nadia.Fall Being utterly present in the rehearsal.room KJ Sanchez We’re writers now more than.ever Priorities for Producers Lear deBessonet Exquisite and rigorous and populist May Adrales A platform for important conversations Paulette Randall Programming for black audiences Indhu Rubasingham Prioritizing diverse programming Sarah.Benson Keeping the staff really close to the.work Nadia.Fall We need to make some plays quickly and give others more.time Theater’s Contribution to Society Diane Rodriguez Theater is a communal.ritual Blanche McIntyre There’s something democratic about.it Kimberly.Senior We are not advancing the culture Erica.Whyman A space where ambivalence can be explored Tina.Satter It makes a whole new space right.there Lear deBessonet Justice and hard won.joy Vicky Featherstone One of the most consistent art.forms Metaphors for the Role of Directors.Today Diane Rodriguez Directing is like painting Leigh Silverman Director as conduit Patricia McGregor The tuning.fork Sarah.Benson Directing is a giant.improv Conclusion What I Did Not Find What I Found in Several Cases What I Found Throughout Looking Forward Index of Director Names