Taming of the Shrew
nytheatre.com q&a preview by Amy Frances Quint
September 25, 2012
What is your job on this show?
Actor.
When did you know you wanted to work in the theater, and why?
So far back I can't remember. When I was a little used to dress up in items pilfered from my mother's closet and stage elaborate plays/ballets. Except I'd shut the doors and wouldn't allow anyone to watch me...so the audience thing came later I guess. The theater cuts to the core of things, and allows you to tell certain truths in a way that is not always sustainable in "real life." And all the while you get to live out more lifetimes and characters and relationships than you ever dreamed of. What could be better?
Why do you do theater (as opposed to film, or TV, or something not in the entertainment field)?
There's no other medium in which you can experience such an immediate connection and communication with people. Whether it's with the other actors on stage or the people in the audience, for a brief time you're part of a shared experience...co-conspirators.
In your own words, what do you think this show is about? What will audiences take away with them after seeing it?
This show is about expectations, trying to be yourself, and allowing yourself to be happy. It's a controversial play, and we're not shying away from those elements of it. I hope people can come away from it recognizing how hard and complicated and wonderful it is to be a human being, and maybe feeling more able to laugh at their own faults and idiosyncracies.
Which cartoon character would you identify your show with: Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Mickey Mouse, Marge Simpson?
I'm going to have to go with Daffy Duck on this one!
How important is diversity to you in the theater you see/make?
Massively important! The whole point of theater is tapping into what is universal about the human condition.
