WOULD
nytheatre.com q&a preview by Jeremy Kahn
July 26, 2012
What is your job on this show?
Actor.
Are there boundaries as to what kind of theatre you will take part in?
I try not to work on plays that could be called stupid or frivolous. When audiences see
these types of plays they don’t want to come back and won’t think of theatre as the imperative art form that it is. I also avoid working with animals.
If you're not a New Yorker: what are you most looking forward to doing and seeing (apart from the festival) while you're here?
I want to eat things, talk to people and see some plays. Also, I hear there’s a huge green statue of a lady holding a torch on an island somewhere. I’d like to see that.
In your own words, what do you think this show is about? What will audiences take away with them after seeing it?
WOULD is about forgiveness. The play examines the American criminal justice system from a new perspective. It forces the audience to empathize with a character who has committed a heinous act and will hopefully lead them to consider what they might forgive themselves for in their own lives.
People who like which of the following recent Broadway shows would also probably like your show: THE BOOK OF MORMON, ONCE, DEATH OF A SALESMAN, CLYBOURNE PARK?
WOULD lives in a world somewhat like CLYBOURNE PARK. It’s funny but deals with a very serious situation. The dialogue in both plays is rhythmic and both deal with time creatively. But most importantly there are characters named Dan in both.
If you had ten million dollars that you had to spend on theatrical endeavors, how would you use the money?
I would pay people who have never seen a play to go to the theatre and see something amazing.
