Cadence: Home
nytheatre.com q&a preview by Radha Kramer
November 6, 2012
What is your job on this show?
Artistic Director, TE'A/ Cadence: Home.
What type of theater do you like most to work on?
As the Artistic Director of TE'A, I am drawn to theatre that explores the ways in which we lock ourselves into conflict with others, and how we transform those conflicts.
Complete this sentence: My show is the only one opening in NYC this fall that...?
Cadence: Home is the only show in NYC that used the Insight approach to conflict resolution in its development and creation. Cadence: Home is a piece of Insight Theatre
Why did you want to write/direct/produce/act in/work on this show?
I care deeply about addressing the barriers that divide communities and individuals. Our Veterans are coming home to very tough times and often they feel misunderstood or invisible. It was really important to us to create an authentic piece that is based on insight conversation with over 40 veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We created Cadence: Home as a way of getting insight into what our veterans and their communities are facing and how vets and non-military civilians can begin to bridge the gap in understanding and healing.
Which “S” word best describes your show: SMOOTH, SEXY, SMART, SURPRISING?
Definitely Surprising! The show is based on conversations the TE'A company had with recently returned veterans, and some of the things they shared with us were unexpected and totally surprising. Cadence: Home reveals some of these stories and issues that many non-military civilians will find interesting and surprising.
Can theater bring about societal change? Why or why not?
Of course theatre can help to bring about social change. Change occurs when people are willing to take a moment, question what they know, ask why they hold on to their positions so tightly, and take the step to ask...: if this is not necessarily so, then what might be another way to look at the situation, or another person. when we are willing to question, willing to be curious, willing to ask: If you are not all of those things i think about you, then you are you...change is possible. Theatre can be an integral and magical way to allow audiences (and artists) to explore different ways of seeing and thinking about important issues.
