Fried Chicken and Latkes
nytheatre.com q&a preview by Rain Pryor
June 8, 2013
What is your job on this show?
Playwright, actor.
What is your show about?
Fried Chicken and Latkes is a irreverent look at race and family as spanned through the late 60s, 70s, 80s.
When did you know you wanted to work in the theater, and why?
The first time I knew I wanted to be in theatre, I think was after I saw Annie when I was five years old. It was a warm Christmas Eve, in LA, and my mom as a present to me, had bought tickets to see Annie. I remember watching those kids and seeing Annie with her curly red hair, and thinking, I can do this. I want to do this.
After the show we went to Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner's house and I made everyone sit down, while I reenacted the entire musical. Lily turned to my mother and said, "well, we know what she's going to do when she grows up."
What are some of your previous theater credits? (Be specific! Name shows, etc.)
My theatre credits start when I was 12 years old, and I did The Runaways by Elizabeth Swados Directed by Matt Casteles, I was on stage with Johnathan Prince, Pheneas Newborn and Jennifer Jason Lee,
Hair - Dione - Heleotrope Theatre in LA, The first show I ever have done where my dad covered his eyes, because ehe thought I was naked. I knew he was coming so I stayed dressed.
The Who's Tommy -Nurse, Chorus - LaJolla Playhouse,
Sisterella Produced by Michael Jackson - Chrysanthemum -Pasadena Playhouse, Germany Tour, NY Theatre Workshop - I woas nominated for an NAACP Award a
Joan - Joan- Old Globe Playhouse LA,
Vagina Monologues, Coronet Theatre LA
Billy Holiday Story - Billy Holiday - UK Tour
Ella, Meet Marilyn - Ella Fitzgerald - Scotland, London
For Colored Girls Who Considered Suicide When The Rainbow is Enuf - Lady in Red - Baltimore MD
Exonerated, Queens Hall - Scotland with Aiden Quinn
Fried Chicken & Latkes, US Tour, NY Off Broadway, Scotland Won an NAACP Award, Goldie Klien Award, Nominated Ovation Award
Is there a particular moment in this show that you really love or look forward to? Without giving away surprises, what happens in that moment and why does it jazz you?
The moment in the show I really look forward to, is when I play my father RIchard Pryor. It's one of those moments where I get to feel his right there with me and you, and it feels like home.
Which famous person would you most like to get a fan letter from: Denzel Washington, Maggie Smith, Ang Lee, Jennifer Lawrence?
I would love to get a fan letter from Denzel Washington, only so I could say, "See I can act, can I audition for one of your films." But seriously, because i respect him as a fellow actor, and because I know he would get it.
How important is diversity to you in the theater you see/make?
Diversity in Theatre is very important to the work I create, and the work I desire to see. Theatre is how we learn about cultures and learn empathy. It's a way to bridge the divide and explore history, language. For me, this is why I created my non profit Baltimore TheatreWorks. We bring performance opportunity and education to students in the inner city, so they can see and be positive reflections of themselves and become ignited to learn.
