I've been crazily busy the past couple weeks getting ready for the upcoming Mac Wellman festival here. We're producing his play 'Harm's Way, for which I get to actually design costumes a bit more than just dressing people; and it's a big deal because Mac himself will be attending the show opening weekend. My favourite costuming review ever - which the reviewer ~thought~ was a snarky dismissal - was that our chorus in Murder of Crows looked like 'a Bulgarian shepherd's idea of goth musicians'. Crows was personally important to me in a number of ways, and is partly why I have a crow tattoo over my heart. Theater is still an under-appreciated art in this country (Hamilton notwithstanding). Much of the storytelling we experience now comes to us pre-packaged and glossy, direct from Hollywood; most people, if they think of it at all, think of community productions of You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown and just dismiss it. They don't understand the revolutionary power live performance can have (this is the point where I Do Not Digress into my someday dissertation on the intersection of theater and religion, specifically pagan mystery tradition - carry on). Gruad the Greyface and his evil cohorts in DC do, however, even if they aren't conscious they know it. Cuts to arts funding aren't only because they see it as 'frivolous' but also because art and theater can MOVE people. And under repressive regimes like this one, they won't be headed in a compliant direction. This interview only touches on such ideas tangentially, but it underscores why it is I've devoted the last decade+ of my life to helping bring these visions to life. I didn't mean to post a rant when I clicked Share but here you are - and if you've read this far, I highly encourage you to find the cutting-edge theater in your area and go see a performance. Even if you hate it, if they've done their job well, you'll still come away talking about why.
