Friday, January 29, 2016
What I Learned from Interviewing Ten Successful #PLONY (Playwrights Living Outside New York)
HowlRound: I recently posted the tenth interview to my #PLONY (Playwrights Living Outside New York) Profiles blog series. All ten are active playwrights who get produced regularly, none live within commuting distance of NYC, and, if they ever did live there, it wasn’t where they forged their careers. I explain my reasons for creating this series in my launch post, but, in a nutshell, it’s to change how #PLONY are viewed both by themselves and others—particularly theatremakers who still see the Big Apple as having the perceived lock on theatrical legitimacy.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Other than the ridiculousness of having to read ‘#PLONY’ every two lines in this article, I found it very worthwhile. Everyone assumes Broadway is the top of the food chain when it comes to theatre. And in a financial sense, it well may be. But let’s be honest here, most theatre people couldn’t care less about the money, after all, they chose to work in theatre. What matter for most theatre artists is a sense of fulfillment, something that can happen anywhere on the planet. NYC can actually sometimes be a detriment to an artists sense of fulfillment, because it is so competitive, cutthroat, and financially motivated. I am in full support of theatre outside of the big theatre cities. If NYC had the monopoly on theatre, the art would die out quicker than a kindergartener’s gold fish. Theatre is meant to be shared and enjoyed, and the best way to do that is to bring the shows to the people (even people who don’t live driving distance from NYC).
This idea of #PLONY intrigues me. I feel that this feeling of not being able to keep up with cultural happenings (FOMO) and the slight dread of not starting in any place for an artistic career anywhere other than New York, is a very true sentiment that resonates with many of us, playwrights or not. I'm lucky that I grew up in one of the 5 boroughs of New York City, so I was always quite close to the city and could pop in whenever I felt like it. I remember applying for college and one of the large barriers for me to overcome was coming to Pittsburgh after having grown up in New York all my life. I have to remind myself that living and making a living outside of New York is very possible and probably more affordable. After college ends, I want to hopefully (if I can or if I get a gig) want to move back to New York but in the event that that doesn't happen, I'm learning to be okay with that. And the reason being is that many MANY people don't live in New York, but they're still successful and having the time of their lives.
Post a Comment