relEASE physical theatre

on a personal note...

1. Who do you play? Describe your character.

   ​Captain James Bartholomew Hook is a moderately decorated, excessively dedicated officer of the law, or pirate, depending on your point of view. He is aware of a system which seems to preordain a person's position in life, but he is committed to upholding his strict sense of justice within that system rather than making efforts to change it. He is afraid of the past. He is afraid of powerlessness. He is disdainful of any lack of respect for authority. But he respects intelligence and cunning. He is both sage and hypocritical in the same moments. And he is a danger to all those who oppose the established order, no matter the reason.

2. What is your favorite part of this process?

   ​My favorite part of this process is the group's commitment to maintaining an open forum for discussion and creative impulse. In the effort to work towards the best possible outcome for the show, I have offered up a fair amount of questioning, analysis, and criticism, all of which has been met with respect and an open-minded nature, making the rehearsal space feel consistently safe and productive.

3. What is the hardest part of this process for you?

   ​The hardest part of the process is exactly to do with my favorite part; trying to stay open, honest, respectful and receptive is difficult given the delicacy of the subject matter we are wrestling with. The group is constructed of disparate viewpoints & life experiences, and we must constantly acknowledge and address these differences in order to continue to give each other the respect we deserve. Our skin tones are different. Our perception of society and the fine details of its issues are different. Our opinions about the best way to approach problems, about how represent the world, are all different. The challenge is taking all of the input equally and working to meld our visions into a cohesive, considerate whole.

4. Why is this show important to you?

   ​I've yet to do a show in my professional career that I felt truly carried weight and depth in a socio-political manner. This show is attempting to do so. It's addressing issues of race, class, and the structure of law enforcement and justice in our country, all of which are enormously complex; too much so to be fully encapsulated by anything we can conceive of on stage. But the discussion needs desperately to be had, and to be spurred forward and spread. I feel limited in my daily life, in individual experiences, by my class and my race and the fear of miscommunication or misunderstanding. But in the theater, these limits seem to lift, as the focus becomes a joint effort to tell a story which affects people, which touches upon some truth. We may not have answers. We may not even be asking all the right questions. But we're putting something out there for people to react to, to absorb and chew on, and perhaps spit back out. In what ever case, the ideal is to promote thought; to affect change, for the better. I value such an opportunity highly.

5. What is one thing you have learned from making this show?

   ​I've learned that even the wisest person is still naive, and that to believe fully in one's own knowledge is folly.

6. If you could stay any age forever, what age would you stay and why?

   ​I'd stay 30. Seems like the most ideal age to be for a tenuous balance between youth and maturity.

7. Was there ever a time when you were afraid for your life?

   ​Once I almost got into a car accident. Another time I was twelve and my family's canoe flipped in a swamp in Florida. But in both cases, nothing came of it. Pretty fortunate

8. What was your favorite bedtime story and why?

   I used to love to read big books of Garfield comics before falling asleep. They made me laugh, and because they were so short, I felt like I could read a lot of them before getting so sleepy that I couldn't keep my eyes open.

9. Why did you want to be a part of SOTM?

   ​See answers 1-4.

10. If you feel you have privilege, have you ever used it in your favor? If so, for what?

    ​I definitely have privelege and I've definitely benefitted from it, more unwittingly than not. I've gotten off on traffic stops for speeding where I was going way faster thsn the officer recorded. I've been let go with warnings where a person of color might have likely been delayed, ticketed, even questioned. I've been caught with marijuana and allowed to go either with a warning, or with a citation which only resulted in a small fine. I've never had to hesitate when walking into any establishment anywhere in the country, unless I was aware that I would be the only white person, and even then, have not been compelled to stop or retreat. I've been able to take for granted that my rights are protected, even if I break the law; especially if I break the law. I've never considered the possibility that I might not be considered for employment because of the name listed on my resume. The list goes on. The challenge I sense now is to utilize my priveleges in ways that will advance equality and overall mutual respect, regardless of race, ethnicity or class distinction in my community.