An Interview with playwright Caridad Svich

By USF student and RIFT cast member Ilyse Liffreing

Playing the part of Ilona in USF's upcoming production of RIFT, I was fortunate to interview Svich on her work, especially on the topics of her inspiration for the play and her intentions for the audience.

RIFT by Caridad Svich takes a look at human trafficking in a war-torn place, where young girls must sell their bodies in order to get by. It follows the story of determined Ilona, a fighter in the resistance who loses her lover Maurice. When forced into prostitution by Mama Sondra, Ilona takes on the persona of Martin, who is stronger than Ilona could ever hope to be. Through all the violence and sexual tensions, this play asks the question: "Can a body that is torn find a way to heal itself and transform, and thus resist the tyranny of power?"

Caridad Svich

What inspired you to write RIFT?

The play was commissioned by NYU's Graduate Acting Program and Mark Wing-Davey, the Program's Chair. The initial subject matter given to me was "feral children." From there I went into a rehearsal room for two weeks with a company of NYU grad actors and professional director Seret Scott and together we explored this rather vast yet specific subject from myriad points of view. Through movement and image and improvisation, somehow, the subject of sex trafficking emerged. I do admit that it is a subject that has been on my mind as an artist-activist for a while now. What's happening to young women, men, and children in this million dollar global "industry" is appalling. But honestly I hadn't thought that I'd write a play where the subject would become central to the storytelling until RIFT. So, my inspiration was Mark Wing-Davey, nine NYU graduate actors, three NYU graduate designers and my director. Initially.

  

What messages did you want to get across through this play?

I don't think plays should deliver messages. A theatre piece in and of itself is composed of many signs (visual, verbal, emotional, spatial, temporal). The "message" is the experience of witnessing the piece. However, as a dramatist, I do consider the possible effect and/or impact my work may have. For me, the play is about survival, heroic survival of human beings that have suffered physical, emotional, and un-natural (via war and its aftermath, necessary and/or forced displacement) abuse. All the characters in the interlocking storylines of the play have suffered, even the ones who are doing the damage. Some characters in the play make it through, find a place for healing and possible reconciliation, others are punished, others are lost, others carry on in a cycle of greed and profit. I ask the audience to take a journey in this play - sometimes darkly comic, sometimes quite brutal and visceral, sometimes tender - and enter, if they will, the beautiful and awful chaos of lives rent by conditions engendered by wars and also by the exploitation of one human being by another. I ask the audience to seek a place for peace.

How does this play compare to other work you have written?

RIFT, in many ways, sums up a series of plays that I've written in the last ten years. Starting with IPHIGENIA CRASH LAND FALLS ON THE NEON SHELL THAT WAS ONCE HER HEART (a rave fable) through THRUSH and WRECKAGE (to name only three), I have been exploring to greater and lesser formal degrees not only stories that re-animate, re-envision ancient, classical texts for a new time, but also are epic in scope and design while locating a very intimate theatrical sensibility which characters must inhabit. The political/global world clashes and collides with the local lives in this series of plays, which, for lack of a better title, I call my "land and war" plays, even though they don't all deal with war and/or the blood memory of the earth. RIFT for me is a summing up, and a departure as well. When I was writing the play I could feel the veins of about ten plays written before coursing through me - a desire to synthesize elements and also find new ground as an artist. The comparison to other works is this: visceral, erotic, heightened, poetic, juxtaposition of high and low worlds and languages within a politicized socio-economic landscape, usually embedded within a critique of the condition of the post colonial being in the aftermath of colonialism and/or "colonized" invasions of territory and psyche.

  

Out of all the plays you have published, what do you consider to be your best work?

Never easy to play favourites, but of my published work I'm always happy to point people in the direction of IPHIGENIA CRASH LAND FALLS ON THE NEON SHELL THAT WAS ONCE HER HEART (a rave fable), which is published by BackStage Books in the anthology DIVINE FIRE. There is at least one of my unpublished pieces which I consider my best work. Perhaps one day it will see the light of stage and/or print.

What does your company No Passport accomplish in the theatre world?

NoPassport is an unincorporated theatre alliance and press devoted to advocacy, action and publication of cross-cultural expressions of diversity and difference in theatre and performance. That's the byline, as it were. What do we do? We're a combination of artist kiosk, critical think tank and mobile salon, spoken word collective, and place for many artists to simply be without a passport to conversation and exchange. There's an emphasis, because of the nature of how the alliance began, on the exploration of the US Latina/o theatre voice. As a press, we publish new plays, translations and collected works that by and large are not published elsewhere. Sort of like an indie record label. Our authors include Octavio Solis, John Jesurun, Migdalia Cruz, Oliver Mayer, Saviana Stanescu, Amparo Garcia-Crow, Chiori Miyagawa and Karen Hartman. Our newest title print on demand is Kara Hartzler's No Roosters in the Desert, which opens at Borderlands Theater in Tucson this month.

Was it hard for you to establish yourself as a playwright? If so, do you believe that the process was harder because you are a female?

Yes and yes. I've been writing plays for twenty years and there are people in the industry who think of me as an "emerging" writer! Being "established" has as much to do with perception as it has to do with where the work is produced and the nature of hierarchies within a very conventional late capitalist system that designates the value of the Where synonymous with the Merit of the Artist. So, one of my first plays ANY PLACE BUT HERE premiered at INTAR in New York City. INTAR is one of the oldest theatres devoted to producing Latino/a new writing in the US. It's where Milcha Sanchez Scott, Cherrie Moraga, Eduardo Machado, Migdalia Cruz, Nilo Cruz were first seen/heard in some way (either in full production or in reading/workshop). It's where Maria Irene Fornes, with whom I trained for four years, led one of the most significant new writing laboratories in this country. But for many people, INTAR isn't necessarily on the "map." Another play of mine ALCHEMY OF DESIRE/DEAD-MAN'S BLUES premiered at Cincinnati Playhouse. For many people, that's seen as my first production. Even though it wasn't. Why? Because Cincinnati Playhouse is a "major" regional theatre.

For me, the work is the work. I've made amazing pieces with so-called alternative companies like 7 Stages in Atlanta, and with an adventurous yet mainstream venue like Denver Theatre Center. One makes work where there are homes for the work. Sometimes the home for a piece is not where you think it's going to be. Am I established? Well, I've been writing for a long time. But who's to say? Female dramatists in this country, esp Latina dramatists, do have a tougher time of it hitting their heads against the glass ceiling than others. It's a tough biz. I think at the end of the day, being a female writer is not something I can write against. I know that often people who don't know me and read my work think I'm a male writer. I find preconceptions about gendered approaches to writing fascinating. A writer's job, a writer's duty, is to the story being told. I'm conscious of my interest in putting women at the centre of my plays a lot of the time, because I still think so many stories about women's lives don't get told. Men's lives have been documented in the history of drama, esp. in Western drama, much more than women's! But as a writer I don't limit myself. The joy of writing is to write full out, dream big and take on as many voices, embrace as many lives as possible.

In the play, there are points where the characters sing songs, how is this significant to the piece as a whole? 

Songs are a huge part of my work as a whole. I started out as a musician and singer. I trained early on in voice, piano and guitar. I've been writing lyrics and melodies for a long time, way before I was writing plays. Songs find their way into my plays often, because some plays need moments where the human voice is lifted. You know, I'm a big Shakespeare and Brecht fan, and of course, the Greeks! I love plays where ALL the elements are at the dramatist's disposal. Song/Music is an element of sound. Sound is an element of theatre. Theatre is poetry. Poetry is song. The first actor on the Greek stage in Western drama was a singer. So, for me, song has to do with theatre's root. Ritual. Song in and of itself is a device to tell story, to open up a window into a character's heart, to shift the perception of the playing and aural space of the play. Of my over thirty plays, nearly half of them have songs. In RIFT, the songs for me are about the path of healing, allowing that space to be alive - and are also linked to memory. Ilona's song, which Martin teaches her, is a song of exile. It is what ultimately carries her forth but lets her signal his memory. 

Do you believe that the content in RIFT, especially the fighting and sexuality drives the audience to get uncomfortable? If so, do you believe that the audience needs to witness this content in order to experience catharsis? 

There are about seven physical fights in RIFT. I remember the fight call at NYU took about 45 minutes before the show every night! The representation of violence on stage is something with which I've always wrestled. Some plays need to go there because the world they depict is stark and brutal and there's no other way. Think THE BACCHAE. Think KING LEAR. In a post neo-Jacobean theatrical era in Western English-language drama (after Samuel Beckett, Harold Pinter, Edward Bond, Anthony Neilson, and Sarah Kane), the representation of violence has moved more and more to film and television and gaming, where there are several thousand more fictional characters killed every week. The plastic arts have become violence's domain. FX crews have a field day. In theatre, because it's more difficult, because it's 3-D and live, the representation of violence takes on a very different quality for an audience. In a shock and awe culture, what can theatre do that the plastic arts do thousand times more effectively and more "realistically?" Ultimately, for me, it has to do with the presence of the actor - this body feels, this body on stage goes through something, even if it's a construction, and a safe one. The audience is witness. in RIFT, yes, I think the situations and moments depicted may indeed be uncomfortable. Why should one be comfortable with violence? With damage? Inhumanity? Brutality? We are all implicated when witness. We are all in this mess of a world together. Yes, I hope for catharsis, and yes, I hope too for the possibility of grace in the everyday world.

You like to travel. Do you believe that any of the actions within Rift could take place at anywhere at any time? If so, is this a strong driving force and one of the themes of Rift?

 What happens in RIFT happens when a society is torn apart. 5th century Troy, 2010 San Francisco. At root, the central actions depicted in the play have occurred and will (sadly) continue to occur for centuries. I don't think however that RIFT could happen at anytime. Only when a social order is broken in a devastating manner. The characters in the play are born and behave out of that condition.

Why did you choose to focus on a young girl in RIFT?

The number of woman and girls trafficked all over the world is astonishing and sad. Although it's the 21st century, the fact that women continue to be bought and sold, enslaved, abused and dehumanized continues to be a crime that remains constant. In the US alone, cities such as Miami, Chicago, Las Vegas and San Francisco are centers for transport and relocation of women and girls' bodies. The girl (Ilona) in RIFT could be in some person's mind in Lebanon or Iraq or Mexico, but she's also here. This girls' body carries the history and memory of the gone before and the what's to come. The enactment of her trauma and recovery is one we all share if as witness and participants in society we choose to regard, listen and record in our hearts and minds. 

What are you working on now? 

My stage evocation of Isabel Allende's THE HOUSE OF THE SPIRITS is currently running in my English version at Denver Theatre Center until 23 October; it opens in a separate producion, in my bilingual version, at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis on 22 October and runs til 14 November. I'm also working on three new plays: A LITTLE STORY (which actually is a companion piece of sorts to RIFT), FOR LOVE, a dance-music-theatre piece very freely inspired by Euripides' Alcestis, and IN YOUR ARMS, a contemporary love story. I'm also working on a stage evocation of Julia Alvarez's novel IN THE TIME OF THE BUTTERFLIES, which premieres in my Spanish version at Repertorio Espanol in New York City in February 2011. On the editorial front: a book I've edited on theatre and censorship OUT OF SILENCE is in early proof stage and will be published by Manchester University Press in the UK next year.

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RIFT by Caridad Svich opens October 21st at the Studio Theater on Lone Mountain. All shows are at 8pm.

ONLY SEVEN PERFORMANCES!:
Oct. 21 thru 24 & Oct. 28 thru 30, 8pm
At the Studio Theater on USF's Lone Mountain campus, 2800 Turk St., San Francisco (directions available here)

Directed by Roberto Varea
Featuring: Shoresh Alaudini, Tess Bellomo, Ilyse Liffreing
Daniel Martinez, Dana Robie, Melelani Satsuma, Sara Stalkfleet
Michael Tan and Jessika Zijdemans. 
$10.00 general admission
$5.00 with USF ID

To RSVP or for more information, click here.

After a year working in San Bruno Jail #5, students prepare to premier "Re:FRAMED" tomorrow night

 Jessica Baldwin is a graduating senior at USF and one of the PASJ majors who comprises this year's Company class. This year, the Company class presents a brand new theatrical event entitled "Re:FRAMED (the story of Judith and Holofernes)" which premiers tomorrow night at the Studio Theater on Lone Mountain.
Click here for show dates and directions.

For people who haven't heard about it, what is the Company class? 

      Company has a long history with the Performing Arts and Social Justice program as the final project for senior majors. These projects have ranged from a full-length play to a series of vignettes, but all the works stem from an experience in the San Francisco community as part of our service learning requirement for the major. This past fall, PASJ seniors spent time in San Francisco Jail #5 working with incarcerated men through a series of theater workshops. 

     During the spring semester, the graduating class split into two groups. Half the class continued to work in the jail to create a performance with the men, while the other half of the class took their experiences and began working on a piece on campus. This project became Re:FRAMED. While the public cannot go into the San Bruno Jail #5 to see the other group’s performance, we do invite them to come see Re:FRAMED.

 
How did you decide on staging the story of Judith and Holofernes and what's significant about the title,"Re:FRAMED?"

     When I was sixteen I took my first art history class, and I will never forget the first time I saw Artemisia Gentileschi’s depiction of the story. Sitting in a dark lecture hall, I do not think an image has ever hit me so hard. Since then I have gone on pilgrimages to see her various paintings of the story, and have collected other depictions. I never reflected on why this story was powerful for me, however.  

     In November, the class decided to tell a story of violence using a myth. Another Company member, James Godbolt, approached me about doing the story of Judith and Holofernes. Having come back recently from a semester abroad in Florence, Italy, where the story was painted repeatedly during the Italian Renaissance, James knew that this story was a favorite of mine as well. In January, the class pitched their ideas. We pretty quickly grasped onto this story and agreed to explore it theatrically. I think that the ease of this decision, and the impact it made on people who had never heard of it before, speak volumes about this story’s power. Over the past couple months we have had the opportunity to explore this power and we hope the audience walks away with a little bit of what we have discovered.  

     We hope to quite literally re-frame the story of Judith. This story is not just about her, but about society as a whole. A person’s actions are not simply a result of their own decisions, but also a reflection of cultural and societal practices, beliefs, and biases.  

Did you feel you had to work to make this Biblical tale accessible to a college audience?

At the beginning of the project, only two students were familiar with the story, so it was easy to understand this perspective. It is an obscure story that we had to understand before we could tell it in a way that an audience would understand. Through a series of exercises and workshops, we realized that the way we could best comprehend the story was by telling the story in different time periods, including our own. Throughout Re:FRAMED you will not only encounter the Biblical Judith, but also a modern and film noir style telling of the story. Hopefully, people will be able to relate to one of these Judiths and perhaps want to do research on the Biblical story told in the Book of Judith. 

A big part of your process involved visiting and working with prisoners. What was that experience like and how did it shape the show you've created as a class?

It is hard to describe what the jail experience is like, and that has been one of the challenges in creating a piece about our experience. What happens in the jail is a unique and personal experience, so I can only speak for myself when I say that I learned so much about myself; the judgments and biases I have about people and society. Now that I am aware of these things, I am seeing the world through a larger lens. I think that is what we have brought to Re:FRAMED, the lessons we learned about prejudice, judgment, and stereotypes. 

 
Give us an idea of the kinds of workshops you collaborated with prisoners on.

We did all sorts of artistic exercises in hopes that the men could find a medium they related to. We wrote poetry and stories. We created movement pieces. We created characters and made scenes. Through these approaches we tried to explore things like the male role belief system, and violence in society.  

Can you share a memorable moment from your time working in the prison?

One of the guys learned that my second major is Art History and always wanted to show me his art and get my critical feedback. I realized that he did not have anyone to talk about such things or that art was not an appropriate subject to talk about where he was from. We had some really great conversations, and I hope that he continues to pursue his art and feel free to express himself that way. 

Has this show changed in unexpected ways during its evolution or has it stuck pretty closely to the original concept?

It was a very organic process. We began by just free writing and making improvised scenes. We noticed themes of judgment and perception throughout all these pieces and continued from there. While the script has gone through many drafts, the core of the show has stayed the same.

How did you decide on the structure and format of the show? Does it fit most people's idea of what a play is or is it something else?

We began the process by just playing. I think sometimes we take art too seriously, and we forget it is called a "play," not "neuro-brain surgery." As we played we found ourselves expressing the story in different time periods and began to build on that. The final result is a play told in chronological order that ties together three storylines into a single narrative. 

Do you see this experience impacting the way you create work in the future?

I think what I learned from this is that I am capable of creating. I think as we get older we are told a lot of times that we can't do things. That we can't be creative. It was nice to have an opportunity to be nothing but creative. I think we all realized throughout this process that we are capable of a lot of things as young artists, and this seems like a great way to cap off our college careers and begin our professional lives.

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Re: Framed {The Story of Judith and Holofernes} opens tomorrow night Studio Theater on Lone Mountain. All shows are at 8pm.

Performances: May 6th, 7th & 8th
At the Studio Theater on USF's Lone Mountain campus, 2800 Turk St., San Francisco (directions available here)

Created by: Jessica Baldwin, Amy Berman, Courtney Cavagnero, Keriann Egeland, James Godbolt, Jackluyn Knutson, Jasmine Morgan, Isaac Samuelson, Caitlin Shindeldecker, with special thanks to Professor Christine Young

To RSVP or for more information, click here.

FREE ADMISSION

Free dance showing!

Come support our dance students as they present work developed this school year! This event is open to everyone. See you there! 

A Taste of Africa at the Upcoming Spring Dance Show

Dance student Robert Gardner gives us a sneak peak at one of the pieces that will be featured in this year's Spring Dance Showcase. 

 

We are entering the home stretch of rehearsals for the Spring Dance Show and have only one rehearsal left for Naby Bangoura’s West African dance piece. Naby is a dance teacher from New Guinea, Africa and teaches West African dance at USF as well as dances classes at ODC. It has been two years since the last West African dance piece in a USF Dance Ensemble concert and it will definitely be worth the wait.

     I am shocked to see how quickly this piece has come together. Naby only has rehearsal once a week and has worked all of us into one cohesive, full bodied, energetic dance piece in the two hour span that he has us. This is my first time working with Naby and also my first time doing West African dance. I couldn’t believe the stamina and energy West African dance takes. The warm up alone definitely gets the blood flowing and your muscles working. Something that took some getting use to was not always going by counts like the normal 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8, but instead following the rhythm of the music and listening for cues within the music. Another aspect that took some getting use to was the idea of not pointing my feet all the time. Whenever my foot left the floor it would want to point when it should have been flexed, but I eventually got it. 

     The piece is basically divided into three sections and each section is just as exciting as the last. I cannot wait for this piece to be shown to an audience and to hear the amazing song that Naby has taught us. It is sure to get you clapping and cheering for sure. So make sure to come and check out Naby’s work next week at the Spring Dance Show at Presentation Theater. You will not be disappointed!

Naby Bangoura’s dance piece is part of the upcoming Spring Dance Performance featuring USF's Dance Ensemble. The show will take place at Presentation Theater on April 30th and May 1st at 8pm. 

Spring Dance Show will feature "Dark Fairy Tale"

Dance student Erin Hewitt gives us a sneak peak at one of the pieces that will be featured in this year's Spring Dance Showcase. 

With only two weeks to go until opening night, working on Natalie's Greene's piece is still as exciting as the very first rehearsal. Natalie is a dance instructor for the USF Performing Arts and Social Justice department, teaching classes such as Jazz Theater and Dance Outreach: where students learn to teach dance to elementary school students. Her wide range of abilities and interests really comes through in this piece. This "dark fairytale" has so much going on, it's hard to describe one specific focus of the work...but I'll try!

     I think the piece has a great sense of wonder, curiosity and whimsy. The large cast is divided into two elements. The larger group is investigating the elements of nature and the small ensemble is representing the young, and often foolish, humans. There's a sense of controlled chaos, like a storm that could happen at any moment. Natalie is a great collaborator and artist, and with such a large ensemble it's been great to see her use everyone's strengths (and the visual power of so many bodies on stage) to create a powerful image of the universe...and what little we really understand about it.

     Whew! That seems like a whole lot of heavy stuff! I bet you're wondering how we've been working towards the finished product. Obviously we've been trying to step into the choreographer's mind, listening to her ideas and what inspired her to make the piece. But, because we're not psychic, Natalie gave us all cute little notebooks to write in. As we wrote about song lyrics, fairy tales, our relationships to nature and more, we were rewarded with brightly colored stickers!! And, ya know, lots of artistic collaboration. 

Photo by Erin Hewitt

I hope I've piqued your interest, or at least confused you into a state of curiosity. It's been a lot of hard/fun work, and we want to share it with you! Be sure to come check out our dance and all the other awesome pieces in this years Spring Dance Concert.

Natalie Greene's dance piece is part of the upcoming Spring Dance Performance featuring USF's Dance Ensemble. The show will take place at Presentation Theater on April 30th and May 1st at 8pm.

Students and faculty collaborate in preparation for Spring Dance Performance

Dance student Eric Garcia gives us a sneak peak at one of the upcoming dance pieces that will be featured in this year's Spring Dance Performance.

It is now around week 8 of rehearsals and it is exciting to see the progression of this piece. Going into this, I was told very little about choreographers Amie Dowling and Eli Nelson’s plans. As director of the dance department and adjunct professor, respectively, they are a creative team of unquestionable caliber, notorious for their out-of-the-box approach. They gave us strange clue words such as light bulbs, curtains, and ballroom. Whatever you are thinking right now is exactly what I was thinking; I wasn’t quite sure how all of these things would come together to make a cohesive, contemporary dance piece… but then, I must have totally forgotten who I was working with. Of course Amie and Eli would incorporate obscure things like that—shame on me! I wouldn’t expect anything less from those two. 

Photo by Kat Cole
 

      Having previously worked with each of them separately in two different pieces at USF, it has been really exciting to see how their minds work together. The other dancers and I go into every rehearsal not knowing what to expect, which keeps the process fun for both the choreographers and the dancers. We try a little bit of everything: learning set choreography, improvisational structures, and using material generated by us, the dancers. A major part of this process is experimenting with what different types of qualities each dancer can bring, allowing for personal style to blend with collaborative movement. Fortunately, we get to rehearse in Presentation Theater (the actual theater we will be performing in), so it allows us to really explore the space. Interestingly, it has sort of evolved into a site-specific piece to the theater itself, evoking curiosity from all of us about both the space and the movement. I’m sure the audience will enjoy watching it just as much as I have enjoyed performing it. Stay tuned.   

Amie Dowling and Eli Nelson's dance piece is part of the upcoming Spring Dance Performance featuring USF's Dance Ensemble. The show will take place at Presentation Theater on April 30th and May 1st at 8pm.

As we gear up for tonight's premier of Agnes of God, a few words from the show's director

Zoe Bronstein is a sophomore making her directing debut at USF with John Pielmeier's Agnes of God which opens tonight at the Studio Theater on Lone Mountain at 8pm. Part of the Performing Arts Department's Student Cabaret Series, Agnes of God is a drama about a young nun who is tried for an unthinkable crime. Zoe shared a little about how this project came to be and how she hopes it will affect audiences on our campus. Click here for show dates and directions.

How did you decide to direct Agnes of God as a Student Cabaret for the Performing Arts Department?
Zoe: This show has resonated with me since I was about sixteen, for the structure of the script (the entire show is a memory of the main character) and the actual characters (three very strong women of varying ages). When I was thinking of shows to submit to the Cabaret program, I didn't even think of Agnes of God [at first]. It wasn't until I went through a list of plays that Ken Sonkin, the Cabaret teacher, had that I remembered it. I figured that if I still loved the show after being familiar with it for four years, I had to make an effort to recreate it on campus.


This play is potentially controversial. It deals with issues of morality within the structure of the Catholic Church and the struggle between faith and reason. Do you think this has a special resonance with USF as a Jesuit University?
Zoe: Yes, I do. That's one of the reasons I chose this show. I thought it would be especially provocative and interesting for the Jesuit faculty members.


Were you concerned about the way Catholic audience members might feel or react?
Zoe: I definitely wanted to make sure that any person who identified with Catholicism would be comfortable while watching the show. No one likes to go to a play and find out it's just going to preach to them about how their way of living is somehow wrong. I wanted to be respectful, and make it clear that Agnes of God is not about the problems of religion; it is about the relationships that are cultivated between believers and non-believers.


The Vatican has recently been in the news thanks to a growing sex abuse scandal. Do you see any link between what's going on with the Catholic Church right now and the situation that takes place in Agnes of God in terms of the way the Church deals with internal controversies?
Zoe: Audience members might connect the play to real life events and controversies. The play was actually based on a true event where a nun was on trial for the murder of her infant, which was kept a secret until she gave birth. She was found not guilty [by] reason of insanity. This was not a sex abuse scandal in so many words, but sexuality (and the idea that it should be stifled) is definitely a theme explored in this show.


You're working with a small cast (three actresses) of USF students. What has the experience of directing your peers been like?
Zoe: It's been fantastic being able to work with these talented women. Every single one brings something new and unexpected to rehearsal, and they are all so different and click so well. Directing my peers has been a wonderful opportunity to learn how to direct a cast with respect and consideration.


What do you think your audience will be most surprised by when they see the play?
Zoe: I hope they'll be drawn in by the drama and the strong emotions in the show. As for surprises, I won't spoil them.


Finally, what do you hope audience members will take away from Agnes of God?
Zoe: I want them to come out of the show with a sense of catharsis. You experience a lot with these characters, and the climax of the show is exciting and heartbreaking. I want people to be inspired to talk about the show as an artistic piece and a social commentary.
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Agnes of God by John Pielmeier opens tonight at the Studio Theater on Lone Mountain. Showtime is at 8pm.

Performances: March 26, 27 and 28 at 8pm
At the Studio Theater on USF's Lone Mountain campus, 2800 Turk St., San Francisco (directions available here)

Featuring: Megan Pohlman, Kat Cole, and Samantha Sheppard-Gonzales.

To RSVP or for more information, click here.

FREE ADMISSION

Orestes 2.0

Orestes 2.0 Teaser from Orestes 2.0 on Vimeo.