Hi, Angie,
Well that’s fascinating that you started out to do “Betty’s,” and DPS had licensed two of you, that’s a bit weird of them. Hmmmm.
And I LOVE Noah Haidle. I’ve been teaching playwriting at Juilliard School since 1994, Marsha Norman and I teach jointly (in the room at the same time), and we take 8 students at a time, and over all these years we’ve had really talented ones. (David Lindsay-Abaire, David Auburn, Julia Jordan, Kira Obolensky, Jessica Goldberg, Daniel Goldfarb, Stephen Belber, several others) I think Marsha’s and my biggest talent is in reading scripts and recognizing existing talent. I know we helped them in class, but they came in already talented.
And Noah is one of my favorites. He’s also prolific, so maybe do one of his plays later. I taught for one year at Princeton (1999?) and I taught seniors and juniors and one sophomore - Noah. And he was the best in that class, even though the youngest. And a few years later we took him in to study at Juilliard.
Vietnamization — it was actually a hit in New Haven with critics and audiences and got a really funny production. However, Mel Gussow of the NY Times (who gave me many, many good reviews in my life) saw my play THE SAME DAY he saw the premiere of “The Shadow Box” at Long Wharf. And the tones are SO different, and Mel was so moved by Michael Cristofer’s play about people dealing with death, that he just couldn’t respond to “Vietnamization.” So his review really killed it. (He liked others of my plays though… and the next year, I think, he did a piece of four up and coming writers - David Mamet, Albert Innaurato, Michael Cristofer and me. It was an article that got all four of us lots of attention.)
But I still like “Vietnamization,” and a couple years ago a Harvard student contacted me, to do a student production. And though I’ve not reread the play lately, I do think all the absurdist reflections about warfare and America probably are very germane still. So I’m really glad you’re doing it and I hope it goes well.
I relooked at your questions, and think I’ve already answered them in the note to the reporter.
The third question — why is my voice “needed” in Chicago — I think I can’t answer, I don’t know if it’s “needed” or what it means. But let me try to respond to a similar question below.
I noted the interesting quote in your press release from the Oracle Theatre: “Durang often shines a floodlight on the elephant in the room, tackling sensitive issues with reckless abandon. [He] has an undisputable ability to invoke strong emotions from his audiences, making him a choice pick for theatre companies looking to do just that,? said Oracle?s Artistic Director Aaron Shapiro, director of Actor?s Nightmare and Sister Mary.”
I agree with that quote. Also, where was the quote of somebody who said you either love him or hate him? I kind of agree, though I never like to rev an audience up to hate… I don’t do it purposely, but I do think my abilitiy to laugh at dark things — at the same time I’m taking them seriously — upsets some people who don’t like to or don’t how to have two somewhat conflicting feelings at the same time.
I wonder how young your four companies are…
I went to a conference sometime in the late 90s — the Southeast Theatre Conference (which covers Virginia to Florida, and some states west as well, Tennessee, Alabama others). And I thought I was going to a conference of high school and college teachers — I was, but it turned out to be students as well as teachers; the conference had many competitions for students, and so there were HUNDREDS of high school students from these southern states there. And when I signed books, I was astonished to meet all these young people — not college age, but high school — who seemed truly enthusiastic about my plays. Now these were students who studied theatre, so they were already somewhat specialized — but even so. I was highly flattered that the students felt so engaged by my work; and seemed thrilled to meet me. (I go in the supermarket and everyone just thinks I’m a quiet man with gray hair buying groceries. Though I like that anonymity actually)
I spent some time thinking, why do young people (who study theatre) seem to respond so strongly? I had a momentary semi-self-critical thought — my early plays in particular have quite a lot of somewhat infantile and unedited impulses just plopped down into them; and I think those unedited emotions are true of young people who are still maturing. So I thought — do we share an immaturity, and the students find the reflection of that in my plays to be liberating?
That’s not a bad thing; but I also think my plays are about actual topics that are accessible to a lot of people, and I’m kind of in-your-face putting forth the topics: family dysfunction (which almost every family in America experiences to some degree; it’s HARD to be married and to raise children, very very hard; add in everyone’s neuroses and the neuroses passed on by grandparents and great-grandparents, and you a very messy psychological morass to work your way through). Religion (there are a lot of odd myths and beliefs in religion, which were presented as “fact,” especially in the 50s and 60s from which time “Sister Mary” was written). Popular culture (”Betty’s,” I guess). etc. etc.
Anyway, I’m wondering if later generations are responding more to my plays than the generation I grew up with (the baby boomers and their parents). Any connection to your theatres and a younger audience (or younger actors)?
Well I’ve got to get ready for the next thunderstorm. The dog and I will fasten our seat belts, squinch our eyes, and sit in total tension to see if and when they happen. (I have trust issues, lol — really. Even though I sound chipper, I did grow up believing nothing every worked out. That’s been a life journey for me, to amend that belief at the same time and see the positive stuff when it’s there, but some of my pessimism is alas well grounded… look at the world right now.)
That’s all for now. best, Chris D