Tag Archives: Sarah Garic

The FPI Files: New “Winter’s Tale” Speaks to Our Time

Director, Female Artists, Interview, playwriting, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By Sarah Garic

Why do we go back to Shakespeare? Time may pass, whole centuries even, and yet these plays continue to show that we humans are working through the same things… over and over again. So then, what changes? I like to think that you can never listen to a song and hear it exactly the same as you did before. Maybe there’s something new that sparked – a chord, a thought, a color… because the day, time, setting, potentially you were different. And in this particularly interesting moment in history, I wonder… what will resonate with the audience – with you! – in a play in which a king exerts violent power over his family, his subjects, at the harm of those he holds most dear, potentially even himself?

Tracy Young first lifted The Winter’s Tale into modern verse through Play On Shakespeare, a non-profit company promoting and creating contemporary modern translations of Shakespeare’s plays. For Tracy, a director and playwright with a deep portfolio spanning new plays to translations and adaptations, accessibility is a driving force: “Shakespeare wrote for everybody to be able to enjoy the plays; he was not an elitist.”

Now, you may be thinking, “I don’t know if I buy that; Shakespeare isn’t for me.” And you’re probably not alone in that sentiment. My mom once told me she would have to take a class before she could understand Shakespeare’s plays. I feel you mom! I’ve taken many Shakespeare classes, acted in his plays, and feel like I’m barely scratching the surface.

Tracy Young

Tracy hears us, she hears my mom, and all those who may think that Shakespeare stands on a lofty pedestal unreachable for us mere mortals. That is exactly why she is doing this work. Her goal is to render this play as something that can and should engage everyone. So the question is, what might spark with you now in Tracy Young and Lisa Wolpe’s adapted The Winter’s Tale, playing at the Skylight Theatre Company? And what will you hear in 5, 10, 15 years down the road if you chance across this play again? Here’s hoping that the tyrannical king will resonate a bit less.

And on that note, Tracy and I dove right into the juicy stuff.

Sarah Garic: What is resonating now, in the rehearsal room, with all that is happening in the U.S., in the world; metaphysically, spiritually…?

Tracy Young: The original theme is about a man who gives in to false thinking. He suspects his wife and best friend of having an affair… Hmm we’ve definitely seen that storyline before! Horrible consequences role out as a result of conspiratorial, paranoid, and destructive thought processes. This really resonates with the rampant online ecosphere of disinformation, conspiracy-minded thinking and weaponized information that we are living through right now. And this play is asking, what are the consequences of weaponized information? Time will reveal the long-term harms, but certainly the characters’ and people’s ideologies are being shaped by things that may not be true.

Misha Osherovich as Perdita & Israel Erron Ford in “The Winter’s Tale” – photo by Jason Williams courtesy of Skylight Theatre Company

Sarah: Is there a particular character whose story was emphasized in this adaptation?

Tracy: We emphasized the role of Perdita, which means little lost one. She is the daughter of King Leontes and Queen Hermione. Royalty is her curse, and she is sent away and uprooted from who she is, her home, her original place in the world. She grows up in these other places and with other people.

In our adaptation, the actor who plays that role is trans and the character is trans. We focus on the theme of trans-ness and trans-identity, ensuring that there is textual support. In fact, a lot of Shakespeare’s plays integrate trans-ness.

This culture currently has heightened weaponization of language against trans-culture and trans-identity. The character’s marginalization has resonance with her trans-ness as well.

I find that no matter who we are or how we identify, we can recognize ourselves and what it means to be alive and navigate ourselves and the world with these plays as a support. This is why I find Shakespeare’s plays incredibly adaptable to the exploration of modern themes and language.

Sarah: I want to hop back to the idea of being displaced from community. How do you address the question of whether we have agency in choosing who is our community and where is our home? Is Perdita – and the broader “we” – forever stuck with who our father is, etc.?

Tracy: That is really interesting because in the original text, the characters all reunite after a 16-year flash forward. Time has been a factor, and the king is sort of welcomed back into the community. There is a controversial ending in which they are all reunited and there is forgiveness and even happiness maybe.

In the adaptation, we’ve changed some of the way that the last moments play out. We, and particularly the character of Hermione, wrestle with the question, Can you embrace your husband after experiencing such trauma? Should you? In the original, Hermione embraces Leontes.

Misha Osherovich, Spencer Jamison as Hermoine & Daniel DeYoung as Leontes – photo by Jason Williams courtesy of Skylight Theatre Company

Sarah: She embraces the monster. I am really curious by how we deal with monsters. If Hermione embraces Leontes in the original, is it possible that Leontes becomes less scary to her?

Tracy: A lot of times when Leontes is portrayed, he is the villain until he’s not. Somehow the monster is able to find humanity at the end of the play; it lets people off the hook for complicity with the own monsters that we may carry.

In this adaptation, I try to humanize Leontes from the beginning. Leontes has a lot of internalized trauma. The play wants to relate to all the characters in some way; no one is excluded. Shakespeare creates worlds where there are complexity and nuance because humans are so complicated and contradictory.

In the journey that Leontes takes, you see how hideous and destructive he is, and yet, you see and track what were the things that contributed to that … what kind of things set the stage? And we explore that without forcing forgiveness or diminishing the culpability of what the person has done.

In this adaptation, we are actively reckoning with the complexity of doing harm in all the different ways.

Shaan Dasani, Victoria Hoffman, Daniel DeYoung, Israel Erron Ford, Quest Sapp, Iman Nazemzadeh, KT Vogt, Misha Osherovich & Spencer Jamison – Jason Williams courtesy of Skylight Theatre Company

Sarah: Going to need to soak that one in… Switching gears here, what does a modern translation and then adaptation entail?

Tracy: For a modern translation, the first directive is do no harm. When you think it needs to change, the goal is to really interrogate why it needs to change before you change it

Then, the overarching goal is to make the writing more accessible, which of course is going to be subjective. I used my own sensibility and experience being a theatre-maker for many, many years.

For example, with the syntax: often we don’t speak that way anymore; we use a different vocabulary, a different way of forming phrases. I’m looking to unravel the syntax knot while keeping the iambic pentameter structure. With a modern translation, we can stay in time with the play rather than struggling with the language being too antiquated.

There are also events of the past that the audience would have recognized back then, but that are not recognizable now. In some cases, there is a modern equivalent that speaks in a similar way. My mission is to try and find a modern-day analog while keeping the verse intact.

Sarah: Whew, that’s not for the faint of heart!

Tracy: Oh! And the comedy! One of the main challenges is the comedy; comedy needs to be situated in the present-day for us to understand it. Jokes have their own timing and construction of syntax; they also require content accessibility. Ever been in a theatre when some people laugh, but most don’t get it?

Iman Nazemzadeh, Quest Sapp, Israel Erron Ford, Daniel DeYoung & KT Vogt – photo by Jason Williams courtesy of Skylight Theatre Company

Sarah: Yup, that’s been me… once, twice, thrice?

Tracy: In this play, there are a bunch of moments that are comedic bits. I try to deal with the jokes by asking, what kind of a joke is it? And then you try to re-write it in a way that people will recognize!

“The Winter’s Tale” by William Shakespeare, in modern verse translation by Tracy Young, adapted by Lisa Volpe and Tracy Young and directed by Tracy Young, produced by Gary Grossman and Armando Huipe for Skylight Theatre Company in Los Feliz, runs through June 14th. For tickets call  (213) 761-7061 or www.skylighttheatre.org

The FPI Files: Exploring June Carryl’s “The Girl Who Made the Milky Way”

playwriting, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By Sarah Garic

June Carryl has a love affair with a certain kind of magic: When you tell a child that they have a story, they blossom! They participate. They invest in the realization that their bodies and presence make a difference in the world. In June’s new play The Girl Who Made the Milky Way, we become one among the animal crew and accompany Little Sister on her journey to find her story amidst the vivid world of Khoisan mythology. Little Sister’s adventure is an empowering invitation to all children, notably children of color, that they too have stories to share! And those stories are important! They have a place in the world and will be illuminated by the light of many Khoisan stars and a moon.

For those, such as myself, who may not be familiar with Khoisan mythology and traditions, the Khoisan are an ancient ethnic group with a long and intriguing history, believed to be the oldest human inhabitants of southern Africa. June finds a brilliant balance between context and hands-on exploration of the Khoisan world.

And on that note, we had the delight of delving deep into this magical world in our conversation.

Sarah Garic: Younger audiences are a fun group! They’re unbelievably honest, no filter, and so much energy! What inspired you to write this play for younger audiences?

June Carryl – photo by Ryan West

June Carryl: In 2013, I had the idea to write a play for young Black audiences. I was at a bookstore trying to donate books to the Union Rescue Mission in downtown LA. It was a reminder that we have to start bringing diverse voices into the mainstream. And a way to do so, is to do it myself.

Then, when Imagine Theatre’s artistic director Armina LaManna came to me with this Khoisan myth she’d  learned about from a Star Trek episode and asked if I wanted to write a play about it, I said, “Yes,” as though this were my mandate in life. I had put out into the universe that I wanted to write a play for young audiences. It was very fortuitous.

Storytelling is so empowering for kids. Any exposure teaches them that they have stories too. I have seen this transformation on multiple accounts. When I was teaching Shakespeare and acting to students in a housing unit it was powerful to see them find ownership in these stories. As Black and brown students, Shakespeare is for them, too. The whole thing of working with kids really does kind of save your soul. The chance to do it again as a playwright? It’s heaven.

Sarah: In your play, Little Sister is searching for her missing father. It’s something many of us, and unfortunately many audience members, can relate to – a missing parent. What effect did this have on this play, on your audience?

June: A missing parent for any reason is a potent reason for damage in our world. And parents can be absent in so many ways, even emotionally absent.

I was on a bus one day, and there were so many loud kids. And then I realized that they just wanted to be seen and heard. This is how kids extend and ground themselves. And if they’re kids of color, they’re loud because they are invisible. Kids of color are turned into adults, forced to be adults at too young of an age. Black girls in particular often learn that they can’t be innocent. And a key part of that is related to who is at home? Who is missing?

Little Sister’s search for her father is reflective of children taking on the responsibility of what happens in their world. However, in this case, I was interested in bringing her responsibility back to a reasonable proportion. In this play, her sole job is to be a kid. Little Sister is not supposed to do more than is her share. The same thing needs to be there for little boys.

Stakiah Lynn Washington and Max Lawrence in “The Girl Who Made the Milky Way”
Photo courtesy of Imagine Theatre

Sarah: It’s ever a dance to balance cultural expectations and individual wants and needs! What are some of these unfair expectations for Little Sister? There seemed to be a trend around cooking? In fact, eating of all sorts seemed to feature prominently in this play, as even “The Mountain has eaten herself into a stupor!”

June: Little Sister has the opportunity to break out of the mold of what little girls are supposed to do. Importantly, this society is neither matriarchal nor patriarchal. The father may be hunting and the mother may be gathering, but you could also hunt if you were a woman. The gender roles are not very rigid, particularly at a younger age.

In fact, there is fascinating story about how a kid turns lions into stars. There is a sense of empowerment that is accorded to the feminine that works counter to the fact that women do things such as the cooking. It doesn’t necessarily mean that one is more important than the other.

Sarah: Shapeshifting is delicious in this play, particularly that of Mantis. I had always thought there was something extra special about a mantis! They’re far too wise to be contained in one being. What role does shapeshifting play in this world?

June: I love that this role can be cast as a man or a woman. This idea is, you can be anything! The body can do anything, become any animal or mythical creature. I loved being in the headspace of someone who is very smart, creative, and empowered by that creativity! This reinforces the idea that you can figure it out to a degree. You do need help, but you can become!

Mantis is a mentor because Mantis reflects back what Little Sister’s abilities are. We all need that reinforcement: mentor by mirroring.

Makha Mthembu and Stakiah Lynn Washington
Photo courtesy of Imagine Theatre

Sarah: Mantis emphasizes the importance of taking care of ourselves and the people and things we hold dear. Speaking of which, there were some lost Hare boots amiss! What was the inspiration for the lost things?

June: The idea of a collection of things that we lose and miss is relatable. Everyone has had that thing that meant a lot to them, that thing that you held dear, that you let go of, or that was taken from you. Father going missing involved a whole set of things lost: security, love, play, adventure, a sense of one’s own capabilities.

Little Sister has a sense of her capabilities in her head, but she needs to practice. Mantis says, “You should know that power of helping your friends.” She knows that cooking isn’t all that there is to her world. After her journey, she comes back with a story, which is reinforcement that she has a place in the world: I Am. But I am also Somebody.

Sarah: Hare and Lion have a joyful banter that reminded me of my family – lots of love even though Lion had almost eaten Hare. Fill us in, what is the tension holding these two together?

June: This touches on sibling rivalry. Big brother, little brother; funny and at the same time relatable. There is a constant trying to get the last word. Lion is the ladies man and Hare is the whatever dude.

I was also exploring masculinity. Hare finds his own self-worth when he finds the answer to the riddle about the shoes. Boys are so early ensconced in this societal pressure to be the aggressor, but sometimes you can just be smart, and that counts. So often, sensitive boys can fall onto that more aggressive path. There needs to be room for everyone, every type. There is no one way to be a person.

Makha Mthembu, Edward Hong, Stakiah Lynn Washington and Carter Michael
Photo courtesy of Imagine Theatre

Sarah: Ooo please expand upon the riddles! I loved them! Despite the fact that some of them really stumped me!

June: Most of the riddles were South African. Riddles are part of the culture of learning. They are a means of passing down the culture. I also value that they support critical thinking and engagement.

Little Sister also contributed; she came up with riddles. In this manner, wisdom is currency. With the riddles, Little Sister was able impart wisdom as well as to receive.

Also, the delivery of the riddles kind of breaks the 4th wall, without devolving into too much chaos in this younger audience. There were students who were excited to say that they had the correct answers to all the riddles!

Sarah: Is there an additional idea/theme that was important to you in writing this play that we haven’t touched on?

June: I wanted to make sure I wasn’t talking down to the kids. I was constantly asking the question: Would a kid understand and receive this? Because kids know so much more than we give them credit for, it’s very important not to baby talk. My hope is that the play succeeds in speaking to a younger audience without speaking down to them. 

“The Girl Who Made the Milky Way” will have two final performances at The Colony Theatre on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Sunday, November 17 at 4 p.m. For tickets and more information, call (818) 649-9474 or go to imaginetheatreca.org.