An Interview with Dina Janis of Dorset Theatre Festival

July 10, 2018July 23, 2018 Victoria Myers 6290 Views artistic director, dina janis

Southern Vermont is currently experiencing a theatrical renaissance, helmed by Dorset Theatre Festival’s Dina Janis. Since becoming Dorset’s Artistic Director eight years ago, Dina has revitalized the community by shifting her theatre company’s focus towards nurturing and highlighting new playwrights, especially female playwrights. We speak with Dina about her goals as an artistic director, why she thinks there is currently a window of opportunity for female directors at regional theatres, and more.

Interviews

An Interview with Lena Hall

June 25, 2018July 11, 2018 Victoria Myers 8223 Views broadway actress, lena hall

Lena Hall has optimized her rocker brand and built up a large fan base on social media. The 2014 Tony winner is in the midst of rolling out her monthly Obsessed series, a year-long compilation of EPs and music videos starring and co-produced by Lena herself. We speak with Lena about her experience working on the Obsessed series, the importance of mentorship, why failure is not a bad word, and more.

Interviews

Julia Coffey and Liz Wisan on Performing Shakespeare in 2018

June 19, 2018July 10, 2018 Victoria Myers 5955 Views actress, shakespeare, summer theatre

Julia Coffey and Liz Wisan are no strangers to Shakespeare. They are currently at Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, where Julia is playing the title role in a gender-bending production of Richard II, and Liz is playing the lead role of Katherine in a production of The Taming of the Shrew that seeks to highlight themes of negotiation and companionship instead of inequity or abuse. We speak with Julia and Liz about what it’s like to perform Shakespeare in the context of the #MeToo movement, why they think Queen Elizabeth I may have influenced Shakespeare’s proto-feminism, and how much (or how little) has changed for women in the past four hundred years.

Interviews

An Interview with Set Designer Christine Jones

May 31, 2018June 14, 2018 Victoria Myers 13778 Views christine jones, designer

Set designer Christine Jones has been nominated for a 2018 Tony Award for her imaginative, elegant set, full of secrets and illusions, upon which the play “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” occurs. We speak with Christine about her approach to designing the set for the well-known and beloved wizarding world, how her kids have impacted and shared in her experience of Harry Potter, her impressions of the ways in which the field of set design has changed for young women who are just starting out, and more.

Interviews

Susan Brown on Angels in America

May 24, 2018May 31, 2018 Victoria Myers 5166 Views british

2018 Tony Award nominee Susan Brown is a self-described “chameleon” who plays Ethel Rosenberg, Hannah Pitt, and others in the Broadway revival of “Angels in America.” We speak with Susan about why “Angels” is a universal play, her experiences performing it both on Broadway and in London, how she approaches her transformations into her many characters throughout the two plays, and more.

Interviews

An Interview with Lauren Ridloff

May 2, 2018May 15, 2018 Victoria Myers 9698 Views actress, lauren ridloff

We speak with Tony nominee Lauren Ridloff, currently making her Broadway debut as Sarah in “Children of a Lesser God,” about the ways in which Lauren relates to Sarah, how the play helps her empower her own children, the importance of people truly listening to one another, and more.

Interviews

Marisa Michelson on “One Thousand Nights and One Day” and More

April 5, 2018April 24, 2018 Victoria Myers 6296 Views composer

Marisa Michelson is a composer and vocal philosopher who often adapts myths, folklore, or biblical stories into interdisciplinary, experimental musical works. Her latest piece is “One Thousand Nights and One Day: A Postmodern Musical Fantasia.” We talk with Marisa about “One Thousand Nights and One Day,” her process of composing from the body, why she enjoys crafting non-linear narratives, and more.

Features

Elizabeth Swados: A Legacy

June 27, 2016October 16, 2016 Victoria Myers 7668 Views elizabeth swados

Elizabeth Swados was a pioneering woman of the theatre. Liz was a writer, composer, director, choreographer, and so much more. When she passed away from esophageal cancer in January 2016, she left behind an impressive theatrical legacy not only in terms of her shows, but also in how profoundly she impacted young people, and notably, the young women with whom she had worked.

Featurettes

The Task of Resurrecting Historic Plays by Women

April 28, 2016October 16, 2016 Victoria Myers 8517 Views Anne Kauffman, chisa hutchinson, cusi cram, Heidi Schreck, history, sarah ruhl

We profile History Matters/Back to the Future, an organization that advocates for historic plays by women to be included in college curriculum. We also ask readers what plays by women influenced them.

Interviews

Kamilah Forbes on By The Way, Meet Vera Stark and More

February 26, 2019March 7, 2019 Victoria Myers 7986 Views artistic director

Kamilah Forbes is currently making her Signature Theatre debut directing a revival of By the Way, Meet Vera Stark. A theatre and television producer, as well as director, Kamilah is also in the midst of her third season as Executive Producer of the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem. We speak with Kamilah about her experience working on By The Way, Meet Vera Stark, her experience as a woman in a leadership position in the entertainment industry, and more.

Featurettes

The Interval x Summer Reading

August 30, 2018September 18, 2018 Victoria Myers 6545 Views fun series

Throughout the month of August, we’re asking a variety of artists to tell us about some of the books in their lives. Featuring book recommendations from Lila Neugebauer, Tala Ashe, Patti Murin, Stacey Mindich, Jenn Colella, Quiara Alegría Hudes, Lauren Patten, and Alexandra Silber.

Interviews

Kenita Miller on “Once on This Island”

March 14, 2018March 27, 2018 Victoria Myers 7535 Views broadway actress, kenita miller

Kenita Miller is currently playing Mama Euralie in “Once on this Island.” We spoke with Kenita about how her own mom’s missionary work in hurricane-ravaged Haiti inspired her current portrayal of Ti Moune’s adopted mother Mama Euralie, and why she thinks art can be a conversation starter about rebuilding community, as well as a reflection of life.

Interviews

The Women of “Folk Wandering”

March 6, 2018March 9, 2018 Victoria Myers 5435 Views off broadway

We speak to the women of the “Folk Wandering” creative team: Pipeline Artistic Director Ari Schrier, Pipeline Producing Director Natalie Gershtein, Jaclyn Backhaus , and songwriters Jo Lampert, Barrie McLain, Annie Tippe, and Dominique Toney, about collaborating on devised theatre while navigating the realities of day jobs and student loans, and why they are standing on the shoulders of the women who came before them.

Interviews

The Women of EST’s Spring Season: Chiara Atik, Sylvia Khoury, and Abby Rosebrock

February 15, 2018February 27, 2018 Victoria Myers 5161 Views off broadway playwright

We talk to Chiara Atik, Sylvia Khoury, and Abby Rosebrock to discuss their plays, their experiences with Youngblood/EST, and the ways in which their offstage pursuits have impacted their dramatic writing.

Interviews

The Fire This Time Festival: A Roundtable

January 18, 2018February 1, 2018 Victoria Myers 6336 Views off broadway playwright

Founding artistic director Kelley Girod, director Candis Jones, and playwrights Sandra A. Daley-Sharif, Shelley Fort, Gethsemane Herron-Coward, Charly Evon Simpson, and Mona R. Washington talk about The Fire This Time Festival and being women of color making theatre.

Interviews

Kate Hamill and Amanda Dehnert on adapting Jane Austen for the Stage

December 12, 2017December 19, 2017 Victoria Myers 6042 Views off broadway

Kate Hamill and Amanda Dehnert are currently presenting a theatrical adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice.” We talk with them about the importance of women-centered theatrical narratives and what it’s like to adapt a work by Jane Austen.

Featurettes

From Anatevka to “Rags”: Judy Kuhn and Samantha Massell

November 27, 2017December 7, 2017 Victoria Myers 6228 Views actress

Judy Kuhn and Samantha Massell discuss the similarities and differences between the original Broadway production of “Rags” and the current production at Goodspeed, and how the show still resonates today.

Features

Theatre Without Borders: Teaching Artists in 2017

September 28, 2017October 25, 2017 Victoria Myers 7110 Views political

An inside look at theatrical teaching artists and why providing arts education opportunities to students who might not have it otherwise on a local, national, and global level, is even more crucial in our current turbulent times.

Featurettes

Lillian Hellman’s Regina Giddens: The Theatre’s Original “Nasty Woman”

June 19, 2017September 15, 2017 Victoria Myers 9501 Views

Lillian Hellman’s “The Little Foxes” is the only revival of a play by a woman on Broadway in 2016-17. But historically how did critics write about the play’s protagonist? Was she held to a different standard than protagonists written by men? We examine.

Features

V-Day in TrumpLand: Exploring the Relevance of “The Vagina Monologues”

February 13, 2017September 28, 2017 Victoria Myers 10388 Views political

In recent years, many colleges have questioned the relevancy of “The Vagina Monologues,” but with the election of Donald Trump those conversations have shifted. We talk to Eve Ensler and college students in red states and swing states about their views on “The Vagina Monologues” and their experiences with the show in 2017.

About

The Interval is a theatre publication interested in ideas and how people think and view the world. The Interval