INTERVIEWS

Editors 3/18/13 Editors 3/18/13

'Investigating the World of Polish Playwriting': Katarzyna Grajewska talks with Tadeusz Pajdała and Zbigniew Rudziński

In Raport o stanie polskiego teatru dla dzieci i młodzieży 1989–2003, published by the Children's Art Centre in Poznań (2005), Tadeusz Pajdała and Zbigniew Rudziński, authors of the chapter entitled: Repertuar i dramatopisarstwo (Repertory and playwriting), drew attention to, i.a. the still unsatisfactory level of texts serving as a point of departure for constructing spectacles intended for children and adolescents.

Editors 9/22/12 Editors 9/22/12

Interview with US playwright Willy Conley

Write Local. Play Global. is delighted that playwright Willy Conley was able to take some time away from his playwriting, as well as his teaching at Gallaudet University (the world's only liberal arts school for Deaf and hard of hearing students) to answer a few questions about his work.

Editors 9/22/12 Editors 9/22/12

Interview with French playwright Karin Serres/Une interview de l'autrice de théâtre française Karin Serres'

Write local. Play Global. was able to charm busy French playwright/director/translator Karin Serres into finding a few free moments to answer some questions, answers that she is sharing with her fellow playwrights. This interview conducted in French is all translated into English as well. Cette interview menée en français est aussi intégralement traduite en anglais.

Editors 9/21/12 Editors 9/21/12

Interview with Ugandan playwright Mercy Mirembe Ntangaare

Dr, Mercy Mirembe Ntangaare is a professor, playwright, and folklorist, and a woman who writes powerful plays for both young audiences and adults. Write Local. Play Global. asked her a few questions about her work.

Editors 5/22/12 Editors 5/22/12

Interview with Australian playwright Finegan Kruckemeyer

How do you begin work on a new piece?: "Usually the first thing to appear is a character who is very blurry around the edges. I'll start by letting them speak and hearing what they say, what seems to be their mission or desire, and what might be impeding that. Then from this opening gambit, I try to recognize features of their landscape, of the world in which they live, and sketch that. Then if I now know that this person exists in this world, and with this drive for something, I’ll invent a person they might encounter (be they friend or foe) and slowly build a population out that way. Eventually I give them momentum and set them off on some adventure or other (it can be around a world, or a kitchen table, no matter), and then just try to problem-solve along the way."

Editors 5/20/12 Editors 5/20/12

Entrevista con la dramaturga Berta Hiriart/Interview with playwright Berta Hiriart

Write local play global was able to charm Berta Hiriart into finding a few free moments to answer some questions, answers that she is sharing with her fellow playwrights.

Editors 5/11/12 Editors 5/11/12

Interview: Sudanese/Australian Playwright Afeif Ismail

Playwright and Poet Afeif Ismail was born in Sudan and currently lives and writes in Australia. WLPG co-editors Deirdre Kelly Lavrakas and Kim Peter Kovac were fortunate to be able to have an extended conversation with him in Washington, DC, and we are grateful that he was able to find the time to answer some questions for the WLPG community.

WLPG: Was there something in particular that motivated you to start writing for young audiences?

AFEIF: I grew up beside my grandmother in a poor family and we didn’t have a T.V then. But my wealth is my grandmother’s precious tales. My Grandmother would tell me stories, performing them as if she was her own one-woman theatre: she was the designer, actor, director – everything. The pulse of her stories still beats in my mind and memory. I used to fly with her tales all the time, reincarnated as one of her characters. I traced step by step all the mazes and roads and rough paths, whistling with legendary animals

Editors 5/6/12 Editors 5/6/12

Interview: Russian Playwright Ksenia Dragunskaya

Russian Ksenia Dragunskaya is a busy writer of plays for childen and young people, plays for adults, and books for children. She's a member of the Russian Writers Association, the PEN Center, and her plays have been translated into English, French, German, Serbian, Bulgarian, Czech, Finnish and Japanese. WLPG was fortunate that she found time for a short interview.

WLPG: Was there something in particular that motivated you to start writing for young audiences?

KSENIA: When my son was a little kid, we both relentlessly invented stories, dialogues, and characters. So one day, I collected some of these in a play and my career started. The first play i wrote was produced immediately in a few theaters and it's being produced still.

Editors 1/9/12 Editors 1/9/12

Interview: Polish Playwright Monika Milewska

Similar to many of our playwrights, Monika Milewska has many aspects to her work. In addition to wriing plays, she is also a poet, essayist, translator, anthropologist, and university professor. We are grateful she was able to find some time for a few questions about her plays.

WLPG: Was there something in particular that motivated you to start writing for young audiences?

Monika: It’s a funny story. My first play for children was written for . . . adults