“The Ballad of Trayvon Martin by Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj and Thomas J. Soto is a poetic docudrama inspired by the death of teenager Trayvon Martin inside a private gated community in Florida. Martin was shot and killed by George Zimmerman, a white neighborhood watch volunteer. With Florida’s now famous “Stand Your Ground Law” in place, Zimmerman was unsurprisingly acquitted in the murder trial. Trayvon was clearly not the dangerous thug that the shooter made him out to be. Instead of a gun, he held a bag of Skittles. His dream was to one day become a pilot. Instead, it is his legacy to be known by millions of Americans as a symbol of just how tough it is to be a young black man in this country.” 
​                                                                            –Neal Newman, in his DCMetroTheaterArts review of The Ballad of Trayvon Martin

Henrik: You are only 16 and already starring in a major production at the New Freedom Theatre, Pennsylvania’s oldest African American theatre. Tell us about the influences that inspired you to pursue acting and keep moving forward in a tough world—both in the streets and on theater stages. 
​
Amir:  Seeing people like Denzel Washington and Sidney Poitier, symbols of the African-American culture and movements in the United States, made me very fond of theatre and the arts. Being able to portray stories, characters, and lessons gives me a sense of purpose that inspires me to appreciate and take part in theatre and a new sense of the world.

​My grandmother and great-grandmother have always supported me in whatever I pursued, so I had an extra push in my art that allowed me to be steps ahead and really appreciate acting.

We saw you on stage as a child, a teenager, a member of a group of friends playing ball, a frightened young man facing George Zimmerman’s gun, a victim, a visitor in the place of the dead, and as a polished speaker, delivering an impassioned and sophisticated concluding speech to the audience. Describe the shifting mindsets of Trayvon Martin that you presented and the processes you had to go through to portray such a multi-faceted character.

It is most definitely a challenge. Having to drop into the role every night and grip the deep places inside of me to make the performance give as much justice to Trayvon, takes a lot out of me. I usually relate the actions and scenes of Trayvon to similar situations I experienced in my life. This makes it so surreal and a time for me to reflect on myself as a teenage boy.

How did any of the scenarios that Trayvon experienced in his life relate to aspects of your own life, especially against the backdrop of all the many young people of color that have been killed in the U.S. over the last few years?
​
Being the same age as Trayvon, it really affects me. It makes me sick that people still in this day and age, judge by what someone wears or where he is from. As a nation and a society, we must overcome this mental disposition of putting people in a box. As a united world, this cannot be something carried on as it is dangerous and limits the intellect and potential of so many black and minority kids today.

I would tell them, “Listen! Understand that racial division is just that, a division. You can’t protest with Black Lives Matter and then continue the next day as if nothing had happened. If you are angry, let your lifetime goal be to make the world understand what you believe in your own way. If that way would be writing, protesting, performing, or whatever is right for you, put your frustration into that. Anger can be beautiful or horrible. It is up to you how you use your anger.”

Is there anything else you would like to share?

Running Time: Two hours and 15 minutes, with an intermission.
The Ballad of Trayvon Martin plays through this Sunday May 22, 2016 at New Freedom Theatre-1346 Broad Street (Broad and Master), in Philadelphia, PA. For tickets call the box office at (888) 802-8998.
​
Check out this review: The Ballad of Trayvon Martin reviewed by Neal Newman on DCMetroTheaterArts.

For this interview, originally published by DCMetroTheaterArts, click here. 

By Henrik Eger

​We asked the actors of Philadelphia’s Irish Heritage Theatre: “What does Sean O’Casey’s THE PLOUGH AND THE STARS do for you to get in touch with Irish life and its people, culture, and/or history, and what are you bringing to the play?”

​The language is quite colorful and dynamic, full of regional slang and colloquialisms. When you least expect it, it’s quite beautiful and poetic, too. It is my hope that—by finding the intersection of tragedy, along with what daily life was like—I can find my character, and understand as best I can what it meant to be a Dubliner in 1916, amongst much turmoil.

Plays and Players, 1714 Delancey Street. May 26-June 11, 2016; irishheritagetheatre.org.
For this interview, originally published by Phindie, click here. 

Daniel Brunet, translator of 19 German plays since 2003, is serving as the American producing artistic director of the English Theatre in Berlin [ETB] at the International Performing Arts Center [IPAC]. He also worked for the German Theater Abroad from 2005 to 2008—a transatlantic theater company based in New York and Berlin. Brunet flew out to Philadelphia a few days ago to direct a staged reading of Stolowitz’s latest play. 

PlayPenn and the National Museum of American Jewish History: Both organizations are sponsoring the event, which features David Ingram and Leah Walton, with Caroline C. Packard, organizational change and conflict response specialist and mediator, as the associate producer.

The reading takes place at the National Museum of American Jewish History – 101 South Independence Mall East, in Philadelphia, PA, on Monday, May 16th at 7 PM. To register for your free tickets, click here. Running time is 1 hour, 50 minutes, including a ten minute intermission.

What support did you receive from the DAAD and the English Theatre in Berlin? 
​
I was a 2014-15 playwright-in-residence at English Theatre Berlin [as a result of] a faculty research grant, which funded my Berlin expenses. During this time, I developed the play with Daniel Brunet. We had a public reading in May of 2015.

You wrote, “I don’t want to be the one to know”—an ominous statement, given your discoveries about family secrets. What did you discover? 

I found that many of my Berlin first cousins thrice removed perished in the Shoah [Holocaust]. I found that some whom I had not known about lived and emigrated. I learned that I had cousins alive today whom I could contact.

You met a wide-range of people in Berlin on your search. 
​
The Berliner archivists were extremely helpful. Everyone aided me in my search. I felt incredibly grateful to the archivists, historians, and German friends and acquaintances who took time to help me with translations, document hunts, and copying and scanning.

What were the highlights of your time in Berlin? 

Seeing much amazing and interesting German and international theater in Berlin, creating a close collaborating relationship with Daniel Brunet, spending time with my family and my German-born husband’s family in Berlin.

Your play reveals a great deal of brutally honest information about “Andrea,” one of the two main characters, for example, “I’m worried about my job and my agent, who also represents Mamet.” How much of your creative docudrama is fact and fiction? 

It is all true—expect for the parts which are not. I call it a speculative memoir.

Schlüterstraße 27 shares a wide range of family secrets that “Mom” tries to prevent, in addition to corporeal and psychological problems that could be seen as an outcome of the terrible stress of escaping Nazi Germany. What was your family’s response to the openness of your creative docudrama?

My family has been very supportive. They are excited that I have used the diary to create a new piece of art work.

Your play, dealing with the plight of Jewish people, also connects compensation for Holocaust victims with other groups that have suffered terribly, for example, “I wonder what would happen in the US if we paid restitution. Native Americans? Slavery? Japanese-Americans? Cold hard cash.”

You summarized your play with this thought-provoking quote, “My family is alive? First the story was no one died in the Holocaust. Then I found the ones who died. Now I’m finding the ones who lived. [. . .] I feel like I should tell someone. My Mom. David. Claire.” And then you ask: “Does anyone care?”
​
 Well, I really feel this way as a third generation Holocaust survivor. The legacies of the past, the ghosts of the past, still haunt me. Maybe this is what being “third generation” means. We see the ghosts and we want to set them free.

​By Henrik Eger

Machinal by Sophie Treadwell, considered one of the most important Expressionist plays in the United States, premiered on Broadway in 1928. Inspired by the life of Ruth Snyder, who was convicted of and executed for murder, this dark play captivated audiences and earned accolades from its inception, including Burn Mantle’s The Best Plays of 1928-1929. In response to the 1954 TV production, the New York Times wrote, “Sophie Treadwell’s expressionistic and bitter poem for the theatre must rank among the video season’s finest accomplishments.” ​

Henrik: You often use a collaborative approach with the cast. Could you give a few examples where cast members presented ideas that you were able to integrate into your production?
​
Brenna: The cast for this show is incredible; their imaginations and instincts are gold mines for any director. As EgoPo has three weeks to put up a play, this is invaluable. We all have to work hard and work fast. The cast and I met with Peter Andrew Danzig’s Philadelphia Theatrical Trainer for a few hours of workshopping before the rehearsal process started. Through different exercises and improvisations, we created many gestures and movement patterns, some of which were used in the production. For example, Mary [Tuomanen]’s first moment was derived from a series she made at the workshop that resonated with me and which I recorded.

​Steven Wright and I talked a lot about the movement language of the piece before we went into rehearsals and those conversations were essential to me. I had engaged Steven to work as a sort of ensemble captain with me on this piece because of the unique way he embodies his modern dance training into his own unique style. He created one of my favorite moments of the play where the four men accuse the Young Woman of being crazy and then execute this sweeping-side-step gesture. I love it and he taught the entire ensemble this sequence during the workshop day. His physical work as the priest in the final scene astounds me still.

Lee Minora, one of the funniest ladies in town, made so many strong proposals for the First Scene and really was the engine of that work. She set the bar early and high. Carlo Campbell made one of my favorite gestural proposals for a wicked moment in the Speakeasy Scene. Carlo’s natural athleticism also makes him a “Breath Captain” in the ensemble, as well as “Defense” to keep group movement strong and safe.

The first time Colleen Corcoran dropped to her knees with “morning sickness” in Scene 5, her fellow actors almost stopped the run. Colleen is one of my favorite collaborators in town; her choices come straight from the heart and have the added sugar-coating of her unflappable charisma.

Shamus McCarty is newer to me for this kind of work, so when his “ADA Jonathan Paramour” set the courtroom on fire with re-cap montage of a million gestures, I could barely take it.

Chris Anthony is truly blessed with natural scene chops as well as a physical grace and control that would make a dancer nod her head in approval. When I showed Chris my inspiration for the movement of Male Objectification, he nodded silently, thought about it, and came back with guns a-blazing.

When these kinds of artists get into a room together, it can be a wild ride. The hope is that we work together to make the rules of the language that then anyone can pull from to make a moment.

​Mary Tuomanen and her guardian angel

​Kirsten and I have worked together as part of the Philadelphia Opera Collective for a few years now. Most recently, she was in my new opera Jump the Moon for the Fringe. Kirsten is an amazing artist. Obviously she is a gifted soprano with a powerful and beautiful voice. But she is also an amazing performer. She knows how to use her whole body to tell a story, not just her voice. I personally find her to be hypnotizing on stage and she is really willing to make bold choices. I always look for excuses to have her on the team. She and I have two projects this summer, including another new opera.

For example last season, Ross Beschler and Ed Swidey led a workshop with the cast of the Hairy Ape [by Eugene O’Neill] to show some of the breath work they had learned in Athens, Greece via connections through the Wilma. Matteo [Scammel] had already been exposed to such training through the Wilma and was able to keep leading the cast though warmups for the entire process. In turn, many ensemble members from Hairy Ape returned for Machinal, bringing in that shared experience and passing it on to new cast members. They use it on their own to help each other in their ensemble work. Of course, this does not compare to the dedicated work Hothouse is doing, but I cannot thank the Wilma enough for bringing this training into Philly and allowing it [to] spread through the community.

What are your creative plans for this year and next year?

Next up is the SoLow Fest, which I am rehearsing for now. I am working with KO DelMarcelle on one piece, as well as Colleen Hughs and Rachel Gluck on another. I have a few projects to take me through the summer in Cape Cod, Scranton Shax, and in the Pittsburgh area. I will be back in Philly in August to start rehearsals for the Fringe. At this festival, I am making an immersive opera at the Powel House. There are a bunch of different timelines for audiences to follow throughout the historic mansion, so I am very excited to craft that. It’s called Shadow House, and I hope you will see it.

I would be delighted, even though I can’t imagine how one can go beyond your Treadwellian Machinal—one of the best productions I have seen in years.

Running Time: Two hours, with an intermission.

Machinal played through May 8, 2016 at EgoPo Classic Theater performing at The Latvian Society – 531 North 7th Street, in Philadelphia, PA.

LINKS:

Lover, Wife, and Murderess—EgoPo’s Stunning ‘Machinal’: Interview with Director Brenna Geffers: Part 1 on DCMetroTheaterArts by Henrik Eger
​
‘Machinal’ at Ego Po Classic Theater in Philadelphia reviewed on DCMetroTheaterArts by Neal Newman.

Brenna Geffer’s website.

Originally published by DCMetroTheaterArts. 

​By Henrik Eger

Machinal by Sophie Treadwell, considered one of the most important Expressionist plays in the United States, premiered on Broadway in 1928. Inspired by the life of Ruth Snyder, who was convicted of and executed for murder, this dark play captivated audiences and earned accolades from its inception, including Burn Mantle’s The Best Plays of 1928-1929. In response to the 1954 TV production, the New York Times wrote, “Sophie Treadwell’s expressionistic and bitter poem for the theatre must rank among the video season’s finest accomplishments.” ​

Henrik: What were the first signs during your formative years as a child and/or teenager that made you realize you loved theater?

Brenna: I am lucky. Growing up, theater was part of my world. My family loved old musicals. I remember seeing my older and incredibly impressive cousin performing the lead role in My Fair Lady. I can still picture perfectly her standing at the edge of the stage, dressed in black and white for Ascot Opening Day--it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I told my father as a pre-teen that I wanted to work in theater and his response was that I ought to know the best. Then he brought home a video of [Bob] Fosse’s Pippin. He is still right about Fosse being the best.

You have a reputation as being a highly innovative director, even doing things that no one else does. Could you describe those breakthrough moments in your life where you developed the courage to go beyond a regular script and brand the play in your Gefferian way?

Thank you for saying that. When I was younger, I think it was just pure curiosity with a dash of stubbornness, maybe. It didn’t seem to me like I was doing anything particularly different, and it didn’t make sense to me if someone suggested that that was not the way a piece ought to be done. But I think most directors feel that way.

I had a lot of great teachers, starting from my undergraduate time at Indiana University of PA, which had, and still does have, a great theater program. My time at Temple U earning my MFA was spent in the crucible with artists like Doug Wager and Bob Hedley, who challenged me to defend my choices, to really mean them. Dan Kern is a Philadelphia treasure; I am one of many who can look to him as a guiding force. Professionally, I was incredibly lucky to see Joe Canuso and Deb Block be brave and true to their choices as directors. I spent time assisting Whit [MacLaughlin] at NPL [New Paradise Laboratories] and saw what it was like for a director to really go after what he or she is feeling in their gut/soul/imagination—wherever it is that their impulses are coming from. I am so thankful to have had and still have these Masters to check in with about my work.

What was your overall concept for Machinal, first performed in 1928? 

I was interested in looking at the way the rules of reality worked in the piece. We often spoke about “glitches” in the reality, the way one might experience in a dream. Things that are off, but just out of the corner of your eye. Those glitches helped to inspire the movement pallet of the piece.

Could you give an example or two?

I thought of the film Jacob’s Ladder when preparing the piece for rehearsals. Also, there is a video game series called Bioshock that helped inspire me towards this dystopian 1920s nightmare. There are so many moments from horror films, a healthy dash of 90’s music videos, and old Victorian gizmo-isms.

I think theater artists in particular hobble together so many moments, inspirations, memories, and secret meanings to make the world of the play feel whole and large. I know my work has lots of “Easter eggs” in it that may not mean anything to an audience member, but have impact. It adds to the sort of secret language that an audience feels and decodes when they watch theater. I think they can feel the specificity of the moment and then are left to apply meaning to that moment themselves. It is a way to activate their imaginations. A super obvious one is in the first moment of the play, before the first line. I recreated a version of the last moment from my Hairy Ape as a sort [of] “Now what? What’s Next?” place to start my work for Machinal.

Machinal by Sophie Treadwell deals with a tough topic, based on a true story of a young woman who murders her husband and gets executed in an electric chair.

We strove to find the humanity in the play as best as we could. For example, in the Court Scene, the Young Woman confesses that she could not divorce her husband as it would hurt him too much. This stood out as an important clue in terms of understanding how the Husband needed to be portrayed. We needed to believe that statement. Casting Ross Beschler was a big step towards that; his characters just breathe across his face like clouds across the sky. He is capable of creating such human fallacy and love in front of an audience because he is relentlessly specific in his work. He digs past the generalities and unearths the very needs and fears of his characters. This makes his Husband become an essential factor in the Young Woman’s life; he is all the more inescapable. If he, or the Mother, were just monsters, we would think the Young Woman to be foolish for not leaving them. They are not monsters. They are just oppressively mediocre. Just like most people.

Women are rarely the center of any story, let alone the anti-hero. So maybe it does require extra work to come into the Young Woman’s world—but it is work worth taking.

You are a strong team player who works closely with artistic teams. Tell us more about that approach for this production, which was dramatically different from any of your other theatrical creations.
​
 This was the first time as a director I worked with a single production designer for all of the elements of the design: Thom Weaver. He and I worked together for the first time on Knives in Hens to create an immersive environment with lights and sets for Studio X, along with Chris Colucci, Dan Perlstein, and Rosemary Mckelvey. That was one of my favorite designs ever.

He and I decided we wanted to work that way again, but go even further if we could. It took us this long to get the chance. The process of collaborating with him has been incredibly satisfying. It is not just because he is an amazing designer; it is also because he is an amazing theater artist at large. He intuitively understands the very nature of live theater.

That’s great. Could you give some examples of Thom Weaver’s input on Machinal and the process of both of you collaborating on this remarkable piece?
​
We decided we wanted to make a “beautiful nightmare” and wanted to see how hard we could push the line between horrifying and stunning. To me, it was a gift to have someone with me at every step of the way in the conception process, a partner with whom to hash out the rules of the world at large. Almost every moment of the piece has Thom’s input on it. While we were crafting the last moment of Machinal, Thom actually got up on stage and started shaping and directing the actors to get it. I think it was quite a moment for him to suddenly be working with live bodies, rather than design elements, but he was amazing at it.

Machinal played through May 8, 2016 at EgoPo Classic Theater performing at The Latvian Society, 531 North 7th Street, in Philadelphia, PA.

LINKS:

‘Machinal’: An Expressionistic Masterpiece: Interview With Director Brenna Geffers, Part 2 by Henrik Eger.
‘Machinal’ at Ego Po Classic Theater in Philadelphia reviewed on DCMetroTheaterArts by Neal Newman.

Brenna Geffer’s website.
Thom Weaver’s website.

For the interview originally published by DCMetroTheaterArts, click here.

​Henrik Eger interviews Welsh playwright Tim Price about the genesis of his play The Radicalisation of Bradley Manning, which premiered in 2012, before Chelsea Manning's transition. The play received its U.S. premiere at Inis Nua Theatre Company and continues until May 15, 2016. Read Mark Cofta's review here.

The Collateral Murder leak really shocked me. It was at this point I understood the power of WikiLeaks. I was fascinated by their groundbreaking approach to protecting sources by never knowing who they are in the first place.

When Chelsea was arrested, I was gripped by the story because this incident disrupted WikiLeaks' reputation as the safest place to leak material. When I discovered she was Welsh, I knew I had to tell her story.

The evolution of a radical play

Tell us more about both your research and the creative process involved in writing this unusual drama.

The play was first produced in 2012 when Chelsea was in solitary confinement. You couldn't get any info about her situation, if she was being charged, or why the U.S. was treating her in a way “tantamount to torture.”

But the documents we did have were the chat logs leaked by Wired, between Chelsea and another hacker [Adrian Lamo, who reported Manning to the FBI], where she confessed to the WikiLeaks dump. She outlined her politics, gave her reasoning, but also gave an indication of her fragile mental state.

The treatment of Chelsea in prison is all based on documented evidence as Chelsea tried to complain about her treatment at the time — the removal of clothes, the waking up, etc.

I also went to West Wales where she lived when she was in the UK and met old school friends of hers. I got a sense of what she was like in school and slowly built up the character.

Tell us why you chose to present Manning’s character through six different actors.

For three reasons: first, because I felt connected to Chelsea and that she could easily have been me. Having everyone play the Bradley character reminds us that anyone could find themselves in this situation.

The second reason is that The Radicalisation of Bradley Manning is not and could not be a straight biographical play. Having everyone play the Bradley character puts the question of who and what you are watching on the stage.

Third, in a play where you are managing huge amounts of information and events, the device brings subtext and nuance, as we chart the fracturing of the Bradley character.

How tempting was it for you to take sides?

I think it's impossible to sit on the fence when writing drama. Critics often say writers are brave because they “ask questions” of society. I don't think it's brave to ask questions. I think it's brave to offer answers.

John E. McGrath, the founding artistic director of the National Theatre Wales (NTW), accepted your concept “before we had a single line.” You must have been under tremendous pressure. How did you persevere with this explosive subject?

John was incredibly brave and supportive when he switched plays and announced NTW had a play on Chelsea. The UK media put it all over the press that we had this story that will explain what motivated this person's actions when, at the time, I had as much of an idea as the next person. When I saw the press reaction, I found myself hiding under a duvet for about a fortnight, asking myself, “What the hell have I done?” I learned that, ultimately, if you feel something is right, you have to take a risk.

Tell us more about the possible impact of “radical protest” in Welsh history and its rebellion toward England on Chelsea Manning when she attended school in Wales.

Welsh history is really a long series of noble losses. We are England's oldest colony. Having such a mighty neighbor means holding onto our identity, in itself, is an act of resistance. To correct people who assume you are English is an act of resistance. Americans do not understand what it feels like to be brought up in a culture and identity that is so deeply threatened and dominated by a neighbor.

There were three million people with the same security clearance as Chelsea; yet, only she leaked any information. She was probably the only officer to have also gone through the Welsh education system. I think those two things are related.

What did Susan Manning, Chelsea’s mother, and other family members and former classmates tell you after they saw the production?

They were hugely appreciative because at the time, the UK Government was offering no consular support. They refused to recognize Chelsea's dual citizenship, and therefore this little Welsh family was cut adrift while one of their children was at the center of a global news storm. It was only a campaigning politician, Ann Clwyd, who represents my valley (you see a pattern here?) who took up Chelsea's case and forced the UK Government to support them.

What made you accept the offer to stage your play in Philadelphia?
​
I think directors are drawn to the formal innovations within the play, but are often unnerved by its politics. It takes someone with courage to want to put this on, especially in the United States, and I think [Inis Nua Theatre Company artistic director] Tom Reing is just that kind of director. 

For the interview originally published by Broad Street Review, click here.

​By Henrik Eger

Through May 22, 2016, Media Theatre presents 1776: THE MUSICAL, an entertaining, thought-provoking introduction to the fights among politicians as the 13 colonies break off from Britain as the nascent United States (read Phindie reviews here and here).

Media’s director Jennie Eisenhower—a popular stage, film, and TV actor; director; and history buff—has performed off-Broadway and at regional theaters across the U.S. for over a dozen years. She has won two Barrymore awards and several Barrymore nominations.

For this production, Eisenhower directed a team of twenty-six talented Philadelphia actors who transition beautifully into famous historical characters (sometimes understudying several roles), ranging from high school junior Thomas Locke as the Courier who delivers the desperate letters from General Washington, to experienced actor Michael Fuchs as John Knox Witherspoon.
​
In this, the second of a two-part interview (read part one here), we talk to Eisenhower about the history behind the musical and her work on the production. [Media Theatre, 104 E State St., Media, PA] April 13-May 22, 2016; mediatheatre.org.

​Eger: Tell us about your casting for this production of 1776. What were you looking for in the actors/singers?

Eisenhower: First and foremost, I was seeking strong actors. I consider this to be a play, predominantly. If people were strong actors and could carry a tune at all, they were contenders. I also attempted to cast a wide variety of personalities. Everyone is so unique in this group with their own quirks and things that make them stand out. That was important to me. All of them are so incredible and I wish I had time to praise them each individually, but there are 26 of them in total.  ​

Eger: Could you give a few examples of some of the most famous Americans during those revolutionary days with whom you worked at the Media Theatre?

​Finale

Eger: Which task is more demanding—acting or directing—and why, especially now that you are the mother of little Chloe?
Eisenhower: Directing is more all-consuming, but for a more concentrated period of time. And a lot of the prep work I am able to do after hours, while Chloe is asleep. I also like being able to be home to put Chloe to bed—another perk of directing and not performing. I LOVE acting, but it isn’t as toddler-friendly.

Eger: Looking back at the entire experience of developing concepts on how best to direct this historical musical, your work with the artistic team, and the actors, what would you say were the most important things that you have learned about yourself as a director and as an American?

Eisenhower: One thing that is remarkable about this piece is that it is about great but flawed Americans. There isn’t one character without some fault, some unappealing characteristic. Yet, they were all about to work with each other, to compromise, and to bring a nation together. Adams, for example, is “obnoxious,” Franklin is a bit of a windbag, Jefferson is a hypocrite, Wilson is a coward, etc. These qualities, however, did not stop them from working together. The spirit of compromise exhibited by the delegates during the editing of the Declaration of Independence is a great example of a functioning democracy and I think modern politics could use a bit of that spirit.

In that same spirit, I was able to let go of my pursuit of perfection on this project, which is something that sometimes plagues me as an artist. I just create, get messy, and discover 1776 with this wonderful cast and creative team. The result was, like America, not some pristine and perfect thing, but a piece with a lot of heart that just works. It was freeing to work in this way.

​By Henrik Eger