NewBorn Festival Opened Last Night & We Interviewed The Playwrights

The Fab Marquee interview by Antonio Miniño.

New York based non-profit theatre company, Maieutic Theatre Works, has been presenting a reading series for three years now. They call it The NewBorn Festival as it “births” new works and fosters relationships with directors and actors.
They opened last night with The Exile by Mark Krause, followed by an Opening Party. The Fab Marquee asked the 5 playwrights involved in the series 5 questions, and this is what they had to say:

1-How did you hear about The NewBorn Festival?
(Jacob Appel-Woodpecker) Doesn't everybody know about the NewBorn Festival? Seriously, I can't even remember where I parked my car at the mall...

(Mark Krause-The Exile) To tell you the truth, I can't quite remember. Maybe from the Dramatist Guild newsletter, or perhaps the NYC Playwrights website.

(Kay Rhoads-A Simple Matter of Fear) I was looking for one more step in development for "A Simple Matter of Fear" and my internet research led me to the NewBorn Festival. It seems to "fit the bill".

(Kimberly Del Busto-Hurricane In A Glass) I believe I read about it in Gary Garrison's LOOP.

(Carol Carpenter-Wild Dogs) I'm an alum of David's alma mater, the College of Santa Fe. While doing research on our theatre alums, I came across MTWorks and emailed my play to David. He read it and suggested I submit it to the NewBorn.

2- Describe your play in one sentence:
(Jacob Appel-Woodpecker) Four desperate women searching for the last of the ivory-billed woodpeckers confront a secretive swamp-dweller equally determined to put and end to their search.

(Mark Krause-The Exile) If no one sees you how you see yourself, can you be the person you think you are?

(Kay Rhoads-A Simple Matter of Fear) There is sometimes a very fine line between being a coward or a hero and as the line is stretched people can react in unexpected ways.

(Kimberly Del Busto-Hurricane In A Glass) A tale of Cuban-American exile, Alzheimer's and aging that allows an audience to laugh while considering these sensitive issues.

(Carol Carpenter-Wild Dogs) Small town radicals sabotage a Disney movie production.

3-What makes your work stand out from the rest?
(Jacob Appel-Woodpecker) Woodpeckers. More woodpeckers than all the plays on Broadway combined.

(Mark Krause- The Exile) Its total anonymity.

(Kay Rhoads-A Simple Matter of Fear) Although "A Simple Matter of Fear" is set in WWII the issues are still timely. Passage of time can wear away at the edges of history. We think of WWII as a time when all young men marched off to war in lock step, singing patriotic songs. This true story sheds a different light. A father embarrassed by his son's fear struggles with indecision; will he be complicit in his son's desertion from the army or will he live his ideals and report his son to the FBI. "What's a man to do?" William Wainwright.

(Kimberly Del Busto-Hurricane In A Glass) Strong investigations of intergenerational and bi-ethnic perspectives; a mix of both classical and modern tones.

(Carol Carpenter-Wild Dogs) A classically structured farce with a radical heart.

4-Whose work do you admire-inspires you?
(Jacob Appel-Woodpecker) Tina Howe is the standard by which all other playwrights should be judged.

(Mark Krause-The Exile) I try very hard to take away something from everything I read, see or hear -- whether it's brilliant, boring or even forgettable. The real trick, at least for me, is being able to glean from anything.

(Kay Rhoads-A Simple Matter of Fear) Edward Albee continues to create work that engages me, sometimes shocks me, and always enlightens me.

(Kimberly Del Busto-Hurricane In A Glass) García Lorca, Alejandro Sieveking, Nilo Cruz, Irene Fornés, Jason Ramírez, María Brito.

(Carol Carpenter-Wild Dogs) Playwright: Sam Shepard. Screenwriter: James L. Brooks. Non-Fiction: Gore Vidal. Fiction: Graham Greene.

5-What do you hope the audience will walk away with after this reading?
(Jacob Appel-Woodpecker) I'm hoping that many couples spend hours arguing over the meaning of the play, but that no marriages end as a result.

(Mark Krause-The Exile) [no comment]

(Kay Rhoads- A Simple Matter Of Fear) Sometimes true tragedy lies just below the surface.

(Kimberly Del Busto-Hurricane In A Glass) I hope a diverse audience will be intrigued by the play's "specific" focus on Cuban-Americans while at the same time relating to its more "universal" themes.

(Carol Carpenter-Wild Dogs) A desire to smoke a big fatty in Madrid. The recognition that we're all sellouts, so shut the f*ck up.

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The readings are completely free, and although you are too late to catch The Exile, you can still catch the rest of the plays this weekend. Sunday is a special treat, as they have an “audience favorite”, so you can vote for your favorite play or playwright on the MTWorks blog (http://www.mtworks.blogspot.com) and they will be read for a second time that day that day, and they have a “resident reading” by playwright-Artistic Director David Stallings.

Friday, January 23 at 6pm- A Simple Matter of Fear
Friday at 8:30pm-Woodpecker
Saturday, January 24 at 6pm-Hurricane In A Glass
Saturday at 8:30pm-Wild Dogs
Sunday, January 25 at 6pm-Audience Vote
Sunday at 8:30pm-Barrier Island

The Arclight Theater (152 West 71 St, Manhattan [btwn Amsterdam & Columbus])