I want to take a second to shout out all of the extraordinary actors and directors and crew and understudies and theatres that are pouring their hearts into the numerous productions of POTUS that are/ will be happening across the country (and the world!!!) right now……
POTUS is an incredibly challenging piece to put up: it’s hard for stage managers to call, hard for actors to execute, hard for designers to solve, it is a BEAST to direct. I was spoiled in every way by the remarkable village that brought the Broadway production to life, taking on my then-untested text. I’m so moved to now see big and small theatres, with wide ranging audiences and varied resources, tackling this same show with vim and vigor. I’m sorry I can’t be at all of them or thank you all individually.
In the last few months I have been involved in current and upcoming productions at
@berkeleyrep @arenastage @steppenwolfthtr and
@geffenplayhouse . Which means I get to watch Annie Tippe, Margot Bordelon, Audrey Francis, and
@jenniferchambers13 put their genius to work, each building their own ensemble on different stages for different cities. They all feel so different, I’ve learned new things about my play with every process, but the heartbeat is the same.
The greatest gift of this whole thing has been an ever-widening circle of remarkable artists who I now consider friends and lifelong collaborators. There is also the reoccurring joy of watching the different, multigenerational ensembles of 7 women and femmes develop tight bonds. It is the same strength I feel from grass roots organizing and mutual aid, when I am reminded that we do not have to change the whole world at once. We simply need to build and love one equitable, joy-oriented microcosm at a time, over and over and over again.
