Click HERE to donate now. When Playwrights Horizons approached me about writing a fundraising letter, I immediately said yes. There is no other theater company in the world that I believe in with greater enthusiasm. And then I became paralyzed for about a week and a half. The headlines are bulging with bad news. So asking anyone for anything right now, especially money, seems absurd. Yet in times likes these, it is important to consider the significance of the theater. After all, where else are we able to gather in a dark space and watch and listen to flesh-and-blood characters tell us the stories of our times? And as the incredible canon of Playwrights Horizons writers continues to ask difficult questions that reflect the complexities of what it means to be alive right now, how can we ensure that their work will be seen? And shouldn’t we want to bear witness to these stories? Some of my favorite evenings of theater have happened at Playwrights Horizons. Richard Nelson’s production of Good Night Children Everywhere was so authentically rendered that I literally forgot I was at a play. I felt I had somehow time traveled to post-World War II England. Seeing it encouraged me to insist on directing my own work. Despite being a wild farce, Christopher Durang’s Betty’s Summer Vacation left me buzzing and strangely haunted. I don’t know that I ever laughed harder, and yet there was a chilling silence at the play’s end. When I got home that night I turned on my computer and started writing–I was that inspired. A few weeks ago, I saw Annie Baker’s Circle Mirror Transformation which deftly captures the humble lives of five characters. Although it takes place in a small dance studio, it felt Chekhovian in its longing, almost operatic in scope, and continued to detonate in my heart days later. I’ve had two of the best professional experiences of my career at Playwrights Horizons (Essential Self-Defense and Kindness). It wasn’t only the amazing level of talent involved on stage, but also the incredible commitment shown by the entire staff. Nowhere else have I experienced such enthusiasm for the creation of new plays; it’s a passion shared equally by every member of the staff from Artistic Director Tim Sanford to Literary Manager Adam Greenfield down to the newest intern. In order for writers to continue to have a home to ask important questions, we need funding, and as times get tougher, we need it more than ever. I hope you will join me in making a contribution to Playwrights Horizons so that they can continue to nurture the careers of some of our country’s most important artists while also seeking out the new voices who will keep us honest, break our hearts, and help us to feel connected to something greater than ourselves.
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Sincerely, |
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