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Interviews

This section collects all HowlRound content that takes the form of an interview between two or more theatremakers. Interested in contributing your own interview? Here are our interview guidelines and best practices!

The Latest

The Soul Work of Theatre with Sharia Benn
Podcast
The Soul Work of Theatre with Sharia Benn
by Yura Sapi, Sharia Benn
16 May 2024
On Collaboration
Podcast
On Collaboration
by Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder, Jennifer Goff, Padraic Lillis
14 May 2024
Breaking Boundaries with Jamil Khoury
Podcast
Breaking Boundaries with Jamil Khoury
by Yura Sapi, Jamil Khoury
9 May 2024
four actors in rehearsal
We Didn’t Have Any Role Models
Essay

We Didn’t Have Any Role Models

An Interview with the Founders of Wry Crips Disabled Women’s Theatre Group

21 August 2019

Michaela Goldhaber, current artistic director of Wry Crips, talks to the founding and early members of the disabled women’s theatre group about their history.

two people posing together
Finding Creative Freedom Through Commitment
Essay

Finding Creative Freedom Through Commitment

Reflections on a Six-Year Residency

8 August 2019

Playwright Peter Nachtrieb and artistic director of San Francisco’s Z Space, Lisa Steindler, talk about the National Playwright Residency Program, getting out of your comfort zone, making a living as a writer, and more.

four people posing
The Responsibility of the Artist-Critic
Essay

The Responsibility of the Artist-Critic

1 August 2019

Kitty Drexel and Regina Victor, both artists and critics, talk about working through biases, accountability, transparency, and more.

The Final Frontier Is the Audience
Essay

The Final Frontier Is the Audience

Nataki Garrett and Bill Rauch in Conversation, Part II

30 June 2019

Part II of the conversation between Bill Rauch and Nataki Garrett—the outgoing and incoming artistic directors of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival—touches on inspiring leadership choices, pacing yourself, and cultivating diverse audiences.

two people sitting onstage
Getting Out of the Way So That You Can Listen to the Challenge
Essay

Getting Out of the Way So That You Can Listen to the Challenge

Nataki Garrett and Bill Rauch in Conversation, Part I

27 June 2019

Part I of the conversation between Bill Rauch and Nataki Garrett—the outgoing and incoming artistic directors of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival—touches on personal values, gratitude, and how the joy lives in the struggle.

audience members inside an enclosed transparent VR tent
Narrative Sharing and Narrative Shifting with Digital Technology
Essay

Narrative Sharing and Narrative Shifting with Digital Technology

10 June 2019

Members of the Detroit-based artist collective Complex Movements discuss the connection between technology, performance, and social justice community organizing.

two actors onstage with three large projections behind them
Digital + Live Performance
Essay

Digital + Live Performance

Exploring the Present and the Future

6 June 2019

In the lead-up to HowlRound’s Digital + Performance Convening, Michael Wheeler and Sydney Skybetter chatted, via Slack, about some of the big questions artists are faced with as they contemplate the connection between theatre and technology.

three different frames of a dancer
New to New Orleans / Venant d’arriver à la Nouvelle Orléans
Essay

New to New Orleans / Venant d’arriver à la Nouvelle Orléans

Three Theatremakers’ Impressions on Parades versus Protests / Les impressions de trois femmes de théâtre des parades et des manifestations

23 May 2019

Amelia Parenteau, along with theatremakers Eva Doumbia and Marie Houdin, explores the similarities and differences of parades and protests.

three actors onstage
That Blue Sky with Stephanie McKee of Junebug Productions
Podcast

That Blue Sky with Stephanie McKee of Junebug Productions

From the Ground Up Podcast Episode #6

1 April 2019

In episode six of the From the Ground Up podcast, Jeffrey Mosser interviews Stephanie McKee about the history of Junebug Productions, and how they look to "that blue sky" to imagine what is possible for the future.

five people onstage in costume
Invited to be Family with Michaela Petro of Strawdog Theatre Company
Podcast

Invited to be Family with Michaela Petro of Strawdog Theatre Company

From the Ground Up Podcast Episode #5

18 March 2019

In episode five of the From the Ground Up podcast, Michaela Petro walks us down her path on becoming an ensemble member of Strawdog Theatre Company, and how she contributes to cultivating their artistic culture.

actors on a boat onstage
Sustaining/Passion with Ova Saopeng of TeAda Productions
Podcast

Sustaining/Passion with Ova Saopeng of TeAda Productions

From the Ground Up Podcast Episode #4

25 February 2019

In this episode of the From the Ground Up Podcast, host Jeffery Mosser talks with Ova Saopeng of TeAda Productions about the importance of telling immigrant and refugee stories.

Children performing onstage
The Challenges of Challenging Work with Emily K. Harrison of square product theatre
Podcast

The Challenges of Challenging Work with Emily K. Harrison of square product theatre

From the Ground Up Podcast Episode #3

11 February 2019

In episode three of the From the Ground Up podcast, Emily K. Harrison of square product theatre stresses the importance of creating space for radical inquiry by making work that provokes challenging conversations.

three actors onstage, one looks surprised
Taking Leaps in Leadership
Essay

Taking Leaps in Leadership

Sarah Rasmussen and Joanie Schultz in Conversation, Part Two

10 February 2019

In Part Two of this conversation, Sarah Rasmussen, artistic director at Minneapolis’s Jungle Theater, and Joanie Schultz, former artistic director at Addison’s WaterTower Theatre, talk about their biggest successes over the past couple of years, the difference in a board’s relationship to a founding artistic director and to a new leader, and more.

Workers on strike
Why Canceling a Conference Isn't Crossing the Line
Essay

Why Canceling a Conference Isn't Crossing the Line

An Interview with Jill Stevenson from the American Society for Theatre Research

7 February 2019

Cason Murphy speaks with Jill Stevenson of the American Society for Theatre Research about the last-minute cancellation of their 2018 conference due to a strike held by the union workers from the conference’s hotel venue.

Two professional women
Following the "Knowing"
Essay

Following the "Knowing"

Joanie Schultz and Sarah Rasmussen in Conversation

3 February 2019

In Part I of this conversation, Sarah Rasmussen, artistic director at Minneapolis’s Jungle Theater, and Joanie Schultz, former artistic director at Addison’s WaterTower Theatre, talk about the importance of working with a third party during leadership transitions, trusting your gut in decision-making, and more.

Kinan Valdez and Jacob G. Padrón
Founding, Leading, and Carrying the Torch
Essay

Founding, Leading, and Carrying the Torch

Kinan Valdez and Jacob G. Padrón in Conversation

27 January 2019

Kinan Valdez and Jacob G. Padrón talk about growing up in a theatre family, leadership in the Latinx community, the skills needed to be the artistic leader of a company, and more.

David Howse, Judith Batty, and Reginald Browne
Beginning to Walk the Walk
Essay

Beginning to Walk the Walk

David Howse in Conversation with Judith Batty and Reggie Browne

20 January 2019

David Howse, ArtsEmerson’s executive director, talks to two board chairs, Judith Batty of Arena Stage and Reggie Browne of McCarter Theatre, about diversifying audiences, philanthropy and fundraising, intern programs to cultivate new talent, and more.

naomi and emma
We Can't Work in Isolation
Essay

We Can't Work in Isolation

Naomi Campbell and Emma Stenning in Conversation

13 January 2019

Naomi Campbell, Luminato’s new artistic director, sits down with Emma Stenning, Soulpepper’s new executive director, about theatre in Toronto, reaching communities outside of the downtown core, cross-collaboration, and more.

man speaking in front of a crowd
How to Have a Successful Thirty-Five Year Career
Essay

How to Have a Successful Thirty-Five Year Career

Rob Orchard and Joe Melillo in Conversation

16 December 2018

Joe Melillo, BAM’s outgoing executive producer, talks to Rob Orchard about his thirty-five-year-long time at the company, continuing his work with emerging artists, and more.

Two men talking
Standing in Our Grandfathers' Shoes
Essay

Standing in Our Grandfathers' Shoes

Sarah Bellamy and Jamil Jude in Conversation

9 December 2018

Sarah Bellamy, artistic director of Saint Paul’s Penumbra Theatre, talks to Jamil Jude, incoming artistic director of Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre Company in Atlanta, about learning from the founders, the funding disparity between predominantly white institutions and theatres of color, and more.

How To Prep A Staff For An Organizational Pivot
Essay

How To Prep A Staff For An Organizational Pivot

Rob Orchard and Susan Medak in Conversation, Part 2

2 December 2018

Susie Medak, managing director of Berkeley Rep Theatre, talks to Rob Orchard about how to best prep staff for a major leadership change, how an outgoing artistic director can work with the incoming one, and more.

Two people smiling in front of a theatre
How To Prep A Board For An Organizational Pivot
Essay

How To Prep A Board For An Organizational Pivot

Rob Orchard and Susan Medak in Conversation, Part 1

25 November 2018

Susan Medak, managing director of Berkeley Rep Theatre, speaks with Rob Orchard about a board’s involvement with changing leadership, reevaluating a company’s artistic mission in the lead up to hiring someone new, and more.

director in rehearsal with three actors
"I Only Do Work that Terrifies Me"
Essay

"I Only Do Work that Terrifies Me"

Rebecca Novick and Marissa Wolf in Conversation

11 November 2018

Director, dramaturg, and founding AD of Crowded Fire, Rebcca Novick, speaks with Marissa Wolf, the new AD of Portland Center Stage—and former AD of Crowded Fire as well—about knowing when you’re ready for change, leaving communities you’ve helped build, parenting in the arts, and more.

person singing onstage
Regional Stories, Regional Artists, Regional Audiences
Essay

Regional Stories, Regional Artists, Regional Audiences

A Conversation about Place-Based Theatre

6 November 2018

Lauren Smith sits down with Triad Stage’s Preston Lane and PlayMakers Repertory’s Vivienne Benesch to talk about regionalism in theatre.

Two women in white dresses on stage
Aristide Tarnagda and Theatre in Burkina Faso / Aristide Tarnagda et le Théâtre au Burkina Faso
Essay

Aristide Tarnagda and Theatre in Burkina Faso / Aristide Tarnagda et le Théâtre au Burkina Faso

5 November 2018

Heather Jeanne Denyer speaks with Burkina Faso playwright Aristide Tarnagda about the inspiration that comes from where we live, the Récréâtrales Festival in Ouagadougou, women in Burkinabé theatre, and more. / Heather Jeanne Denyer discute avec le dramaturge burkinabé Aristide Tarnagda à propos de l’inspiration qu’on sort de là où on habite, du festival Les Récréâtrales à Ouagadougou, et des femmes dans le théâtre au Burkina Faso.