Selected Writing Samples

Engineers Not Found - Program Note

We’ve seen the rise of sexual harassment being publicly denounced and know that microaggressions based on race, sexuality, and gender identity were pervasive even before red hats were affiliated with the people that sling them. The issues presented in Engineers Not Found are ones that are surely found in all industries of the workforce; most workplaces haven’t perfected the way that they form hiring committees or handle maternity leave.

But in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math), the gap between the cis straight white boys’ clubs of old and emerging minority employees is much larger than in other industries. This matters because the individuals - who are often the only ones in the room with their identity - don’t feel like they have a place to turn when they’re encountering a discriminatory or unsafe situation and therefore often leave their prestigious, well-paying, and essential jobs.  

We need people of all identities and experiences in STEM because they are building our world. The solutions that they choose to create, the technology they build, and the systems they design shape our daily lives each time that we ride a train, eat food, have sex, or sit in a chair. When minority groups’ voices aren’t amplified - or even in the room - our perspectives are left out of the conversation. Solving a problem for a majority group could look like a solution for all.

On Lecherous Honey & New Play Development

To work on a new play, the team must be flexible. They must be particular about the way they phrase feedback and criticism. They have to be awesome at asking questions. They have to know when to let the playwright write a play. They have to figure out the best way to tell the playwright to stop writing a play. They must read and re-read and re-re-read and know when to trust their instincts. They have to be analytical and creative and think-on-their-feet-able and sit-back-and-listen-ical.

A new play involves collaboration and celebration, writing and waiting, listening and learning how each person in the process functions in the rehearsal room. It’s unpredictable and risky, but rewarding and all-consuming, which is exactly why it is my favorite way to work.

Click here to read more.

On VANYA (or, “The Essay I Didn’t Want to Write”)

"And I remember the first time my heart was broken. And of all the tiny heartbreaks that happened in-between that one and this one. I think of the countless times I fell for someone that didn’t fall for me. The time I really fell for someone that would never fall for me.

I think of the time that I spent comparing myself to Rosaline and to Juliet, to Sonya and to Astrov. I think of how I’ve been each of them -- each for one moment. And, though the ratio of ice cream to riesling has changed significantly in my life since my first heartbreak, I know that the muscle of my heart has grown to be so much stronger than it was for that first break."

Click here to read more.