from Christa Kimlicko Jones, Associate Artistic Director, Director of Programming:
Back in the summer of 2001, when Jud & I lived in Austin,
we were producing with the dirigo group. At that time, the group bit off a huge
project called The Gypsy Chain—a heartfelt
new musical, with over 30 in the cast, new music, full band, book, the whole
thing. We dealt with the largest budget we’d ever encountered up to that point.
While there were a lot of immediate producing lessons learned during this
project, there were also some personal major life lessons. During the project,
we had a fundraising event (as you are wont to do) and we had the honor of the
presence of the lovely Julia Butterfly Hill
(the activist who sat in a tree for two years). I remember the exact moment I
met her that night...I can only describe her as pure beauty. She walked up to
us, barefoot, flowing hair, jeans & a baby-doll tee that said in lowercase
letters across her bosom: ‘do something.’ I couldn’t take my eyes off of her as
she spoke. And all I kept thinking was "Hmm…do
something." "How interesting," I thought, "that it is in lowercase
letters. That perhaps, a seemingly understated act could actually mean
something in the world." I remember thinking "Wow, she sat in a tree for 2
years. That is far from
understated. That is HUGE." But the more I listened to her, the more I
realized that perhaps she didn’t think that.
Perhaps she felt that it was understated.
It was simply what she had to do. And then I thought "Yeah, whatever; there is
NO WAY that I could do that! SHE really
did something. She really made a bold
move. How can I even compare? What the
heck am I doing? Plays? Geez. What does it matter?"
Every choice we make has an impact on the world. Every thought, word, and action has impact. Every time we make a choice to do something or not, to speak or not, we are changing our reality, changing our world. The question is not, “Can we make a difference?” but “What kind of a difference do I want to make?—Julia Butterfly Hill
It was that evening that I realized that while, no, I can’t
sit in a tree for 2 years…I can
produce theatre. And that is something. It is what I know to do. I can produce a play that might help someone
see the world in a new way…to perhaps think a bit more...to feel…to inspire
someone else to act as they might. As an actor, I can create a role as best I
can so that a story is heard fully. As a teacher of the arts, I can help
inspire others to find their voice and do their work as they might. As an artist, I AM doing something. This is
my activism. And I think that Julia would be proud. You know, I think that so
often it’s easy to feel this way. Like
putting on a play, or making a movie, or acting in a play isn’t perhaps enough.
Or that working at a law firm, or doing administrative work, or babysitting,
or, etc., etc., etc., isn’t enough. Well, I encourage you to really think about
it. It seems to me that if you are diving in and moving things forward and
aiming to be the best human you can be (we all have our parts to play), that
you are indeed doing something. Of
course, we can always strive to challenge ourselves further—strive for
excellence—and that, in itself, is doing something. Being an active participant
in this amazing world is doing something.
So, as I write, what I am most excited about is being a part
of bringing this next world premiere to New York audiences. In the fall of
2012, Theatre East will bring you Normalcy
by Bennett Windheim. It's a story that asks great questions and provides few
answers, hopefully sparking many diner, subway, and maybe even breakfast conversations.
We at Theatre East will be doing what we do.
And we look forward to sharing it with you. And hopefully inspiring you…to ‘do something’
too.
Don’t deny the power of those little words.
