Slavery is examined through three iterations of a woman named Lucretia in the drama, What Are You Worth? Find out how PlayFest 2019 playwright Kara Lee Corthron was inspired to bring this difficult subject matter to the stage.

Orlando Shakes: Who or what inspired you to become a playwright?

Kara Lee Corthron: I trained to be an actor in college and I thought that would be my career path. My sister was already an accomplished playwright and though I looked up to her, writing plays felt daunting and out of my reach. I worked a little as a professional actor post-college, but I found myself getting more and more frustrated with the quality of material I encountered. I kept thinking, “I can do better than this.” So I began to write. My original intention was to write solo pieces that I would perform myself, but I quickly realized that I wanted to see other actors embody my words—so that’s how I became a playwright.

Orlando Shakes: What is your favorite part of the writing process?

Kara: The moment I become hooked. If I’m on the right track with whatever it is I’m writing, during the first draft, there will come a time when I’ll get hooked on the writing, almost obsessive. It’s one of the few times when I feel like a reader or audience member, anxious to find out what will happen next.

Orlando Shakes: What was the specific trigger for writing this play?

Kara: In the spring of 2017, my play Listen for the Light premiered at the Know Theatre of Cincinnati. I was in residence for rehearsal and on one of my days off I visited the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. This is a comprehensive museum about the history of transatlantic slavery in the U.S. The experience was incredible, overwhelming, exhausting, and necessary. But when I entered the final room, it became transformative. This last room is all about global modern-day slavery and the struggle to eradicate it. I knew very little about slavery in the 21st Century before this visit, and was stunned by what I learned. At that time—March of 2017—the UN estimated that there were approximately 21 million people enslaved around the world. I couldn’t believe it and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I got stuck on the idea that slavery might never go away and that, in some form, has always been a part of the human experience. And how messed up that is. That was the seed for What Are You Worth?.

Orlando Shakes: What is the theme or focus of this play?

Kara: You should come to the reading and decide for yourself.

Orlando Shakes: What four words or short phrases first spring to mind to describe your play?

Kara: Value. Conscience. Cycles of time. Fear of the other.

Orlando Shakes: Is there something you’d like to write about or see a play about that hasn’t been done before?

Kara: I don’t mean this cynically, but pretty much everything has been done in one way or another. This is not a bad thing; it frees us up to stop worrying about what’s new and to just write what we want. So to answer your question, there are a lot of things I like to write about and some will become plays. My worldview and voice will make them new regardless of if the subject matter has been dramatized once or a thousand times before.

Orlando Shakes: If you are willing to talk about it – what new projects are on your horizon?

Kara: I’m currently writing for a TV show called The Flight Attendant, which will premiere in 2020. When my hiatus begins, I have a commission from La Jolla Playhouse to complete about a young, Black female country singer. Early next year, I’ll return to the other show I write for, You on Netflix, and in the fall of 2020, my young adult novel about literal Black girl magic during Jim Crow, will be published (title TBA).

About The Playwright: Kara Lee Corthron

Kara Lee Corthron is a playwright, author, and TV-writer based in Los Angeles. Her plays include AliceGraceAnon (New Georges); Holly Down in Heaven (Forum Theatre, D.C.); Listen for the Light (Know Theatre of Cincinnati); Welcome to Fear City (CATF and Kansas City Rep) and What Are You Worth? She’s the author of the young-adult novels The Truth of Right Now (Simon & Schuster) and Daughters of Jubilation coming in 2020. Kara currently writes for the Netflix drama/thriller You and the upcoming thriller The Flight Attendant (HBO Max). Her awards include the 2019 Otis Guernsey New Voices in Playwriting Award, the Parents’ Choice Gold Award, Vineyard Theatre’s Paula Vogel Award, Princess Grace Award, and residencies at MacDowell (four-time fellow), Camargo (France), Bogliasco Foundation (Italy), Skri∂uklaustur (Iceland), and Hawthornden (Scotland). She’s a proud member of New Dramatists. Development: Ars Nova, Atlantic Theater, Berkeley Rep, LAByrinth, New Dramatists, and many others. Juilliard alumna. Photo by Jody Christopherson.