Q: How did you get into playwriting?
A: I started studying playwriting when I was an undergraduate student at Northwestern University.

Q: When you’re writing, what does an ideal day look like to you?
A: I like to write first thing in the morning and I prefer to write an hour every day.

Q: How do you define your creative process as a playwright?
A: I usually start with a question (rather than a plot of character) and then I try and loosely outline a structure around that question. But after that, I prefer to let the characters guide my writing process and not think too much about the original outline.

Q: What was your initial inspiration for writing En Las Sombras, and what fueled you throughout the writing process for your play?
A: I was inspired by children being held in detention centers along the border. I couldn’t see that and not do something about it. So as small of a gesture as it may be, I decided to write this play and have all of my personal earnings from this script be donated to organizations working on this humanitarian crisis.

Q: Tell us the first four words that come to mind to describe your play.
A: Mythological, Play, Imagination, Terror

Q: Why did you select those four words?
A: The story incorporates a tremendous amount of childlike wonder and play through imagination while incorporating some Mayan mythological traditions. But there is also a real terror and horror vibrating underneath everything that is happening.

Q: What playwrights have inspired your body of work? And why?
A: Paula Vogel was the first playwright I ever read who made me laugh and cry. Her ability to weave realism with the fantastical inspires every play I write.

Q: Who are some current playwrights you would recommend to those interested in new plays?
A: There are so many great writers out there, but for someone just starting out I would recommend Lauren Yee, Dipika Guha, and Lisa Ramirez.

Q: What new projects are on your horizon?
A: I’m currently writing a fully immersive play called Transitional Love Stories.

About PlayFest 2021

Immerse yourself in the world of new plays as The Basel-Kiene Family joins City Beverages in presenting PlayFest 2021! This year’s new play festival features six groundbreaking new works that will be presented over the course of two weekends, November 5 – 14, 2021.

Learn More