Meet Our Interns: Isabel Kirk

PlayCo: Hi Isabel! I’m very curious to know how your goals and interests have evolved over the course of your life.

Isabel Kirk: When I was asked what I wanted to do in second or third grade, I told everyone I wanted to be a vet. Every single girl in my class who liked animals wanted to be a vet. And then, as I got older, I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do. I did really enjoy writing, but both my parents worked as editors, and I didn’t want that. I also originally did ballet for four or five years and fell out of love with it. The only reason I was doing it was so I could perform. I took a year off and still wanted to perform. Then, I figured I could also act and be in the theatre. So, I started taking those classes. I refound a love for ballet later on, but I really wasn’t sure it was what I wanted to do when I was young during that time. Right before I quit, the big question was “are you serious about this” because I was like ten and that’s when you're like “ok, in the next couple of years do you want to do pointe shoes?”

PlayCo: Those existential questions tend to take the fun out of something.

IK: Yeah! And I knew the only reason I was doing it was so I could be in The Nutcracker every year. I loved doing that. But then, in middle school and high school I also directed and dabbled in a lot of different types of theatre. When it came down to picking my college, I had the choice of doing a BFA or BA program. I ultimately decided to go with the BA program, which was at Drew, and I’m so happy about that choice. I feel like there's so much I would've missed for myself if I had done a BFA. There’s so much I had to discover about theatre and the world. It’s kind of like the ballet thing, I didn’t want to be in one thing and feel stuck. I’ve discovered dramaturgy, I’ve discovered a lot of things I really love, a lot of theatre that’s outside the canon. That could've happened in a BFA program too, but I'm really so happy with where I am. I do think the BA program has made me the artist that I want to be. It’s so much more versatile and I think you have to be involved in the world to be the artist that I want to be.

PlayCo: The satisfaction of feeling like you made the right decision is so fulfilling.

IK: Right, because it’s a risk going into theatre. But it’s a risk going into anything, I think. It’s a risk just being in this world. But I knew I wanted options. I love acting, but there’s so much more out there in theatre. I think PlayCo has really helped me discover there’s so much more than I even thought in the past couple of years. Every year, and especially with this internship, I’m learning so much more about what theatre can be and what you can do. I didn’t even know these positions existed six months ago!

PlayCo: That’s amazing. So you’ve referred to your experiences in a lot of types of theatre in your life already. What’s a particular piece or theatrical endeavor that you’ve participated in?

IK: Well, I just dramaturged A Chorus Line at my school. And I think it was one of the more difficult things I’ve dramaturged, which makes sense regarding that show. It’s based very closely if not completely on people’s lives. We had this moment where we had to think about the fact that they are all real stories, with a splash of fiction. When I was working with the cast and when I did my first presentation that’s something I really honed in on. I think that's what theatre is about to me, human connection. What it means to be human. It was nerve- wracking to have these people’s real stories on us. So when the show happened it was a big payoff because the cast and crew did an amazing job. I also acted in a piece called Destigmatized at Drew, which is another favorite, and another piece that is real people’s stories. It was initially started by Red Mic Repertory and Unidentified Stages around the time Roe v. Wade was rumored to be overturned. It was a collaboration of a bunch of different people with their own personal stories to tell, and a common refusal to go backwards in time. I performed two monologues and it was a big group. It was really cool. It was a staged reading and I think Drew has also shown me how amazing a reading can be. That’s something I'm really impressed by, because I think a lot of people don’t realize how much of theatre are readings and not full-fledged productions. Those are two favorites. We also have PIPS, which are plays in process, so about every week there's gonna be a new play in development. So I love working on those weekly, acting in them, directing, stage managing them. So those can also be some of my favorite things, you only get your teeth in them for a second and then you have to let go, but it's so fun to be involved in the world for as long as you can and be thinking about it for the rest of your life.

PlayCo: So cool. Kind of similar, but we both have started digging into PlayCo’s own catalog and become immersed in their body of work. Is there one in particular that has challenged you or inspired you the most?

IK: So I’ve been able to see one PlayCo production because Rob [Bradshaw] was my professor and he invited us. So I saw Munich Medea, it was amazing. That definitely stuck with me, because I didn't know what I was walking into. I had read the synopsis and warnings, but it was very different from what I expected it to be. The form was very different. I think that's what PayCo has done for me. I feel like I’m challenging my own view of theatre with the stuff that they put on, and I love that they do that.

PlayCo: Yeah, they play with the form so much.

IK: So much! And then my view of the world! Another one that really stuck with me is We Borrowed Brokenness by Yilong Liu, the participant in our Barcelona residency exchange. That was really beautiful, and I could not stop reading it. I love plays like that, where you cannot stop.

PlayCo: Yes, when even before the immersion of performance you can still get so hooked…

IK: I know! That’s when I know something is amazing, when I stay up till 1 AM reading a play because I can’t stop. I’m very visual, so sometimes I struggle with plays that aren’t like that, that need to be read out loud or seen. I sometimes struggle to understand without the context of the stage. So that’s something I’ve had to challenge myself with, is having to focus on the text and use my imagination.

PlayCo: And they’ll still make it work, right on the page. So what drew you to PlayCo?

IK: Rob Bradshaw, PlayCo’s executive producer, was my arts administration professor this past semester. My professor, Lisa Brenner, told me he was interested in having me intern at PlayCo. And I had been looking at all sorts of different internships, and the more I looked into PlayCo, the more I found it really amazing. I was so grateful to receive the Patenaude Grant, which I needed from my school to afford and be paid for this internship. That was a big thing because I found out how invested PlayCo was in paying their artists and staff what they deserve. So I found them through that. Also, a lot of my friends had gone and seen Lunch Bunch when they participated in Drew’s New York Theatre semester. So I heard about that and how good it was. I was just really excited to be working at a company like this that I felt welcome at, and felt like I could make change and also get the chance to work in New York City.

PlayCo: So what would you say your favorite part of working here has been so far?

IK: I think my favorite part has been watching how much time and energy our staff puts into everything. I’m so impressed. They’re so dedicated. I think this goes back to the BA/BFA thing, but I love how they’re all so involved in so many different things, not just at PlayCo, but in other places too. I think they’re all amazing. I’m so impressed with how much they're doing, and I love it because it brings so many different ideas and thoughts into PlayCo itself. I think it’s such a benefit. I love it.

PlayCo: Ok, last question. What are you most looking forward to this summer?

IK: I think just taking in as much work as possible and seeing how much I can do to help PlayCo. Hoping to have a small impact, but an impact nonetheless, and knowing that if I see a PlayCo show next year, I would have a hand in it somehow. That would be a really cool feeling. I also just love making connections with people here, so I’m excited to keep the connections going.