Ric Dragon, Author at NectarNews

Hank Kimmel – Board President/Flobel Advisor Amber Bradshaw – Managing Artistic Director/Flobel Adviser Nectar News Reporter: Michele Baldwin We are here with Hank Kimmel and Amber Bradshaw of the Working Title Playwrights (WTP) Group in Atlanta. WTP was informally started in Atlanta in 2000 by a group of six playwrights who were part of the recently-disbanded Blue Machine Writers. They founded WTP with the goal of helping playwrights develop their work in bi-weekly critique sessions. Nectar News (NN): I really love that WTP is all about community building and providing a platform for its members to have this opportunity to excel at their craft. Can you tell us a little bit about the group? Amber WTP: Sure, in the world of community building, the way that we approach how that works for theatre makers in the process of creating plays, is that the more artists that we know and connect with, the better our work and success will be. And our growth will be stronger if we can learn from one another. So, a lot of what we do is bring people in the room together so they can get to know one another and potentially collaborate in the future. One of the community building aspects of what we do is that we are part of the founding of IDEA ATL. IDEA ATL stands for Inclusion, Equity, Diversity in the Arts Atlanta. it's a collective of theatermakers, who have committed to training themselves in equity, justice, inclusion and diversity. In addition to supporting the work of IDEA ATL, we're collaborating with organizations in Atlanta that have similar equity goals, which has been really exciting. The Town Hall for racial reckoning that just happened in Atlanta is one example. Community is everything to us at WTP. Our goal is to create programs where writers, actors, directors, dramaturgs, and stage managers can come together in a room and create work together and contribute to the process of a play being born. I don't think we can do the process of new development without a really strong engaged inclusive community. When I started with working title in 2016, that was already a strong part of the mission of the organization. I’ve just kind of taken that and run with it, with support from the board. Hank WTP: I would say sprinting with it wonderfully. Amber is our Managing Artistic Director. I'm a Playwright and Board President. NN: I know that you have some really, strong core values, can you talk a little bit about your core values as a group. Amber WTP: Hank, do you wanna take that one? Hank WTP: Why don’t you go for that one, Amber? Amber WTP: The first one is inclusion, and that means that we are a space in which we include all voices. However, in the effort to be inclusive we also have created guidelines, rules, and generative things so that everyone understands what's happening in the room and how to be in a space with one another. So that's an ongoing growth process for us. I added the core values to the website maybe a couple of years ago, because it became really clear that we needed to be extremely transparent about what it meant to be inclusive and that it is a challenge to be inclusive. To make everyone feel as if their voice can be heard and their voice is valuable. The second one is brave space. We are creating a space that is brave, so that people feel comfortable saying things that may be difficult for others to hear. Saying things that are controversial and also making mistakes where they can learn and grow, is also a part of brave space, which is not necessarily just safe, it also gives you a chance to be courageous. The final value is collaboration. And although it's something in theatre that we all talk about, I think that it is a lofty goal that we do not often meet. What it really means to collaborate, is to fully value, respect and listen to one another. If we are not doing that, we are not collaborating. Every single program that we do with Working Title is founded in inclusion, brave space, and collaboration. We don't believe we can do this work in a way that is respectful and honoring of the work, without those three values. Hank WTP: Empathy and acknowledgment are other words that come to mind – as well as being respectful and coming from a loving place. Yes, we understand that some work may be considered controversial, and, as part of the process, writers are asked to consider their intentions, what they’re trying to amplify with their work so the responders can be thoughtful about their feedback. Amber WTP: And I think that's valuable in saying that everything we do has feedback and moderation involved. A lot of producers have chosen not to do talk backs, because they can be difficult conversations that don't always go the right direction. We are in the business of encouraging people to open those dialogues up and find ways of managing the room with care. We create guidelines so that those traditional feedback derailing moments don't come up. We hope everybody can be a part of a conversation that will impact the way they see the world. NN: It definitely is a much-needed conversation that you have to have about the pieces, because you are here to help. I understand when you are giving your critique, as you said, you're cautious and you have some rules about that. Please tell us a little bit about them, as well as the Monday night series. Amber WTP: Yes, so our Monday night critique sessions are really our foundational program. We do it twice a month. Three writers get to submit work each time. We end up having a nice diversity of work in the room each evening that we do it. So actors are cast to be in all the different scripts and everyone in the space is part of the feedback. The rules that we have as part of our moderated dialogue are: 1)raise your hand to speak and I will call on you; 2)snap if you agree so that we can get a consensus, right, instead of people repeating that they really liked something or people repeating the same feedback again and again; 3)be respectful and courteous to those who have submitted this evening. They are sensitive. They are artists being very courageous; 4)avoid the use of like or dislike. And this one is always a bit controversial 'cause people don't love that. It also encourages people to understand that this isn't about what they like, or dislike. It’s about how they're responding to the piece. And if the responses are that this made me uncomfortable or I felt offended by this, then that's useful as a response; 5) no new or suggested narratives. We are not looking to rewrite this play, we're looking to respond to it. If you have an idea, please go write that play. We would love to have you bring it in and share it with us; 6)be respectful to your fellow artists in the room. Everyone in the space has the responsibility to take care of and nurture one another. Hank WTP: Michele, one thing that may be distinct about how we do feedback is that when the writer submits their work, their identity is anonymous. This protects the writer from having to defend their work. Amber's wonderful predecessor, Jill Patrick, introduced this as an experiment for six months, and at first there was a lot of resistance, but that resistance faded. When we were going to go back to the “old” method, folks were vehement about sticking to the new method. It led to more robust and objective feedback. It also meant that the writer had to communicate through their words, rather than just defending the piece. It also sets up a more professional environment as writers don't feel personally attacked and can also sit back and really hear the feedback. A lot of times you know who wrote the piece, but the fiction of anonymity allows for more respectful and thoughtful feedback. NN: If they don't know, they're just being honest like a child. Amber WTP: I think it's valuable too, to note that when we are doing our dialogue, the three questions that are asked beyond what the playwrights questions might have are: 1) what resonates for you, what sticks out for you? 2) what distracts, what confuses? 3) Do you have any questions for the playwright? The playwright will not answer these questions. They are for the playwright to know that these are questions you have, and they will take that home and they will respond to that within their script. And I always have to say that because if I don't, if we have a new playwright, they will answer the questions. That’s just a natural response. NN: Like you said, they just want to jump up and defend themselves or support their story. Do you have a talk back afterwards with the writer, once they get their questions and notes and are trying to work through them or to incorporate or not into their scripts? I know you also offer the dramaturg service, so what does that process look like afterward. Amber WTP: Do you want to take that one, Hank? Hank WTP: I think this may be a suitable time to mention that silence is also an important part of our process. After something is read, we have 30 seconds of silence (it’s a minute if we meet in person), where everyone just sits, perhaps closes their eyes, and takes a deep breath before launching into feedback. As a writer, it’s wonderful because after hearing your work, you get a chance to clear your mind. For the responders, it prevents reflex kind of judgments and allows for more thoughtful feedback. It’s also refreshing to sit in silence after something sensitive and invested has been shared. We have a chat box now, when we do things by Zoom, so people can also respond in that way and there's a whole conversation that can be saved and then afterwards the writer can review that. If you know the writer, you also have the option to respond to them privately and vice versa if you’re the writer. The key is to build up a trusted community. With 30 to 40 people in the room, there’s a wide range of perspectives. Sometimes you might get feedback about the logic of a piece – or a...

Hank Amber and Amber Bradshaw Interview

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