Rachael Carnes: Hi Greg! What inspires your creativity?
Greg Burdick: Virtually every time I’ve sat down to start writing a play, the impetus was something that troubled me, angered me, or confused me. I have consistently found writing to be a wonderfully therapeutic exercise, where, throughout the process you can construct meaning, understanding, or acceptance of all those things in your life that feel out of your control. Inside the pages of the play, they’re all in your control, and that’s kind of awesome.
What’s your routine, when it comes to making art?
I try to storyboard first, so I have, at the very least, a general road map of where I want to go. But there are inevitable diversions and side trips along the way. And those can be really fruitful. I tend to write chronologically, beginning to end; and I often revise by revisiting previous pages before digging in to the work beyond. I wish I were more disciplined about writing daily, but it’s most often when I can carve out the time. Yet, when inspiration strikes, I’m not above jotting down an overheard turn of phrase or an eavesdropped dialogue exchange waiting in line to pay for groceries. My iPhone’s “Notes” page is littered with goodies like this.
Are there any surprises, or setbacks, that have fueled you to make stuff
It’s trauma that fuels good drama, right? And I think it’s probably at the heart of all good comedy too. It is most definitely a well from which I have drawn. My play Agent of Change is a gritty depiction of my father’s battle with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, a cancer linked to servicemen exposed to dioxin during the Vietnam War. I wrote a play called Accommodation after a particularly challenging year as a public school teacher. And I’ve written several anti-gun violence plays, (one for the playwrights collective that you created, CodeRed Playwrights,) because I suppose it’s my small way of trying to bring order to chaos.
What do you do for a living, and does that play into your artistic life?
I am a high school theatre arts instructor and director, with close to thirty years in the classroom, so my job and my artistic life are deeply interwoven. While I don’t necessarily write material for my students, I am usually immersed in theatrical storytelling and stagecraft from seven in the morning until five in the afternoon. I started my career teaching English/Language Arts, so there’s always been a deep affinity for literature and creative writing too. I try to foster that in my students, getting them to create alongside me. The best part about the job from a playwriting perspective is having the summers off to toil away my latest project. But, you know, sometimes sleeping in and coffee wins…
What’s the earliest memory you have of the arts? Music, dance, theatre, visual art — Whatever!
I’m fortunate to have several. When I was three or four, my parents took me to see Sandy Duncan in Peter Pan. Seeing her fly. It sparked imagination. Not long after that, I remember seeing my aunt perform in a Pittsburgh production of Kismet. She was in the ensemble, knew where we were sitting, and during one of the numbers, the cast came up through the aisles. I don’t recall much about the show, but she stopped at my seat, lifted her veil so I could see it was her, and clanged two sets of finger cymbals as she danced up onto the stage. In that instant, I learned that what I saw during Peter Pan was something that our family could do. A trajectory was set. My parents were enormously instrumental in exposing me to experiences like this, so I owe a huge debt to them.
Looking back on 2019, what do you feel most proud of? Or — Top three? Toot your horn!
I’ve only been at this for four years now, but 2019 has been the most extraordinary year for me yet. Truly, an embarrassment of riches. My full length play Monessen Falls received its U.S. Premiere at Good Luck Macbeth Theatre in Reno, Nevada. Accommodation received two Equity staged readings and a truncated workshop production. And a short play I wrote was picked up by a theatre company in New York City who took the piece to a festival in Tottori, Japan, where the local actors performed it in Japanese. When I first started doing this, I had trouble imagining anyone ever wanting to tell my little stories… but then to see my words being performed across the country, and then halfway around the world in a language I can’t speak… I still can’t believe it.
How do you balance creative life and all of the rest of it?
Sometimes I need to unplug completely. It’s often after closing a show: when you’ve spent countless hours inside a building with no windows, you want to get outside and feel the sun on your face. My wife and I are hopeless theme park nerds, (we met at one in Sandusky, Ohio,) and can’t ever get enough of the beach and the ocean. I enjoy surfing, and stand up paddleboarding. Both of those require you to be present in the moment. The second you’re thinking about something else, you won’t be on your feet for long. I think it’s important to disconnect fully to feed those other needs your soul has. My writing is nearly always better for it when I ultimately return.
What’s it like making art in your community? Tell us about where you live.
I live in a town called Lakeland, Florida, which is centrally located between Tampa and Orlando. While we may not have a wildly bustling theatre scene in our back yard, it’s just a short drive east or west to cities where you can definitely get your fix. As a high school director in a relatively conservative area, I am often faced with the difficulty of wanting to challenge my students creatively, but must remain mindful of community standards that might prevent some titles from getting a warm reception. I’m uncommonly lucky though. The county where I teach advocates hard for arts education, and champions open access for its students. Friends of mine are teachers in other parts of the country where this, they would tell you, is a luxury.
How ‘bout your family? Who’s in your inner circle, and how do they support your work?
My wife Toi and daughter Miranda are my biggest cheerleaders. And we have a close circle of friends who are always game to read my latest draft. I’m fortunate to now have worked with several directors who routinely reach out to me asking “what’re you working on?” But I really have to credit a former teaching colleague of mine who I entrusted to read the first play I ever wrote. Gail Reynolds steeled me with the courage to start sending my work out into the world, and I’m forever grateful to her for it, because I’m not entirely convinced I would have done so on my own. It wasn’t long afterward that some of my writing started to land. Her encouragement convinced me I had something to say, something worth offering. And we all need to feel that, right? A little sprinkle of validation to keep trying. Coming from her, it meant a great deal.
What art knocked your socks off recently? Could be a play — Or an album, a movie, an exhibit, a novel, anything! — What made you connect with the art and the artist’s work?
My wife took me to see Sara Bareilles in concert just last night. I’ve always enjoyed her music, and lyrically I think she’s astonishing. But I was absolutely blown away by her stage presence. I’m not sure if I’ve seen another musical artist connect so fully and so genuinely with an audience. For all things theatre, if you haven’t read The Wolves by Sarah DeLappe, put it on your list. I gave it to my daughter to read, and afterward she came up and hugged me, thanking me for sharing it with her. DeLappe has undoubtedly redefined the coming of age genre with this work. And, if you binge watch on Netflix, take a look at GLOW. I think it’s some of the smartest writing on television since Mad Men.
What’s next on the horizon for your creative world?
Trying to finish storyboarding my latest full length before jumping in head-first, while still teaching a full load of classes, teching a musical coming into our space, preparing my students for our All County Theatre Festival, and starting pre-production on our spring show.
Cue the spinning plates music!
Any advice for someone just starting out in this art form?
Read plays. Read plays. Read plays. Ones that you think you’ll like. Ones that you’re sure you won’t. You will learn something from all of them. Join the New Play Exchange. Upload your work there. Read and recommend plays that you love on the site. Reach out, and forge relationships with other playwrights. Champion one another’s work. The work we do is solitary- we need community whenever we can get it. Dare to be bold. Shine a light on things you might be uncomfortable talking about. We’re often scared to know what people might think of us if they knew everything that was under our rock… turn it over. Let them see.
How do you relax and unwind?
I recently discovered meditation, and it has been a massive help. Wonderful in the morning, to focus for the day; and beneficial at night, to calm down, relax, and ease into sleep. I love sitting at the edge of the ocean, and listening to what the waves can tell me. But I’m most at peace when I’m with my wife and daughter… away from the cares of the rest of the world. They’re the best people I know, and I know they make me a better person. And of course, snacks. And a lovely beverage.
Of all the work you’ve made — Do you have a favorite character? Who is it? And why?
I wrote a short play called Insert Token in which a man is kidnapped by a tech company after setting the high score on a brain-training smart phone app. They recruit him to try to solve a dire crisis involving the status of the Internet. His “solution” is to ditch technology completely. In a wild, destructive display, he demolishes his captor’s tablet to prove his point. I wrote the play after a school year where day after day the biggest battle was trying to keep children off of their cell phones during class. Sisyphus in the 21st century. I love tech too, but it has become so invasive in our culture, that there has been significant social collateral damage, and I’m not certain we’ll ever fully recover from it. So when I watch actors who play Sebastian as he has his high tech temper tantrum at the end of the play, I want to stand up and cheer.
Where can we find your work? Onstage, and to read?
A staged reading of my play I’ll Love You ‘Til the Cows Come Home just wrapped at the Bird Theatre Festival in Tottori, Japan, but it will be produced later this year at Northfield Mount Hermon School, in Mount Hermon, Massachusetts. You can read my work on the New Play Exchange: https://newplayexchange.org/users/13045/greg-burdick
Thanks for hanging out with me, Greg! So happy we’re buddies!