For exactly the reason you state, that because it’s an audio drama, this is the most intimate because it’s for an audience of one. Even though it’s a disappointment not being in a theatre, do you think about how exciting it can be to really bring forth a personal experience for each and every listener? Dawn Monique Williams, associate artistic director of Aurora Theatre CompanyĪbsolutely! One of the things we sort of pride ourselves on at Aurora, because our space is so intimate, we find opportunities for detailed and nuanced acting. That would be cool to do, but more than likely people will be putting this in their earbuds and digging into it that way, really feeling a personal touch. Generally speaking, nowadays, you’re not going to get 15 people together in a room listening to the same thing. Doing it this way gave each of the five actors an opportunity to stretch their range vocally and play different emotional tenors, to sort of lean into their skill sets as voice actors. We can use sound and silence as a tool for the storytelling. But that’s also bittersweet because in doing the audio drama this way, it does allow us to really focus on the language and text to find ways to take all of the things that we would have explored on our feet in our bodies and use the voice as a primary tool. One of the things is that, because this was written as a stage adaptation and we originally programmed it as a live theatrical event, there is just that little bit of grief or sadness at knowing that we won’t be in the space and the actors won’t be able to fully physically embody this text radius, because this adaptation is so creative. What have been the challenges of working on a radio play such as this one? But this is very different – maybe as a stage director, you’d be working a lot more with tableaus and staging, but now you’re diving into a whole new genre that you probably haven’t spent a lot of time with. So yeah, I sort of have a long, long history with Toni Morrison in that regard.Īs far as the show you are directing, theatre people are incredibly adaptable at working with new styles or new ways to do things. I took a lot of Black studies classes in college and was exposed to more of her work. Around that time, the film “Beloved” with Oprah Winfrey came out, so that was sort of my second taste of her and then from there I started engaging with some of her other works. The interview was edited for length and clarity.ĭavid John Chávez: What is your personal history with “The Bluest Eye” or just Toni Morrison in general?ĭawn Monique Williams: If I go all the way back to high school, Toni Morrison was one of the only authors of color I was exposed to in my American literature class – I had to read “Sula” in high school.
#The bluest eye play skin#
In this interview, Williams shares her thoughts on how everyone can support and advocate for artists of color, her own personal journey learning about privilege through skin tone and what it means to be triumphant as Black women. But Williams, who carries a passion for plays that feature heightened language, found a silver lining in producing a show through a medium that focuses on a singular sense.
#The bluest eye play full#
The production that is now streaming online through May 21, which was scheduled for a full production, moved to a radio format due to COVID-19. Her latest directing project is Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye,” adapted by Lydia R. She now serves as associate artistic director at Aurora Theatre Company in Berkeley. Aside from a few detours that took her to Massachusetts for graduate school and Ashland, Oregon for six years as an Oregon Shakespeare Festival resident artist, Berkeley was the grow up spot and Oakland is home. Williams, 42, is Bay Area bred, loaded with insight and curiosity, rooted in the East Bay. With theatres shut down since March of 2020, directors have found new ways to tell stories that may not have connected to their formal training. Dawn Monique Williams is one of many directors who arrived at a crossroads when it came to creating fresh art with the disappearance of live productions.