Alick & Weiss: INTERBLOOD INTERVIEW

Jesse Cameron Alick & Emily Chadick Weiss chat it up about whose hometown/state is more hardcore, their humble beginnings as poets, and their day-jobs (which are both rather awesome, actually...):

JCA: As a kid, did you always want to be a playwright? 

ECW: Definitely. I started writing plays when I was 12.   I also wrote poems which my mom embarrassingly put on the Wall of Emily at my Bat Mitzvah. 

JCA: In honor of the recent Hometown Brunch, did you have a playwright you loved and adored during your formative years?

ECW:All our years are formative ones I say. Some of my faves growing up were Neil Simon, Wendy Wasserstein and Richard Greenberg. Also on the musical front - Stephen Sondheim and William Finn rock. I remain admirers of all of them.

JCA: Why did you decide to become a playwright?

ECW:I picked out of a hat and that's the profession I got. 

JCA:What do you do when you’re not chained to your computer writing?  Don’t you have some sort of rad day job? 

ECW: Currently I'm assisting the writer/director Marc Lawrence  on the movie "Did You Hear About the Morgans?" starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Hugh Grant. It comes out December 18 - should be good!

JCA:What’s the best day job you’ve ever had? 

ECW:Assisting on the movie is pretty interesting. 15 hour days, but I get to go to New Mexico for five weeks and stay in a fancy hotel! 

JCA:When you’ve got writers block, what inspires you?  What gets you out of your ruts?

ECW: I haven't gotten writer's block yet, but if I did, I would read and go for a hike. 

JCA: What time of the day do you usually write? 

ECW: I like morning or just as the sun is setting. Night time is tough because that's when I like to do most of my socializing.

JCA: Any interesting writing rituals? 

ECW: I write upside down like a bat.  

JCA: Don’t you know Mandarin or something?  Any plays written in Chinese in the works? 

ECW: I have my first year of Mandarin under my belt - studied in Stanford and Beijing all to go see the 2008 Olympics which were AWESOME! Hen Hao! 

JCA: What’s your favorite topic to tackle in your work?

ECW: I like embarrassment. And I always write about some sort of love. 

JCA: I especially love your work that plays with heightened reality and reality that isn’t quite reality (ie NODDING OFF) – what appeals to you about this sort of style? 

ECW: That's just what comes out. But glad you liked it!

JCA: Is it true that you're the youngest talent in YB? 

ECW: Not anymore I'm afraid. I am proud to share age 24 with Ms. Anna Moench and Mr. Patrick Link.   Hats off to our youngest, Ms. Eli Clark.

JCA: Who would win in a fight, RJ or Graeme? 

ECW: Tie. They are Ying and Yang.

And then, Emily interviewed Jesse... ECW: Where you from man? And what's your ancestry? JCA: The only place MORE hardcore than you Emily - Montana!   My family is actually from Grenada though, a small island in the west indies - where I actually recently got my citizenship. Now I'm just one of the millions upon millions of Montanans with West Indian Citizenship.   ECW: Have you always wanted to write? JCA: I've always written poetry (since I was 7) but I actually wanted to be a lawyer until I was 15.  I took latin classes and law classes and was captain of the debate club.  I think it was the suits that attracted me the most.  Somehow just wearing suits wasn't quite enough though... ECW: What's your favorite thing in life besides writing? JCA: Religion!  I'm a big fan of studying religions, practicing them, talking to folks about them.   ECW: I hear you assist Oskar Eustis at the Public - is that cool? JCA: Ummm - do we know if Oskar reads this blog?  Just kidding!  I actually love the Good Mr. Eustis.  He's such a supportive warm individual.  Not only his his heart in the right place, but so are his politics.  He keeps me VERY busy though - like insanely busy, like text message me at 7am to midnight kind of busy -  he's really the hardest working man in show biz.  But he's never a jerk to me - even when he's got everyone else yelling at him.  He kind of rocks.  BUT I'm actually assistant to ANOTHER person also - the talented playwright Suzan-Lori Parks - who is the most lovely woman to work for EVER!  She gives me advice on my love life too.   ECW: If you could have written any play, which one would it be? JCA: Othello.  Don't ask me why. ECW: What do you not like about your writing?  JCA: I tend to philosophize...a lot.  In long long paragraphs.  That go on far too long.  And are way too heady.  Like really really heady.  I sometimes bit off more than I can chew...but I keep on knawing anyway... ECW: What do you think happens after we die? JCA: "Our souls are unwoven and used to continue the weaving of the tapestry we call life.  All memories, pleasure and pain, are like ink on a rainy day..." ECW: Who are your favorite writers? JCA: If we're talking playwrights: Suzan-Lori Parks, Tony Kushner, Caryl Churchill     If we're talking novelists: My dad and James Baldwin     If we're talking poets: Mari Evans and Rumi ECW: What's up with your awesome scorpio belts? JCA: I'm a scorpio and I'm all about keeping big things very close to my crotch.  Hmm.  That came out wrong.  Or did it?   ECW:What's your advice to people who want to be playwrights? JCA: QUIT NOW.  muahaha.  Sorry, kidding.  Good question - I would advise anyone who wants to be a playwright to become a student of human nature.  Listen to people.  Hang out with a diverse population - people you love, people you hate, people you agree with, people you don't.  Everything will pour into you and make you a better writer.   ECW: What's the one question you wish I asked you? JCA: I wished you had asked me "Would you like to go on a date?" - but I keep on suggesting and you keep on shooting me down, so I suppose I should just settle for seeing you every Wednesday at Youngblood meetings!