Setting the Bar for 2017 (a post written during/for the New Year)
I speak for a plethora of human beings when I confess that I’ve never been a big proponent of the mindset, “New Year, New Me!” Even declaring a New Year’s Resolution seems equivalent to signing up for a month-long scam. I usually make the standard, run-of-the-mill promises to myself, like, “This year, I’m going to spend less time sitting and be more physically active !” or, “This year, I’m going to stop drinking so much…coffee!” or the dreaded, “I’m going to lose lots of weight!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Like clockwork, these good intentions congeal into bitter resentment in about four to six weeks. I’ve begun to make these so-called resolutions with brilliant foresight; my outward disposition is hopeful, but deep inside I’m smirking and wagging my finger at myself.
But as I embark on 2017 standing next to this group of talented (and I do mean talented in the purest sense of the word) and inspiring (they set the bar pretty high) people, I find myself genuinely yearning to make changes this year. As a company, we have tangible goals that are falling into place little by little—I compare the progress to that of a stop-motion feature; tweaks and adjustments that are painstaking but necessary. Until we see the final picture, we have to power through on sheer diligence and the belief that the payoff will have been worth the effort. The fact that we are unanimous in achieving this goal motivates me to make other changes, too, ones that will improve my person. I know that personal decisions should always reflect one’s own best interests, that no one should set a bar unless it’s one that she herself truly wants or needs to reach. But I, like many, am very good at letting myself down. And if I can’t hold myself accountable for my own sake, then I want to do it for the people who rely on me to be the best version of myself.
Fascinated by this renewed desire to do better (imagine that!) I decided to reach out to the rest of the crew to see what sorts of goals they had set for themselves this year. I also asked them to detail some things that inform their art. Here are some of their answers.
Mallory:
“For myself in the upcoming year, I hope to do something that surprises me. I want to make something new and I hope to learn a lot in the process. I don't feel happy when I sort of creatively flatline, and that happens when I'm not learning anything. I am always looking to learn new things or new ways of thought, so I hope I push myself to take on new challenges within our company and go out of my comfort zone to work with new artists.
As for my work, I take inspiration from fairytales. Before I was anything else, I was a reader. And so I take inspiration from fantastical tales and new ways of storytelling. I can relate better to theatre and artists who explore old stories in new ways, or create amazing new fairytale-like stories because I devoured so much fantastical literature as a kid. I related to the world through parallels in magical stories, and I still do today. For me, it's better to take a huge step back in order to see our world and interpersonal relationships more clearly, so I gravitate towards theatre that mimics the world we know but ads a sense of magic, monsters, and other worlds.”
Ali:
“So I have a couple of personal artistic goals. I'm really looking forward to working on my comedy and seeing how it develops over 2017. Currently I'm chasing stand up and I'm trying to figure out what goal-setting for that is going to look like over the next year. I also want to get into the habit of daily writing. On top of that I just want more and more art to flood my life, ya know? Since the election, I have found such a safe space in artistic venues and I just want to keep tapping into that community—and I'm excited for Impostors to start creating those spaces too.
One artistic space that is really starting to inform me is Salonathon. It dedicates itself to genre defying art—and straight up some of it is hella weird—but it’s just incredible that they have created this space for people to perform these new and exciting things. What I respect most about the space though is how they are always thinking of inclusion. Not only in their performers—which sparks incredible conversations and you hear prospectives that are so important—but recently they have made it their goal to make sure that they are actively working to include people with disabilities. Be it as easy as accommodating wheelchair space to as specific as seeking out ASL translators for shows—or when unavailable providing a print-out of each set so they can still be part of the conversation. I want that desire of inclusion to seep into my bones. And I just want to create safe spaces around me for the people I love. Then when everyone feels safe I can make them laugh with some well-timed vagina jokes.”
Allison:
“I am really itching for representation right now, so that is one of my big goals for 2017. Even though I've submitted to 4 agencies already and auditioned for one, it still feels like a very daunting goal. I truly want to make the craft of performing my career, and signing with an agent is a step of support and outreach that is important to that. On another level, I want to continue to understand the balance of my relationship to art, and teaching, v. my relationship to others, myself, and the many forces in life. I just saw La La Land, and I cried, because I relate so much to the struggle the movie portrays. I am as ambitious as FUCK, especially right now in this time of hurt and turmoil I so badly want to create healing and change, but I have to balance that with being human. One great phrase I heard from some theatre I recently saw was, ‘anchors or vulnerability’—this image encapsulates my goal for 2017. I want anchors of vulnerability to hang on to. In my art, in my work, in my relationships, and in myself. We all need space to be vulnerable. And we all need each other—especially now. Cheers to 2017. Cheers to failing big.”
Rachel:
This probably goes without saying, but my biggest goal for 2017 is to finish another draft of Second {Star}t—with the partnership of Chris—on music and lyrics. Right now, it's a functioning draft and got me the A I wanted in the class (fist pump) but it definitely has a long way to go. I faced a lot of challenges across the board with this play, mostly in finding time to dedicate to working on the script and also creating a story that feels like an inevitable, inspired work and not just an assignment I spent sleepless nights on just trying to reach a ridiculous page count requirement. Once I revise the second half, I would really like to do a reading of the script with some of you—perhaps before or after a meeting in the coming months! I think it could be fun and it would help me understand what's working and what definitely isn't.
A more personal goal of mine is to simply feel more validated in my writing. Lately, I've been mourning all the ideas I let fizzle and die away because I assumed someone had already thought of them or produced something better. The idea that nothing is truly original used to be such a negative thought, but this year, it's actually been kind of freeing. I have a lot more ideas for shows and adaptations than I think I've ever had (or at least ever LET myself have) and I think I owe a lot of that to my community of theatre lovers in the Impostors and my community of creative writers from my senior seminar. A lot is going to change this year in regards to graduating and figuring out what life is going to look like after that. The one thing I'm not actually worried about losing is my writing—because that's a forever a thing in my mind.
An artist who really inspired me this past year was Sarah Ruhl—which is pretty unoriginal in this community of Ruhl fans, I realize. I love her way of weaving witty, down-to-earth dialogue with poetic language and dream-situations. She doesn't feel the need to make over-emphasize what's real and what's imagined and that bravery has definitely inspired my writing this year. I don't pretend I can do it as well as she can, but it's good to have goals.
