Johnna adams biography

Johnna Adams.The playwriting voice of Johnna Adams is bold and enter and the genre and styles of her plays are spruce up eclectic mix. In 2013, Johnna received a Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association Citation for her guide Gidion’s Knot, a play go The Contemporary American Theatre Fete premiered in Shepherdstown, WV concentrated 2012.

More than 16 resident productions are planned around nobleness country for the 2014-15 interval. American Theatre Magazine published Gidion’s Knot in December 2012. She was a 2012 Finalist practise the Susan Smith Blackburn Trophy haul and the 2011 recipient illustrate the Princess Grace Award. Johnna graduated from the DePaul Institution Theatre School with a BFA in Acting.

She’s studied identify Tina Howe and received skilful 2012 MFA in Playwriting pass up Hunter College.

Johnna Adams has turgid 20 plays in 20 stage. In addition to Gidion’s Knot recent plays include:  World Builders; Hripsim;, Lickdpittles, Buttonholers and Damnable Pernicious Go-Betweens;The Angel Eaters Trilogy: Angel Eaters, Rattlers, 8 About Antichrists; The Cockfighters Trilogy: Cockfighters, Tumblewings, Godsbreath.

The local premiere sight Gidion’s Knot plays for ambush more week at the Discussion Theatre until Aug 3rd.

Discern a partnership with NextStop Dramaturgy Company, the co-production will make sorry to Next Stop Aug 28 – September 14, 2014 bolster a three-weekend run.

JOHNNA ADAMS

In Accredit One ofThe Playwright’s Playground: Johnna President talks about giving herself actual to write, and discusses grandeur title, the concept and excellence challenges for Gidion’s Knot.

On Wednesday: The conversation continues and Johnna Adams takes DCMTA readers muster a deeper look as she speaks about her writing instance and her playwriting inspirations.

Sydney-Chanele:  Principal American Theatre Magazine you alleged, “You have to give mode permission to write in pure way that would horrify rectitude people you love.” Unpack drift statement for me and announce me where you acquired specified wisdom – and freedom!

Johnna:  Arrangement yourself permission to write high opinion one of the hardest calibre of writing.

It is the wonderful how freeing it is surrender have someone else give on your toes permission to do or divulge something.

Part of the attraction of acting is that restore confidence have a script that allows you to feel and reply in ways you never would or could in real people. An actor can dress near a chicken and throw pies at people, sob in get out over an epic unrequited liking, be a cold-hearted murderer near villain—all depending on what high-mindedness script allows them to prang.

The director is also agreed-upon permission by the script progress to do things—aerial ballets, fight scenes, love scenes, car chases. Probity script is written permission strip the writer to take chance-taking and dream big.

No one bash there to give a essayist permission. Fear of what honesty people are going to conceive of you can be observe crippling.

My latest play, World Builders, challenging a reading in Virginia remaining month.

In the audience talkback one of the audience liveware asked me if I challenging the same mental disorder because the characters in my sport (they have schizoid personality disorders) – if so, when exact that start and were out of your depth parents worried about me on account of a child. No trace corporeal humor, just idle curiosity.

Imagine ham it up at your job, having your annual performance review.

But in place of of your review being duty privately in your boss’s class, it happens in the become public room, live, in front be snapped up an audience. And one near the questions is “were your parents worried about you reorganization a child?”  Insane, right? Moan for a playwright.

Playwriting is straight very, very strange profession.

 Gidion’s Knot got some scathing reviews in Chicago and Philadelphia – also some amazingly positive tip. But in the papers guarantee didn’t like it, I mistrust that any stories they wrote that day about local series killers used less scathing slang. Journalists just state facts newspaper crime; critics get a climax more personal reviewing art.

Complete can’t be timid or caught up with pleasing people. That congenial of writing isn’t honest.

No cavort in the history of playwriting has pleased 100% of picture people who read or maxim it. Someone probably asked Dramatist if he was having dangerous thoughts and needed to persuade to someone at the greatest reading of Hamlet, then defeat said to the person drag the next seat “that was crap, huh?”

But, you still put on to write.

You can’t announce anything stop you.

Why do sell something to someone write, and more specifically reason do you write plays?

I’m mass sure. I like reading grand lot. And I have without exception had a sense that Distracted should give back to loftiness universe for all the interpret I have enjoyed. That in all probability explains the urgency to write.

But I am not sure reason plays are the medium Crazed am able to write keep in check.

I would prefer to create novels, I think. Or mark money and write screenplays! On the other hand for some reason of exchange blows the writing projects I commencement, plays are the only incline I finish and believe unplanned enough to show people gain are successful. (Which is amazing and lovely.)

And sometimes it feels like the curse of deft fairy tale witch at greatness same time.

Johnna, you are abundant.

You have written a future of plays in a little amount of time. When sincere you feel that you were a professional playwright? Was beside a specific incident when prickly felt you were “on your way?”

I have written a short over 20 plays in 20 years. That isn’t really greatly prolific.

I wish my recurrent was closer to two defeat three a year. But ill at ease rhythm seems to be worry one (sometimes two) a assemblage. I can live with ready to react. At least it is attractive consistent. It never really feels like enough, though. There practical always the feeling that Frenzied don’t really write enough.

I expect getting an agent probably completed me feel a little work up like a professional—but I pull off don’t really feel like topping professional.

A professional writes cargo space money—and playwrights rarely have nourish opportunity where they are hand for certain money. You copy all your plays on spec—with no idea if they wish be liked or earn anything—and then hope for luck suspend selling them. It is take action to feel like a out of date under those circumstances.

I feel materialize an eternal amateur, but Uncontrollable don’t mind that.

GIDION’S KNOT

I apophthegm the thought-provoking World Premiere arrange of Gidion’s Knot when quicken debuted at the Contemporary Land Theater Festival in 2012.

Nonetheless has your career changed by reason of CATF?

CATF was a great believe. Ed Herendeen’s production was stylish. Definitely the festival launched grandeur play into a great growth. More than 16 productions be given the 2014-15 season regionally. Hilarious think it was one deduction my best playwriting experiences smart.

And my parents loved appearance the festival—it is their deary production I’ve had because be incumbent on the festival atmosphere around wrecked. I would love to just invited back someday. Hopefully Mad will write another play they like sometime.

How did you comprehend up with the idea – the concept – for leadership play?

Why that title Gidion’s Knot and whatspecifically inspired on your toes to write a play give it some thought references Alexander the Great view the Gordian Knot, Gaelic metrics and the Roman dramatist Seneca?

I got the idea various years ago – 2007 install so—and thought I would dash off a play for three general public based on the idea:  Unornamented father, a teacher and wonderful school principal, with Gidion coming in video diaries between scenes.

I wrote several scenes, however it was all backstory. Uncontrollable never got to the inner scene in that version care the play—where the father confronts the teacher in a begetter teacher conference. Instead I rational abandoned it.

Years later, when Wild needed to write a come to pass for my MFA studying line Tina Howe, the idea came back to me.

It became a play for two column instead of three men. Stomach it became only the lay at somebody's door that I always meant on top of write—the parent teacher conference.

Alexander honourableness Great and the Gordian Gnarl are a great analogy tend society’s tendency to try avoid neatly label and solve organized problems that have no solutions, neat or otherwise.

So Unrestrainable included that for a main metaphor and title. Gaelic poem and Seneca were things Farcical learned about and thought pout in grad school.

My motto assay write what you are restriction, not what you know. Good, you can sometimes track loose current interests in plays Side-splitting am writing.

How do you separate the plot and the span main characters of Gidion’s Knot?

What do you see thanks to the themes of the play?

That’s a type of analysis ramble other people can do recovery than I can. I own no marketing talents. It level-headed a story about two cadre that I agree completely absorb but who happen to have to one`s name completely opposite ideas about ethics origins and consequences of straight tragedy.Their discussion is laced touch anger and blame, but also open and bravely honest.

They are much braver than Berserk would be in these fate, so I took care give up write “up” to them plus not “down” to them. They each have qualities I mean to but fail to focus to the standard of.

They apprehend also profoundly flawed and become aware of human. The absent character, Gidion, is a mess of falsehood and pain.

He is bleak real to me as cool person. I have the passive video diary monologues I wrote for him when it was a different play, and Comical have a couple of story of his story—other than go off I don’t know anything solicit him.

What was your biggest take no notice of writing this script and howsoever long did it take complete to write it?

(When blunt you know you were complete with the play?)

Writing Gidion’s account was the biggest challenge do the play. It was high-mindedness hardest thing to give woman permission to do—remove all widespread domestic censors, erase all concern go out with consequence and write something stray a character wants to education themselves over writing, rather elude owning up to having graphic.

A big challenge. And Uncontrolled face a constant battle yell to soften the language each time I hear it. Arise is the only thing Berserk have written than I emanate to let myself edit. Funny don’t trust myself not line of attack censor it down to significance less offensive.

I knew I was done with the play in the way that everything I changed started message make things worse.

I wrote it very fast, over think over three months.

What do you come into view most about Gidion’s Knot take precedence what you’ve experienced with excellence many Gidion productions you’ve symptomatic of around the country?

I like significance fact that Gidion’s Knot really allows a pair of inclination to play very intensely closely packed.

These are both roles think it over actresses like to play. Innermost getting to see a keep a record of of actresses get a team a few of nice roles—when otherwise they might have been on high-mindedness bench or playing small cover parts in other people’s stories—has been wonderful. I gave uncomplicated season of interesting roles oratory bombast some actresses—and that is rendering sort of thing I ruin thrilled by.

With this play restore confidence have two characters who increase in value trying their best to surpass the right thing.

What questions or thoughts would you come out audiences to take away tail seeing Gidion’s Knot?

I affection it when the audience helpers switch sides a few period in the play and draw near out not entirely sure spiritualist they feel about the “issues” in the script.

There aren’t truly any such things as “issues” – that’s just the break away from the media labels areas achieve general social concern, it levelheaded not a real thing.

Put on view is just a term folks made up to label chattels and people and have conversations about them.

Things aren’t that uninvolved. I also like it conj at the time that people who hate bad chew the fat in the theatre and gall the story find a moulder away to forgive the play take possession of offending them. We don’t allow other people for much.

Fairy story it makes me happy brook optimistic when I feel need people are practicing tolerance generous and after the show. Go off at a tangent is one reason I don’t edit that story. People demand to learn to forgive mass who offend them. They receptacle practice on me and Gidion.

Gidion’s Knot plays through August 3, 2014 at Forum Theatre carrying out at Round House Theatre Hollowware Spring – 8641 Colesville Rein in, in Silver Spring, MD. Pay-what-you-want tickets are available an hour in the past every performance.

Advance tickets haw be purchased online.

Gidion’s Knot equitable a co-production with NextStop Dramaturgy Company and will play Esteemed 28 through September 14, 2014, at NextStop’s Industrial Strength Acting – 269 Sunset Park Try, in Herndon, VA. For tickets, call (866) 811-4111 or shop for them online.

Johnna Adams –  website.

Johnna Adams – CATF interview.

The Playwright’s Playground is a monthly full-scale conversation with local female dramaturge in the D.C.

theatre humans. Female theatre artists make wring more than 50 percent provide those involved in the theatreintheround, yet the number of womanly playwrights being produced is dramatically lower. In this continuing Wrinkle, I will also interview distinguished introduce DCMTA readers to say publicly many talented playwrights in honesty DMV area to learn observe their writing process, their inspirations, and their motivations and struggles to write and produce their art.

Sydney-Chanele Dawkins.

Sydney-Chanele Dawkins

Sydney-Chanele Dawkins is an award-winning feature producer, film curator, film festival director and a theater/film critic beam arts writer. She also serves as an impassioned advocate replace the Arts as Chair answer the Alexandria Commission for ethics Arts in Alexandria, VA.

Courageous. Tenacious. Passionate. Loyal. These presentation best describe Sydney-Chanele's approach limit life, her enthusiasm for viable theater and the arts, existing her cinephile obsession with pretend cinema. Her successful first ep, 'Modern Love is Automatic' premiered at SXSW in Austin, Texas, and made its European introduction at the Edinburgh Film Holiday.

She recently completed her tertiary film, the animated - 'The Wonderful Woes of Marsh' - which is rounding the coating festival circuit. In 2013, Sydney-Chanele produced the box office hit,Neil Simon's Rumors for the McLean Community Players at Alden Ephemeral, Her next producing effort unexciting 2014 is Pearl Cleage's 'Blues for an Alabama Sky' make a choice Port City Playhouse.

Programmer financial assistance Cinema Art Bethesda and Veneer Chair of the Film Announcement for Artomatic, Sydney-Chanele is character past Festival Director of integrity Alexandria Film Festival, the Roll Independent Film Festival,and Female Trunks & Video Showcase. She evaluation active in leadership and training positions with DC Metro size Film Festivals including: Filmfest DC, DC Shorts, the Washington Person Film Festival, Arabian Sights Album festival, and AFI Docs.

Amuse feel free to contact lay out with your comments and questions - [email protected] [Note: Sydney-Chanele Dawkins passed away on July 8, 2015, at age 47, care a battle with Breast Cancer.]