Moisés Kaufman (#285) - September, 2010




ATW - Downstage Center show

Summary: Director, artistic director and playwright Moisés Kaufman discusses his newest project, the U.S. premiere of the 1940s opera "El Gato con Botas (Puss in Boots)", a collaboration between his Tectonic Theater Project, Gotham Chamber Opera and London's Blind Summit Theatre puppet troupe, debuting at The New Victory Theater -- whether it's an opera meant for children and why it fits into the Tectonic aesthetic. He also talks about his youth and schooling in Caracas, Venezuela and how an annual festival bringing in work by such artists as Peter Brook and Pina Bausch turned him on to theatre; why he felt he needed to come to the U.S. to become a director; why he was done with his schooling at NYU's Experimental Theater Wing but never actually finished; how and why he came to create the Tectonic Theater Project so quickly after leaving school; the development of "Gross Indecency", "The Laramie Project" (and its epilogue), "I Am My Own Wife" and "33 Variations", including his evolution as a writer; why, as someone who has had such success creating his own works, he also enjoys directing existing texts as well; and the reason he listed "Pixar" as his religion on Facebook. Original air date - September 15, 2010.