Stage Whisper
Whisper in the Wings Episode 619
(upbeat music) - Welcome back in everyone to a fabulous new Whisper in the Wings from Stage Whisper. We are so excited to be welcoming back one of our favorite, favorite arts company from here in New York, back under our show with some exciting events in store. And joining us to talk about these, we have the Executive Director, Duke Dang. He is the Executive Director over at Works and Process, and he is here to talk to us about their fall 2024 season. These events are taking place at the Guggenheim, Manhattan West, and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Some wonderful, wonderful events in store, and you can get your tickets and more information by visiting worksandprocess.org. We've had this organization on a couple times in the past, primarily with dance shows, but they have a wide variety of stuff happening this fall. So let's bring the expert on who can tell us more about that, Duke. Welcome into Whisper in the Wings from Stage Whisper. - Thank you so much, Andrew. I'm actually calling in Zoom in from Paris right now where I just saw break dancing. And I'm gonna mention that because what's really, really exciting about the Works and Process season is we open it with a four-part series, Free Outdoors at Manhattan West. Now, for those of you who don't know where Manhattan West, it's actually between Hudson Yards and the Moynihan Train Hall. It is a brand new development. It's where the high line ends and goes into Penn Station. And what's super exciting about this urban outdoor plaza is it is a circular place. It's free, it's open to the public. And because over the past five years, Works and Process has been happening so much street and social dance for the Rotunda of the Guggenheim, it really made a lot of sense to take these performing art traditions that come from the circle or the cipher and put them into the outdoor circular plaza. You know, we're gonna be riding the momentum of the Olympics. Breaking just made its debut. And so we have a four-part series every Wednesday, starting at 4.30, that highlights the battle culture in street and club culture. The first Saturday, we have Quickstep and Rockefeller, who are legends in the street dance community, and they're organizing a breaking battle. There won't be a PhD competing in this one. (laughs) And then the following Wednesday, we have Kiki Ball. That's going to be highlighting ball culture and we'll have three categories, face, runway, and Vogue or performance. And what's super duper exciting is we have Omari Wiles, who's going to be one of the judges. And if you've seen cats, and if you haven't seen cats, you need to go see cats because it is, it's truly legendary. And Omari is a legend within the ballroom community and Omari co-choreographed cats. The following week, we have Princess Lockeroo with a whack battle. For those of you who don't know whacking is, it's a dance form that came out of the gay nightclubs of LA in the 1970s. It's more disco-driven rather than ball culture, which is more house music-driven. And a little bit of a wink-wink because the next Olympics are happening in LA in '28. So we want to kind of reference the breaking-in lock Paris and then also kind of wink to the whacking that is part of LA history. And super duper exciting, we close out the series the last Wednesday in September with the world champion beatboxers of the beatbox house who are fresh off of a tour with the US State Department. It's the first time that beatboxing has been included as part of the US cultural programming and the State Department's tour. And these beatboxers are amazing. They're five of them and they make up the whole range of sound and they are like an orchestra. So they are drafting eight of the region's best beatboxers and these beatboxers are going to be battling. So four battles every Wednesday in September at 4.30 at Manhattan West, coming out, see it live. You've been watching it on TV or streaming, but you can see it live like for real, authentic with leaders of these communities that are drafting the leading artists of their community to come out and battle. So we have that going on at Manhattan West, but we also have our activities at the Guggenheim. And I think what is, we particularly of interest to your followers is we open our works and processes in at the Guggenheim with the incredible two-time Tony award-winning Janine Tessore. You're actually listening to this, but when I got on this Zoom with Andrew, there is a fun home poster like on his wall. So immediately, we're like, Janine Tessore, but we're highlighting a brand new opera that will be making its met opera debut called A Quirid. It's inspired by a story that George Brandt has written about a female fighter pilot who's about to go to war and she finds out that she's pregnant. So she's relegated to flying drones from her home in Las Vegas and dealing with the complexity and the complications of knowing that what she's doing with drones are falling and dropping onto these communities. So Michael Mayer is directing that production. So it's a must-see. And what we're really excited about is what we're doing is we're allowing audiences to go behind the scenes to see how the sausage is made. So Janine Tessore is going to be there, talking about like what, like her intention, how she's writing this opera. Michael Mayer is going to be there, talking about how, you know, his vision for directing it. And so you really get to learn about the creative process, which makes seeing the premiere that much more fulfilling and that rewarding. And then I'm gonna actually loop back to Omari Wiles again and Cats because we also have a program at the New York Public Library that is telling a multi-generational story. What most, if you know of Omari and if you've seen Cats, you've seen, you know, his choreography that's so ballroom inspired, but Omari's mother is West African dance royalty. She was a principal dancer with the National Valley of Senegal. She immigrated to America in the 1980s and in Bed-Stuy, she has been running the Maimuna Kita African dance company and school. And so this was Omari's upbringing. And when Omari came out of the closet, he was looking for a chosen family and that's how he became involved in the ballroom community. But what we're very excited about is not only do we highlight the creative process and tell these stories, but we also commission work. And for Omari and his mother, we're commissioning a multi-generational piece that tells the story of how this vocabulary of West African dance has turned into a freak fusion that's infused by ball culture. And so Omari and his mother are going to be working together on a project. They're bringing their two dance companies together, Maimuna Kita and lay ballet a freak. And we're providing this company and this project with a fully funded residency in West Chester at Bethany Arts Community where the musicians, the choreographers, the dancers all get to go away. They all get to create an uninterrupted lockout studio space. They're living under one roof for 10 days. They're cooking meals together. So there's a really uninterrupted creative process which you don't get in New York City. We all know the story of your book studio space and just as the creative juices are flowing, there's a knock on the door because somebody else has booked the next hour and they're like, okay, we'll circle back to this. So those are some of the projects that we're really, really excited about. And so I hope you'll come out and join us. The library program is free, Manhattan West is free and the Guggenheim programs or some process produces the tickets start at $15. - Wow, wow, that is all amazing and exciting and honestly, just so New York, that diversity there at is so New York. So let me ask you, you know, how did you select these works, these events and performances for this season? - Yeah, so what drives our decision-making is there is just an innate virtuosity in so many forms of the performing arts. And yet oftentimes the bulk of the resources are devoted to a few. So we try to spread it out and actually it's like the quote on your website. What did Dolly leave I say about money, Andrew? - Money, part in the expression is a lot like manure. It's useless unless it's spread around helping young things grow. - So, you know, we are fortunate to have these partnerships with these incredible organizations, stored institutions like the Guggenheim, like the New York Public Library. And, you know, that allows us to work with incredible organizations like the Metropolitan Opera and Jeanita Sorri. I mean, the Met Opera is the largest performing arts organization in America. But what's also exciting is we're able to open up the doors for performing art traditions that were created right here in our own backyard like breaking, like ball culture, like beatboxing, and also highlight, you know, the West African dance makers that find their way to New York City. And what's really exciting is they all are platformed on the same stage in the same way. And there isn't a hierarchy of uptown downtown or opera or DJ music or African drumming. It's all this virtuosity is featured together. And that's what makes our city so exciting. That's why I live in New York City because we have all of these things. We just have to look for it. And we have to platform all of it and resource all of it. And so that's really what we look for. - I love that. I love that. Now, we are just about three weeks away from the first event, which you mentioned was the event with Jeanine Tesori and the opera and such. So I'm curious to know as we start rolling in to these events, what has it been like developing these different productions? - Well, you know, it's kind of a bifurcated approach. With the Met Opera, the reality is grounded has been in development for years 'cause operas take a long time to produce. And the truth is that grounded actually had its world premiere last year at the Washington National Opera in DC at the Kennedy Center. And so this is just yet another iteration because the creative process doesn't end that premiere. You know, we are not in the business of making films or a streamer or a TV show where once there's a final cut, it never changes. Yeah, the performing arts are live and they are iterative and the audience being in the room changes the dynamics. So with grounded, the reality is we are the tip of a tale of a very, very, very, very big dog. And we just get the chance to highlight creators like Jeanine Tesori and Michael Mayer and the singers that are singing this opera in conversation with Peter Gabelle and some of the principal singers are going to be sharing RAS from the opera. And we really get a taste of it. It's a little bit of wedding the appetite and learning about the creative process. The other path that we take is recognizing that producing, commissioning, creating work is expensive and it requires resources and it requires aggregating a whole network of residency spaces, studio spaces, artists, production, tech, a venue. And so when we commit to a project like the one I shared about Omari and Marie Bass' mother, we are literally like farm to table. We are supporting this creative process every single step from studio to stage. And it starts with a residency, a works and process launch pad residency in upstate New York that's fully funded. We're committed to two more cycles of this fully funded residency that will go into 2025. And also we're gathering these stories and that's what we're doing within New York Public Library so that the stories are then part of the oral history and part of archiving that will be preserved in perpetuity. And that's something that the Met Opera already has in place, but these performing art traditions that I'm describing that are not the Met Opera, they don't have those resources. And so we try to aggregate those resources so that they're able to create work in as a full and resource way as possible. - That is incredible. With this vast tapestry of works you're presenting, is there a message or a thought that you're hoping audiences take away from this? - You know, yes, absolutely, which is there's more than the product itself. Go behind the scenes like when you actually learn about how work is created, when you learn about the intention of the artist, when you learn how it is made, it becomes a much more fulfilling, engaging experience. And it also helps to build a community. It helps to build dialogue. We become active participants. This is why every single works and process program utilizes show and tell format. We deliberately break the fourth wall. And that's why a lot of the dance that we've been doing of late over the past five years is street and social dance, because street and social dance literally breaks the fourth wall and asks an audience to not only spectate, but also to percucutate. And that's what we need now more than ever in a world that is increasingly isolated. There literally is a crisis of isolation in America right now. And, you know, sometimes people get confused when I say social dance. They're like, what is social dance? And I'm like, you know, you've been to a birthday party or you've been to a wedding and like the DJ starts playing music and we all like get up and we get into a circle and we start dancing, that's social dance. And there's something magical about that participation, that being in the moment, the joy of dancing, the joy of hearing a song that you love, that moves you or the joy of seeing somebody on the dance floor that you don't know and you have like a three minute date with them and the song's over and you're like, hey, that was great. And you move on to like the next song. That's what we need now more than ever. And that's what we're supporting. - I love that thought. That is a beautiful, beautiful idea there. And it is a great lead into my final question for this first part, which is, who are you hoping have access to your fall 2024 season? - You know, I think at the heart of what we do is we want people who are curious and we want people who are open-minded and people who are open to learning. We don't want the audience member that's like, I'm gonna go to a theater and sit in my comfortable seat or actually most, our theater is very comfortable but most of you are not comfortable. Let's just put that out there. And the lights go out and yeah, I don't like it or you don't. You might fall asleep if you don't like it and you go home and you're like, okay, whatever. What we want is an audience member that's, and this is because our format is show and tell. It deliberately breaks the fourth wall or with some of our dance program and ask audience members to get up and dance. We want an audience that's going to engage and learn and our whole ecosystem is going to be a much better place for that. It's kind of like you think in Broadway world, the producers, like what do they want? They want to go to like that backer's audition, right? They want to see it before anybody hears about it and that's exciting or for the nonprofit performing arts. What do fundraisers do? They're always like, why don't you come into the studio with me? And that's what we try to do as an organization. Take that barrier to entry away. You don't have to be a millionaire that's going to invest in a Broadway show or make a contribution to a nonprofit organization. So there's somebody in the fundraising department that's engaging with you. We want you to be able to buy a $15 ticket or what the library is free and get to experience what investors and donors get to experience because that's what's going to excite us all. We all kind of want to get that first dibs or like a first taste, even though it might be super duper raw. Well, for the second parts of our interviews, we love giving our listeners a chance to get to know our guests a little bit better. Pick your brains, if you will. And I would love to start with our regular first question, which is what or who inspires you? What composers, playwrights, or shows have inspired you in the past or are just some of your favorites. And I want to definitely open that up to just any artist in general. Oh gosh, you know, I loved, loved, loved, loved the inheritance. I saw it three times. I was very fortunate to see it in London twice. Once at the Young Fick and then when it transferred to the Noel Coward and then to New York City. So Matthew Lopez is on my radar. Anything that Matthew writes, I'm there. But I think part of it is that the story of the inheritance closely mimics the story of my life and my husband and myself. And so we just want to see our stories on stage. You know, I am fresh off of Edinburgh Fringe and I just saw my son's queer. And that was very inspiring. It moved me to tears because again, as a gay man, it was seen by story on stage. So, you know, that's where broadening representation of what we see in stages so important because at the end of the day, we just want to see our stories on stage. Yeah. That is such a fantastic answer. I love that. That is beautiful. And you know, Andrew, like, you know, the listeners can't see this, but you know, I'm a gay Asian man. You know, I was born in a refugee camp, came to America very, very, very poor, grew up on Section 8 vouchers and food stamps and Head Start. And I am where I am because 20 years ago, there were inter-paid internship programs at organizations like the Getty in California or I was a paid intern at work time process. I was a paid intern at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and those paid internships really made it possible for me to enter this field. I didn't have the privilege or the luxury of being able to take an unpaid internship as a college student. So, I'm a big proponent of paid internships. That is amazing, amazing. Wow, what a journey you have gone on. This is incredible. Thank you for sharing that. I want to ask you, you know, what is your favorite part about working in the performing arts? You know, I think for me, it's about the sense of community and how the arts can be a way of connecting us. And what I also love is, and this is a value that is near and dear to me, but also part of what we do at works in process, is the longitudinal relationship and the long-term way that we support artists and help them grow and open doors. And that is the most rewarding part for me is the long-term relationships in the communities that we build. What a fabulous answer, love that. And I want to snowball off of that. And I want to ask you my favorite question to ask guests, which is, what is your favorite theater memory? I guess it was seeing-- let's kind of circle back to this notion of like seeing our stories on stage. So I am of the rent generation. I saw the Broadway National Tour of Rent at the Securism Center for the Performing Arts. Back then, it was called the Orange County Performing Arts Center. I was a junior in high school, saved up money to go see rent. And I was closeted. Orange County was very, very conservative back then. And to see a gay story on stage and to know that I'm not alone. And I think it was that that just made me want to be in the performing arts to be able to help bring these stories into the world so that people know that they're not alone. I love that. I love that is such a beautiful memory. Thank you so much for sharing that truly. That is such a beautiful memory. Well, as we wrap things up, I would love to know, do you or your company have any other projects or productions coming on the pipeline? We might be able to plug for you. Well, oh gosh, we have so much happening. I actually kind of only touched like the first parts of our season. But for the families out there, we are bringing back our beloved Peter and the Wolf with Isaac Mizrahi with choreography by Dan Tigenbaum and Ensemble Connect from Carnegie Hall. It is as Sergei Prokofiev wrote it 30 minutes long. So for those out there with little ones in your life or for those that are young at heart, that happens in December. And then I'm super duper excited for our holiday concert in the Rotunda. That happens at the end of December. It's in one of the most iconic spaces in New York City. We have Charles Turner and Uptown Swing and Jasmine Rice LeBeja, who's a phenomenal Juilliard train tenor who is also a drag queen, drag artist. Jasmine performs with Charles Turner and Jasmine always has a surprise. Last year she was singing All I Want for Christmas. I'm in the Rotunda of the Guggenheim as part of the Works and Process holiday concert. I have no idea what she's going to be doing this year, but it will be a lot of fun. So that's happening. And then later on in the season where back-to-back having a behind-the-scenes program with the School of American Ballet exploring 90 years, they are celebrating that anniversary right now. And again this notion of farm to table or studio to stage back-to-back we have the School of American Ballet. And 24 hours later we have New York City Ballet highlighting new commissions. So I've only touched briefly about what we're cooking up this season. So what you need to do is go to www.worksandprocess.org and see everything that we're doing here in New York City. And then we also have information about our launchpad residency program where we partner with 14 residency partners outside of New York City where we send projects that we've commissioned to go away, paid, uninterrupted, creative process time. And we have about a dozen projects in these works and process launchpad residencies over the next six months just supporting creative process because that's what artists need. It doesn't happen magically. Just wow, wow, a plethora of amazing stuff you all have coming on the pipeline. And I'm sure there's even more amazing things coming around the corner in the new year. And you've already kind of got another jump start on my final question which was if our listeners want more information about the 2024 fall season or about the company or even you maybe want to reach out to you. How can they do so? Yep, it's www.worksandprocess.org. Our social media handle is works and process. And hopefully we'll see you at a works and process program very soon whether it's at the Guggenheim at Manhattan West or the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Fantastic! Well Duke, thank you so, so much for taking the time to speak with me especially at this late hour over where you're at. This has really been so wonderful. I'm so excited and congratulations on all the wonderful work you and your company continue to do. Thank you for your time. And thank you Andrew. We need more people like you sharing these stories, providing a platform. We're so grateful. Thank you. My guest today has been the amazing executive director of works and process, Duke Dang, who sat down to talk with us about their fall 2024 season. They've got events happening at the Guggenheim, Manhattan West, and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. You can get your tickets and more information about the amazing events happening with this organization by visiting worksmprocess.org or check them out on social media at works and process. They have something for everyone and honestly just get out and support this wonderful company and these wonderful artists that they're giving a platform to. It's amazing. You're not going to be disappointed in anything you see. So make sure you check out works and processes fall 2024 season. And we want to remind our American listeners that election day is November 5th. Make sure you are registered to vote, have a plan to vote, and do your democratic duty. You can find out how and where you can register to vote by visiting vote.gov. The future demands that we fight for it now. So until next time, I'm Andrew Cortez reminding you to turn off your cell phones, unwrap your candies, and keep talking about the theater. In a Stage Whisper. Thank you. If you like what you hear, please leave a five-star review, like and subscribe. You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram at StageWhisperPod. And feel free to reach out to us with your comments and personal stories at stagewhisperpod@gmail.com. And be sure to check out our website for all things Stage Whisper and theater. You'll be able to find merchandise, tours, tickets, and more. Simply visit stagewhisperpod.com. Our theme song is Maniac by Jazzar. Other music on this episode provided by Jazzar and Billy Murray. You can also become a patron of our show by logging on to patreon.com/stagewhisperpod. There you will find all the information about our backstage pass as well as our tip jar. Thank you so much for your generosity. We could not do this show without you. [Music]