What Do Artistic Directors Do? Episode 2
We Live in the Future
One of the most important (and challenging) parts of being an Artistic Director is trying to predict the future. We don’t have crystal balls, but we do have instincts. We have to sense where the public appetite may reside months, even years, ahead of time.
As someone with ADHD, I have a bit of an advantage in this department—pattern recognition is second nature to me. (It’s also why watching TV shows and movies with me can be frustrating—I tend to blurt out what’s going to happen next.) But in programming a theater season, this ability to forecast is essential.
Coming out of the 2024 election, I knew that regardless of the outcome, the country would be in a tense climate. Unfortunately, painful, insensitive discussion of identity would be fervent. But the theater has always been a space for catharsis and a safe haven for a great many of us on the so-called margins. It’s where we can step outside the noise. That’s why I knew I knew my community needed something like Hula Hoopin’ Queen.
Opening next week at Seattle Children’s Theatre, Hula Hoopin’ Queen is a jubilant celebration of community, of being young and being older, of seniors and juniors connected in this circular rotation called life. It’s an ode to the simple joys of being alive, a vibrant, saturated window into a world where the biggest conflict is about who will be crowned neighborhood hula hoop royalty.
As playwright Gloria Bond Clunie beautifully states:
“Like the universality of a circle, throughout history – hoops have delighted cultures all around the world! From Ancient Egypt to the Parthenon! Native American Nations use hoops to dance their stories. Australians and the Swiss invented elaborate hooping exercise routines. On the bodies of Cirque du Soleil performers, hoops become magical.”
This production, adapted by Clunie from Thelma Lynne Godin’s book and illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton, captures something we all need right now: a reminder of the power of community, the beauty of intergenerational connection, and the catharsis of jubilee!
If you have blood in your veins and a heart that beats, I dare you not to be affected and pulled into this show.
As we head deeper into a new chapter in America, as we stay vigilant and intentional in protecting our rights and those of others, we also must to lean into the practices, rituals, and opportunities that elicit positivity and care for others.
See you at the show.
#Theater #ArtisticDirector #Community #HulaHoopinQueen #Creativity #FamilyTraditions