from Dramaturge Tiffany Tang
No Child… Playwright: Nilaja Sun
Biographical
Lower East Side, NYC native
Born 1975 (ish) - 37 this year
African/Puerto Rican American, raised by Italian stepfather
Catholic school educated ("I didn't know I was black until I went to college.")
BA in Theatre from Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster PA
Theatre training at La MaMa Performing Arts Program, NYC
First solo NY performance La Nubia Latina (1996)
Idolizes Robin Williams
Has a dog
Lost her grandmother in 2004, whose name was "Villodas," a name synonymous with "teacher" in her grandmother's hometown of Guayama, Puerto Rico
In 2006: "I think it's really important to find some part of you that has faith. I'm at a real high point right now, and I've been in really low points. It's so important to believe in something to stay centered, balanced and sane."
On becoming a teaching artist
Teaching Artist since 1998 - something she was "drawn to" -- "I wanted to serve humanity in some way." Felt that "something was missing" in her odd jobs waiting tables and clowning at parties.
Started as a Teaching Artist with the National Shakespeare Theatre at suggestion of friends doing one-hour performances of Romeo and Juliet in NYC public schools, then worked with Epic Theatre Ensemble and others.
"I saw how things were around the schools. It was shocking, the attitude and the discipline problems. It made me want to wait tables again." One of her colleagues notes that her primary teaching tactic is to "mirror students back to themselves" even when the portrayal is unflattering. Doesn't want to stop teaching, even with success of No Child...
"I want to be [in the classroom] every Tuesday. I want to remember the kids. I want to remember their spirit and their energy. I want to be reminding myself what it is to be a Teaching Artist while I'm showing the world what a Teaching Artist is. Also, I always associate acting with being honest. If you walk into a classroom, you have got to be honest. You can't lie to yourself."
"The people who don't have access to theatre need it the most." ie, schools, students
Teaching Artist as shaman: "The kids go on a journey, and the TA helps them follow it through." 6-week conduit between students and teacher.
On No Child…
Seventh solo performance creation, although originally written for multiple actors
Semi-autobiographical
One-hour format, Sun attributes to the fact that she was "raised on television" and values brevity in storytelling
Doesn't recall writing the play - "it emerged"
Director Hal Brooks helped her to clarify characters through physical (finger snapping, hands on hips, crotch grabbing, hyperactive shirt tugging) and verbal (wheezing, lisping, sucking teeth) cues and tics.
"Wanted to have fun - to tell a story that desperately needs telling, but to make the battle cry in a jocular, optimistic voice."
"I wanted to create a funny piece to really show the sense of humor of our kids, but I wanted to also make it very truthful."
Students: Notes that groups of teenagers are feared, and not seen as individuals. Hopes that her show will help them to be seen as unique people, as characters from the play.
Teachers: Wants show to be a point of recognition for teachers as well, for their work. "You're a teacher and you feel like no one is listening to you or understands what you are going through...A breather for teachers to feel good about the work they are doing."
Janitor: "The [janitor, crossing guard, lunch ladies] can tell you the history of the school. They never give up. When the janitor passes away, his soul is still in the building. So this is a love letter to those who have never quit on our kids."
"A magnifying glass is pointed towards the teachers and the administrators all of the time, and not at the community. They need to understand how having schools that fail affects all of us."
Details of original production
Commissioned by Epic Theatre Ensemble in 2006. Sun was one of the original members of Epic, which had its first "business day" on 9/11 and has an extensive educational outreach program in NYC
Melissa Friedman, Artistic Director: "I think the show empowers voices, which is part of Epic's mission statement."
Another interesting quote from MF: "I believe a healthy democracy encourages multiple points of view, encourages debate. Nilaja has all of these constituencies communicating on the central issue of education...Democracy is about voices, and I don't think it was an accident that democracy and drama were born in the same moment in western culture." (Note from TT: not sure if the "drama" reference is to something specific? Not clarified in that article but I thought it was a great soundbite anyway.)
Ran April 29 – June 18, 2006: World Premiere at The Beckett Theatre at Theatre Row, 410 West 42nd Street
Winner of 2007 Drama Desk Award, 2007 Outer Critics Circle Award, 2007 Lucille Lortel Award, 2007 Theatre World Award, 2007 OBIE Award for original production.
"No Child… is an insightful and hilarious look into the New York City Public Education system by acclaimed actor and teaching artist, Nilaja Sun. Ms. Sun transforms into the teachers, students, parents, administrators, janitors, and security guards who inhabit our schools every day and are shaping the future of America. Commissioned in association with the New York State Council on the Arts and presented with additional support from John J. Sharkey"
Sets: Narelle Sissons; Costumes: Jessica Gaffney; Lights: Mark Barton; Sound: Ron Russell; Production Stage Manager: Tom Taylor; Production Manager: Jee S. Han; Publicity: O&M Co.
Honors
For her creation and performance of No Child... and its subsequent national tour, Nilaja Sun garnered 17 awards including: an Obie Award, a Lucille Lortel Award, two Outer Critics Circle Awards including the John Gassner playwriting award for Outstanding New American Play, a Theatre World Award, the Helen Hayes Award, and an LA Ovation Award and was named the Best One-Person Show at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival, 2008 Joseph Jefferson Award for Solo Performance at the Lookingglass Theatre Company in Chicago, Illinois.
Princess Grace Award Recipient 2005 (playwrighting) - enabled her to "live life as an artist" sans day jobs. At a United Federation of Teachers Conference in 2007, president Randi Weingarten said, "Nilaja Sun is doing more for our cause than anyone has in years."
