Interiors

I am just going to come out and say it.

This is a very special actor.

A deep well of an actor. Soulful. Complex. An actor meant for a borderless world. In another place and time, and possibly even country, she would be ‘the’ actor. Full of craft. And best of all, completely emotionally available. But we live in a world at odds with itself and this actor does her best to translate, interpret, and often, channels.

I have had the pleasure to not only see her live in performance, but also to be in the room creating in the generosity of her spirit. She has played heads of state, complicated mothers, a sixties housewife, and nailed them all. Empathy is a word I would most definitely use to describe her.

I am sitting in my Playwriting 1 class right now, watching the students write a ghost scene. I give them the seemingly most ridiculous prompts, but there is method to this madness. ‘Write a scene with someone who is not there’. They have taken that to mean ghost. I am okay with that.

Some are talking to themselves. Some are looking at the wall. Some are plugging away on their keyboards furiously. Best of all, they are all in the spirit. The spirit has entered the room, and they are enveloped in a heightened sense of themselves. In other words, they are being artists and they are being theatrical.

Cheryl reminds me to write in the spirit. To be theatrical. To live bigger than what is required of us. I don’t think I am talking about art anymore, perhaps being a citizen. To look away from the obsessiveness of craft and technique and lean into the holy realm. Where our poetry lies. To let passion and desire take sway and let the art be translated in a way that the body overwhelms the intellect.

It took 939 years for me to get here. 22 generations paved the way for me to arrive.

Yes, I am thinking of this on lovely, wonderful Cheryl’s birthday. Maybe it’s too much.

What a great time to be in the world, to swirl around such amazing talent, and to be in this moment when art is struggle, but also balm.

Happy Birthday Cheryl Umana Bonilla.

Thank you for making me a better artist and, more importantly, community member.

Oh, and Cheryl is also a great baker. I submit a recent attempt.