Zitat des Tages von Phillipa Soo:
I went through a phase when I was watching a lot of foreign films, just itching to get out of the suburbs and explore.
I eat a light but sustaining dinner before the show: a bunch of greens and some non-gluten quinoa or rice. I'll have a snack at intermission. I'm trying so hard not to have meals after the show because it's so late, but sometimes I just want a big bowl of pasta.
There's no map for you to follow and take your journey. You are Lewis and Clark. You are the mapmaker.
I relate to that idea of not necessarily seeking out 'interesting female roles,' but 'this character, this role, who happens to be a woman, is interesting to me, and I relate to it in some way, so I'm just gonna go with my gut and see where it leads me.'
I've been very lucky. I made a choice, getting out of school, to follow the work and the people that really struck my heartstrings; 'Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812' was one of those - maybe it was an accident.
On long car rides, we would always listen to the 'Blues Brothers' soundtrack and try to emulate everything that Aretha Franklin was doing. There was soul and grit in it that I think a kid from the suburbs really needed.
The way theater can bring people together is so powerful.
My grandmother was a classical pianist, so I grew up with Schubert, Mozart, Beethoven. I studied piano as a kid. My musical background and upbringing was very much a mix.
My mother took my brother and I to a production of 'The Tempest', and it was in this very small - it could have been the basement of a church or a black box. The space was vast, but there were maybe 15 seats in the middle. Ariel came out wearing a nude sparkly thong and spike heels, and the muses had these gossamer see-through gowns on.
It wasn't until 'Hamilton' that I began to be considered an actor of color, and I really don't know what to make of it.
As a woman, it's nice to hear people at the stage door say, 'I didn't even know! She's a woman, and that's the most amazing thing'.
I took dance from a very early age, although my first recital, I remember refusing to go onstage. I think I was three. It's funny because that stage was also my high school theater stage.
All I wanted to do was create theater for us, for our generation, for the people of this planet. And it's so rare that the art that you are making is reaching a huge mass of people.
I think it's just amazing to be in a group of women, in a group of people that you can spend enough time with them to really get to know people and be inspired by them and learn something new about them every day.
When I go into a theater, I'm very excited to turn off my phone. But then, of course, I get anxiety.
I hope they're reminded that joy is very easy to access if you just put down your phone, look at another person, and make a human connection. You'll find a new experience that you wouldn't have had otherwise.
That's kind of just the nature of our business, is that you're really putting a lot of energy and time and care into something that isn't necessarily going to last forever.
I would put on shows for my family.
I'm trying to look into each character and try to realize her as someone who is also me.
In terms of my own experience, my dad is first-generation, so his parents were from China, and my mom was born and raised in southern Illinois, and she was involved in the arts. My dad's a doctor.
Right out of school, I did this show called 'Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812.' It is based on a classical text with new music - not necessarily confined by a certain genre. It was a diverse, interesting group of musicians, actors, nonactors, and singers all creating this thing that is bigger than all of us.
I'm half-Chinese and half-Caucasian. My grandparents came here from China. My father was born in New Jersey.
I'm definitely not as good as people who consider themselves beatboxers.
At night, I'll do coconut oil or almond oil on my face as a mask to replenish my skin. I've found those are so simple but work better than any other product. Coconut oil is so good, but if you don't want to smell like a cookie, sweet almond oil isn't as pungent.
There's a huge shift in the way we connect with people as humans in the technology age versus right before that, when we still had a little bit of mystery.
You are carving out a story. You and your colleagues are trying to make something that is bigger than yourself. Although it can be a scary experience because you're putting your work out on the line, it's also incredibly rewarding because a lot of it comes from you.
I wake up around nine, drink a cup of coffee, answer some emails, and ease myself into the day.
I definitely have been approached and reached out to by a lot of young Asian American and Asian women, which has been really cool for me.
My mom always told me to follow my bliss. And I remember specifically with my father, when I was out of school and not knowing how I'd get a job or make money - should I take some classes? What do I do? He said as long as I was working - to enrich myself in some way - that I was on the right path.
Everyone has a different interpretation of characters we know and love from Shakespeare, from 'Miller'. There's specific things about them that are written that are kind of the fingerprints of the first person who played that role, and so I like to think of it as a road map.
I decided one day to put on my tutu and jump on the coffee table and sing Aretha Franklin songs for the painters that were painting the house.
I've prioritized taking care of my mind, having fun, and doing things that make me laugh. And eating well - as in, really good food, like steak or pasta or fresh vegetables or an amazing dessert. You know, 'treat yo'self.'
Beyond just the respect that you want to have, people just miss out on being in the moment when they have a screen in front of their face. I just don't know to tell people. I feel it's like, you know, 'Turn off your phone and go to the theater.'
We did a student-initiated project of 'A Little Night Music', which was the first time that all of the divisions - music, dance, drama, opera - came together and put on a piece. It was a black box kind of feel. We had to get costumes that were pieced together. We had our own lighting that we finagled.
