We wanted to let you know what we’re working on as we anticipate the world returning to some measure of normalcy. Spring always feels like a time of renewed hope, and for the first time in a long while, the light at the end of the tunnel feels less like an oncoming train and more like the rising sun! If you are eligible for a vaccine, we wish you luck in obtaining one; and for the rest of us we’re keeping our fingers crossed that the rollout continues to gather momentum and we’re all able to get vaccinated before too long.

We continue to work with FARSIGHT Consulting on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion awareness, and the process has been wonderfully revelatory and thought-provoking. Over the next few months, we’ll be putting together new systems and procedures as well as some new staff to help us achieve the benchmarks we’re setting. We’ll be sure to keep you updated on those developments.

Azuka’s New Pages playwrights are continuing to meet and develop their new plays, some of which we’re hoping to bring to you as soon as we can all gather again. We had a great reading of Alexandra Espinoza’s play Solly Dreams in Spanish, a beautiful work about three generations of Afro-Latinx women told through a magical-realist lens. And here is something that could only happen in a world of Zoom plays: we had three actresses perform from three different cities!

Like many of you, I’ve been spending more time than I usually do listening to podcasts. One that was recommended to me by my nephew Michael has really resonated. It’s a conversation between two of my personal heroes, Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen. They spend the first few minutes discussing how different they are and yet they both identify themselves as outsiders, a feeling that’s at the heart of the work we produce at Azuka. At one point they talk about the incongruity of being (as we’d say) an outcast or an underdog, and yet feeling that what one has to say can have a universal appeal:

Springsteen: “You’ve got to have an egotism that you have a voice, a point of view that’s worth being heard by the whole world. On the other hand, for it to be true, for it to have the kind of impact… you’ve got to have tremendous empathy for other people.”

Obama: “At some point you empty out and become a vessel for the hopes and dreams and stories that you’ve heard from others…you become a conduit for them.”

This is what we honestly hope the future holds for us at Azuka and for you, our audiences. That through our growth and development as an anti-racist, anti-oppressive organization, we can become that conduit for the multitude of voices that so desperately need to be heard. For now, we continue to explore and examine how we function as a company, and how best to move forward making sure that those who interact with us, whether they be artists or audiences, can do so in an environment that is safe, nurturing and joyous. To paraphrase another hero of mine, Tony Kushner says at the end of Angels in America, “The Great Work Continues”

Stay safe and I hope we can all gather together again soon.

Kevin Glaccum