Megan Gogerty
Hometown: Des Moines, Iowa
Current Town: Iowa City
Q: Tell me about Feet First In The Water With a Baby in My Teeth.
A: I don't want to oversell it, but it's brilliant and I'm a genius.
I'm kidding. Hopefully obviously.
It's a half-true confessional comedy about a woman (me, kinda) who has a baby and then a few years later, becomes a mother. Along the way, I tell you the most efficient way to slaughter a chicken with your bare hands. So it's educational, too.
Q: What else are you working on now?
A: I'm writing a new solo show, and I'm about to release the eBook version of HILLARY CLINTON GOT ME PREGNANT, my first solo show about Hillary Clinton getting me pregnant.
Q: Tell me, if you will, a story from your childhood that explains who you are as a writer or as a person.
A: For a really long time, I thought "A stitch in time saves nine" was about time travel. Because Ben Franklin was such a forward-thinking fellow. But who were the nine we had to save? He was a Founding Father - was it a message about the Supreme Court? Then I realized it was about sewing and lost interest.
Q: If you could change one thing about theater, what would it be?
A: I wish more theaters offered child care so I could attend it more regularly. My gym offers childcare: for $5, I can take a Pilates class while my kid runs around in the next room. Everybody wins.
Q: Who are or were your theatrical heroes?
A: So many. Too many to name. Vogel. Parks. Tomlin. Chris Rock counts as theatre, doesn't he? Holly Hughes. Tennessee Williams. Tom Jones & Harvey Schmidt, the creators of The Fantasticks, which is totally underrated by us theatre snobs. Dario Fo. Eddie Izzard.
Q: What kind of theater excites you?
A: I was teaching a class in Britain and made all my students see the revival of The Black Rider, the collaboration between Robert Wilson, Tom Waits and William S. Burroughs. And I was totally electrified, and therefore completely surprised that my students all hated it. The theatricality, the choreography, Marianne Faithful as the Devil! Amazing all the way around. What was wrong with those stupid kids?
Q: What advice do you have for playwrights just starting out?
A: Make theatre - actually make it instead of talking about it or waiting for others to notice you. Make it in the mall. Make it on a street corner. Get your work in front of an audience any way you can, because that's how you'll grow.
Q: Plugs, please:
A: Well, the aforementioned eBook HILLARY CLINTON GOT ME PREGNANT, coming soon to an e-reader near you! Also, my play BAD PANDA is premiering in Baltimore in October: http://ironcrowtheatre.com/season/ for details.
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