Claudia I. Haas
Hometown: New York City (Queens)
Current Town: White Bear Lake, MN
Q: What are you working on now?
A: Right this very, absolute-minute, I am adapting My Father's Dragon
- a children's book I came across this winter that enchanted me. All of
a sudden I started seeing puppets. Crocodile puppets... monkey puppets.
That's new for me!
And I am slogging away editing my "Russian-explorer-Otto-
Q: Tell me, if you will, a story from your childhood that explains who you are as a writer or as a person.
A: Grandma
Gresio and I played "make-a-believe" from the time I could speak. I
probably was about 9 years old when I found out it was "make-believe"
and only "make-a-believe" if you had an Italian accent! But you know, I
still play "make-a-believe." Every time I sit down at my desk and
write.
Q: If you could change one thing about theater, what would it be?
A: Getting down to basics - the ticket prices. For someone who has been in
theatre for many decades, I have missed many shows because I could not
afford to go. In New York City, there were more opportunities to see
shows at reduced prices (or free if you were in the biz) than there are
in Minnesota. Although it has gotten better.
Q: Who are or were your theatrical heroes?
A: You are speaking to someone who has had AARP on her tail for a number of years! I have gone through stages.
In
my teens and twenties, I did the "soup to nuts" routine of seeing every
play I could ... the plays of Shakespeare, O'Neill, Miller, Simon,
Albee, Wasserstein, Durang, Wilson, etc. Growing up in New York City
was a playground for a teen who was head-over-heels, wildly in love with
theatre. And for $5 - you could sit in the back row of any Broadway or
Off-Broadway show or musical! Can you imagine? I'd babysit on Saturday and take my money and go to a show on Sunday.
Almost every week. Who can do that today? I was a sponge and those
years were invaluable in helping me create works for young audiences.
Anything is possible in this field. My exposure to so many types of
theatre gave me permission to play with my work.
The work of playwrights in the youth theatre field
is astounding. The care, the risks, the breadth of the genre just gives
me sweet tingles.
Q: What kind of theater excites you?
A: I'm
a theatre slut. I am as spellbound by a grand tap-dancing number as I
am by six actors in t-shirts and jeans spinning a tale in a black box.
If you're making theatrical magic, I'm there.
Q: What advice do you have for playwrights just starting out?
Q: What advice do you have for playwrights just starting out?
A: Be kind. It takes a lot of people to bring you work to life. Be kind.
Q: Plugs, please:
Q: Plugs, please:
A: An excerpt of And the Universe Didn't Blink will be part of The Twin Cities Playwright Tease on June 29th.
It's an evening designed to bring local playwrights in touch with local
theatres. Conceived by Victoria Pyan and Erin Denman, the idea of one
night of showcasing local playwrights to local theatres is an idea that
should go viral.
La Bella Cinderella will be part of the Minnesota Fringe Festival August 1-11, 2013. Pure clowning and silliness for the younger set - Cinderella and pasta - in Italy. Grandma Gresio - she's a-smiling.
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Books by Adam
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