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1100 Playwright Interviews

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Jun 1, 2016

I Interview Playwrights Part 844: Clint Snyder



Clint Snyder

Interview questions below. Feel free to ignore questions you don't want to answer or add questions you do want to answer. Thanks!

Hometown: Chicago, Illinois

Current Town: Portland, Maine

Q:  What are you working on now?

A:  A One Act Comedy Called The Shiner. It's about a group of high school students that gets trapped in a ski lodge. It plays off some themes of The Shining. One of the trapped girls thinks a bruise gives her psychic powers.

I'm also working on a young adult fiction novel series called The Absurd Afterlife Trilogy about a girl who dies and has to fight her way through a re-imagined afterlife.

Q:  Tell me, if you will, a story from your childhood that explains who you are as a writer or as a person.

A:  I have always had a dark sense of humor, even as a child. I remember throwing up all over my class during story time in kindergarten. I found the explosive reactions and chaos of the situation completely fascinating. I think I try to bring those same chaotically absurd situations to unique characters in my writing and just watch the action unfold.

Q:  If you could change one thing about theater, what would it be?

A:  The lack of funding, particularly to student organizations. I think the lack of funding from schools places a lot of younger drama groups in a position that they have to fight just to get the basic materials they need to perform in a well developed production. It also causes many production groups to go after more commercially successful material, rather than material that is thought provoking.

Q:  Who are or were your theatrical heroes?

A:  Christopher Durang is my biggest role model. I think he takes the concept of absurd theater and makes an audience able to relate to it as long as the acting is realistic. As a gay playwright, I have to say I think that Edward Albee and William Hoffman's works have been quintessential to my personal journey of acceptance. I think Rupaul, although not a playwright, embodies theatricality and inspires me daily.

Q:  What kind of theater excites you?

A:  I really like theater that shakes people up. The golden rule of showbiz is to not be boring, as long as the production is making the audience feel something then it has my full support. I also think that productions set in strange non-traditional places have always fascinated me. I had my introduction to theater through speech team and as a result have had some of my most powerful acting and writing experiences in a classroom or band room. Because of this, I recently started a line of speech team tailored performance material called Interp Script House available on the Speech Geek Market.

Q:  What advice do you have for playwrights just starting out?

A:  To not be discouraged or embarrassed by rejection. Writing is such a personal process that it is so easy to become offended when everyone doesn't find your play riveting. If you put yourself into the play and really gave the audience a part of your soul then you have nothing to apologize for. Just because the first play you write doesn't end up on Broadway that is no reason to quit, keep digging deep and staying positive. Every play, success or failure, is an opportunity to learn more about yourself and develop your personal style.

Q:  Plugs, please:

A:  A brief synopsis of all my work is available here.

My popular flexible cast post-apocalyptic parody play Lord of the Pies is available for production through Theatrefolk. I also have another wild comedy called To Kill a Mocking Birdie through them.

I also have a simple set zany one act comedy about life at a cable company call center called Please Hold available here.

I have my own spin on a Mad Hatter centric version of a Alice in Wonderland script called The Mad Tea Party

Lastly I just wanted to mention again my new line of Speech Team tailored material Interp Script House

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