S : You recently completed your Elliot trilogy . Is Daphne ’ s Dive the beginning of a new chapter in your body of work ?
QAH : Yes . After that trilogy I just wanted to loosen up and have fun . There are moments of tragedy in this story , absolutely , but my playful side is more engaged here .
S : What first got you thinking about Daphne ’ s Dive ?
QAH : An incident happened in my family where my older cousin heard a child crying in the adjacent row home for hours on end . Finally , she broke into the house to discover that police had raided the place and the house was empty . Except for a young girl , who was hiding in the closet and had been abandoned . My cousin informally adopted the girl while her parents were in jail . I kept thinking about that girl , about hearing a kid cry through the walls . I thought , “ This girl is a catalyst that will change the life of a group of people .” A jolt of empathy can jumpstart adults ’ hearts . The truth is , we ’ re hardened . We simply are , it ’ s a survival tactic . And then a jolt of empathy can remind us what matters .
art is not indulgent or soft , but rigorous and explosive .
There is joy , remuneration , and fulfillment to be found in the collaborative and solitary aspects of playwriting .
( left ) The cast of Second Stage Theatre ’ s production of Water by the Spoonful , 2013 . ( this page ) Quiara Alegría Hudes , 2015 .
8
S: You recently completed your Elliot trilogy.
Is Daphne’s Dive the beginning of a new
chapter in your body of work?
QAH: Yes. After that trilogy I just wanted to
loosen up and have fun. There are moments of
tragedy in this story, absolutely, but my playful
side is more engaged here.
S: What first got you thinking about
Daphne’s Dive?
QAH: An incident happened in my family
where my older cousin heard a child crying
in the adjacent row home for hours on end.
Finally, she broke into the house to discover
that police had raided the place and the house
was empty. Except for a young girl, who was
hiding in the closet and had been abandoned.
My cousin informally adopted the girl while her
parents were in jail. I kept thinking about that
girl, about hearing a kid cry through the walls.
I thought, “This girl is a catalyst that will change
the life of a group of people.” A jolt of empathy
can jumpstart adults’ hearts. The truth is, we’re
hardened. We simply are, it’s a survival tactic.
And then a jolt of empathy can remind us
what matters.
art is not
indulgent
or soft, but
rigorous and
explosive.
There is joy,
remuneration,
and fulfillment
to be found in
the collaborative
and solitary
aspects of
playwriting.
(left) The cast of Second Stage Theatre’s production ق��]\��HH��ۙ�[�Lˈ
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