A Conversation with Playwright, Michele Lowe
From: National Endowment for the Arts
Series: Art Works Podcast
Length: 32:08
Michele Lowe is a successful working playwright whose work has been produced in regional theaters throughout the country as well as on and off-Broadway. Writing musicals as well as dramas, she is a hard playwright to peg. Her plays are very different from one another in style as well as subject matter. But Michele brings to all her work an observant eye, an imaginative curiosity and a deep appreciation of the collaborative process. This combination has served her well. Her output is impressive in both quality and quantity.
In 2009, she had not one but two world premieres. "Inana" produced at the Denver Center Theater Company tells the story of an Iraqi museum curator and his attempt to protect his country’s art before the war.
Her second premier was "Victoria Musica" which debuted at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Victoria Musica gives us the tale of a music critic who begins to suspect that the recordings of a world-famous cellist are all frauds. Both plays opened to great critical acclaim. Michele Lowe was a finalist for the 2009 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for INANA which went on to win the 2010 Francesca Primus Prize. And, Michele was also a finalist for the 2010 Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for "Inana" and for VICTORIA MUSICA. It was the first time in the award’s 33 year history that a playwright has been independently nominated for two plays in one season.
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Piece Description
Michele Lowe is a successful working playwright whose work has been produced in regional theaters throughout the country as well as on and off-Broadway. Writing musicals as well as dramas, she is a hard playwright to peg. Her plays are very different from one another in style as well as subject matter. But Michele brings to all her work an observant eye, an imaginative curiosity and a deep appreciation of the collaborative process. This combination has served her well. Her output is impressive in both quality and quantity.
In 2009, she had not one but two world premieres. "Inana" produced at the Denver Center Theater Company tells the story of an Iraqi museum curator and his attempt to protect his country’s art before the war.
Her second premier was "Victoria Musica" which debuted at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Victoria Musica gives us the tale of a music critic who begins to suspect that the recordings of a world-famous cellist are all frauds. Both plays opened to great critical acclaim. Michele Lowe was a finalist for the 2009 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for INANA which went on to win the 2010 Francesca Primus Prize. And, Michele was also a finalist for the 2010 Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for "Inana" and for VICTORIA MUSICA. It was the first time in the award’s 33 year history that a playwright has been independently nominated for two plays in one season.
Transcript
Michele Lowe—Podcast Transcript
Yasin: Things disappear in war. Objects in museums vanish.
Shali: You care so much for these objects. What about the people?
Yasin: The objects are part of the people. They’re the deepest, hidden most secret part. They’re the best part and the most important part to protect.
Shali: You’re talking about love?
Yasin: Yes! I love them. I do.
Shali: And your statue? The one you care so much about. Did you send it to Baghdad?
Yasin: We sent a great many.
Shali: You said a great many people were concerned about it.
Yasin: We’re concerned about every artifact.
Shali: But you said it was special.
Yasin: They’re all …
Shali: Special to you.
Yasin: Yes.
Shali: Is that your secret?
That was an excerpt from the award-winning play, "Inana" by Michele Lowe.
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