A featured event in Ken Davenport’s inaugural Rave Theater Festival is BACK, a new play written by and featuring Matt Webster with Terra Mackintosh and directed by David Perlow
This 90-minute drama will perform on Saturday 8/10 @ 2:15pm; Tuesday 8/13 @ 8:45pm; Friday 8/16 @ 7pm; Sunday 8/18 @ 4pm; Friday 8/23 @ 9:15pm with tickets being available at http://www.BackThePlay.com (further info at @BackThePlay)
Leah travels to New York City to reconnect with her best friend Derek. Their undeniable chemistry and inherent trust would otherwise make these two a perfect match, if it weren’t for something in the past keeping them apart. Leah tells Derek about an incredible opportunity: a chance to go back in time and change the course of their lives. But there are rules about altering the past that could have devastating effects on the present. Will they risk everything in search of a second chance at life?
Creating the role of Leah is TERRA MACKINTOSH. a veteran on indie art with credits at the New York International Fringe Festival; the Triad; and ATTENTIONTheatre. We said indie art and not just theatre as she also has film/TV credits that include ‘The Ordained’ (CBS pilot), ‘Keep Me Posted’ (Web series) and film-work including ‘A Good Marriage’ by Stephen King, ‘Back Home,’ ‘Reasonable Suspicion’, ‘In Defense of Wonder’ and ‘The Homecoming.’
We wanted to speak with her on the new work about a new kind of love story at the new festival.
Tell us about yourself as an artist?
I see myself as a storyteller, and that can take on many forms. I’m a very curious person and I was lucky I found my way into acting because as much as we are ever-evolving as humans, we are ever-evolving as actors. There is always something to be learned. Being an artist is a tremendous responsibility and one that I take very seriously. Theatre has the ability to synchronize the heartbeats of those in the audience — now THAT is power! So I am extremely selective of the kinds of roles I play and the stories I tell understanding that historically artists not only sustain communities but are catalysts for great change in the world.
This is an impossible tale … at least right now. How do you create the rationale to make it real?
Is it impossible? Yes, the technology that exists in the play does not exist in our world but we can’t know what we don’t know. There is so much to the universe that is beyond our comprehension, even the smartest among us. But the tale, the root of the story, is human connection and love. And maybe love as we know it doesn’t look the way it looks in the play, but who’s to say that magic you feel when you meet someone who instantly feels familiar isn’t a result of having interacted with their atoms during another cycle of life? I don’t have to work very hard to create a rationale to make this story real for myself. It is a love story, two people who need each other, trying to find a way to be together. All the technology that has been developed and all that has yet to be developed will never be able to touch the power of human connection.
What is your creative process and did you need to alter that due to the unique plot line?
My creative process doesn’t follow a specific method or technique. I do the work I need to do in order to be present in the room so I can find the answers in collaboration with the other actors and creative team. For this piece, since I’ve been working on the play with Matt for the past 2 years, part of my process is focused on stripping away any old ideas about the characters and being true to who we are now. That shared and present discovery is essential to giving life to this unique story. But as far as altering my approach, I’m not changing anything about the way I work. Leah is still a human being with needs and desires, all I am is a vessel for her to go after what she wants. My job is just to breathe and get out of the way.
What do you think the audience will take away from this piece?
What I love about this play is that it strikes people in such unique ways. I think each person’s experience will be so radically different, which is a testament to Matt’s phenomenal writing. I can only hope that the audience walks away from this piece asking themselves about love, about their life and the choices they’ve made. Maybe they’ll leave feeling a little more brave. Maybe they’ll choose to be more courageous in their lives and go after what they want, even if it is scary and unknown. And maybe they’ll feel a certain pride in being a part of the human species seeing what we are capable of.
What’s next?
I am currently shooting a feature film in Montana through January 2020, so I will be returning to Montana in the fall. I am also an associate producer on an upcoming original movie musical called “Ready to Ride,” which is the first SAG-registered feature film with an entirely integrated cast and crew of disabled talent. Beyond that, I will be heading out West for a bit — making some movies, spending time in the desert and cuddling with my parents’ dogs.
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