Journey for Diane Glancy's "The Bird House"

The greatest trick of Theater is making it appear effortless. When the audience arrives the set is built, the costumes sewn, lighting designed, sound cues set, actors rehearsed and dialogue written. If they only knew of all the late rehearsals, the toil of the designers and the long nights re-writing the script. And all of this is only for an actual production.

 

If we rewind to October 2010, when "The Bird House" first came to Native Voices for its First Look Series, it is apparent that this has been two and a half years of hard work for Diane Glancy. "The Bird House" has also been developed twice in Native Voices' New Play Festival, where a staged reading is presented after a week of workshopping the play. As a new addition to Native Voices' staff, I have only seen the transformation from June 2012's New Play Festival to Opening Night. I will say, however, that  in that short time, the play has come a long way.

As I playwright, I am familiar with the fact that plays are much like people. They develop over time, some things change, while other remain the same. One thing that Diane has kept through all of her drafts is the magnificent language. Lines like "he's the taste of gasoline in my mouth" really hit me. They are so beautiful, so poignant and also, so true. And, while character development, plot points and scene sequence have improved over each draft, the heart of the play- its themes about family, religion, the environment, etc. and Diane's unique voice stick.