Free to Go - An Interview with Playwright Holly Morse-Ellington
by Morgan Murphy
An interview with playwright—and BR editor—Holly Morse-Ellington, including some thoughtful responses about her process that may be an inspiration to writers in many genres.
What's the title of your play, and when and where is it premiering? How long will it run?
Free To Go premieres at the Manhattan Repertory Theatre May 4 and 5. If opening weekend is successful, crossing fingers, Manhattan Repertory Theatre will run Free To Go for additional weekends.
What's the "elevator pitch" summary of this play?
In this original one-act, a teacher is brought in for questioning about a seemingly simple matter the detective wants to clear up. When the conversation turns interrogation, uncovered evidence threatens to trap both teacher and detective in a haunting cycle of memories.
Is this your first play? If so, what was something that surprised you about the process? If not, how did this process compare to other plays you've written?
I’ve written and co-written a handful of other plays, but I’m certainly a newcomer to playwriting. On one hand, writing Free To Go came quickly for me—it’s a subject I’ve thought about for a long time. On the other hand, I wrote it after a process of critically examining plays that I admire and mapping their structure. In that sense the words flowed, for once, but the steps to get there didn’t happen overnight.
I know that you write in a number of genres. What are some similarities and differences in the creative process for these forms? What can writers in the different genres learn from each other?
Scene development cuts across all genres. The challenge is the same, to drive the action forward in a way that captivates the audience. Whether presenting facts or fiction, it’s all storytelling. Nonfiction, be it creative essays or journalism, teaches a lot about seizing on strong quotes. Inventing dialogue from scratch is tough. If you aren’t in the habit of listening, or eavesdropping, it’s harder to pin natural conversation down into words. Bad dialogue can ruin any piece of writing, but particularly a play.
The biggest difference between writing for publication and writing for stage production is the level of control you surrender. I think we all feel this rewarding agony in the quest to write well. But there’s some peace of mind that an editor will either publish a piece as-is or suggest minor tweaks and there it is on the page as you intended. While writing plays I have an even more heightened awareness of a word’s connotation or a situation’s context because I have to imagine in advance how directors and actors may interpret the script. That’s a heck of a thing, writing a drama with the necessary nuances while hoping you’ll be happy with the action these essential moving parts bring to the language.
How closely were you involved with the production? Did you prefer to be more hands on, or was there freedom in letting go a little bit?
What’s fantastic about this production is it’s presented through the Manhattan Repertory Theatre Playwright’s Showcase. Manhattan Rep provides all of the technical lighting and sound needs but gives the playwright the freedom to manage the production. I selected an award-winning team that I’ve enjoyed collaborating with on past projects. I cast Jason Tinney, a playwright and actor who’s performed in over forty stage productions, in the lead role of Mr. Burke. I know an actress I’d love to play the lead female role, but given the quick turnaround time for production, I cast myself as Detective Knox. Alonzo LaMont, also an accomplished playwright and actor, is the director. I felt I was too close to the script and that Alonzo would bring a fresh perspective on how to play these characters. Plus, the three of us share an allegiance to protecting a playwright’s vision. That being said, by the first rehearsal Jason had introduced an unintended Southern drawl and Alonzo had cut a line from the script. So I’d say I have the illusion of control. But back to a serious note, I wholeheartedly trust their opinions and believe that I’ve put Free To Go in good hands with them and the team at Manhattan Repertory Theatre.
I want to ask how it is to play your own characters. Do you ever surprise yourself with how you read a line or how you move? What's it like to craft a character in your head and then also be the vessel for its life on stage?
It's weird. There's some disconnect between the process of getting to know the characters inside and out while writing and then starting that process over again while figuring out how to play them. In rehearsals there are moments they feel more like acquaintances than old friends. Then I'll instinctually smirk during a line or make unscripted movements with props and I think, "There she is." These connections between what's written and what's embodied really come together in the performance when I've stopped thinking and gotten out of the character's way.
How did it feel to see your work come to life on stage? How did what you see on stage compare to what you had in your imagination?
In 2015 I watched my first play receive its first production. I was a nervous wreck as the lights went down. As soon as I settled into the actors’ performances, which were remarkable and layered even better than I’d imagined, well, instead of sitting back to enjoy I worried about the reception. Was the audience laughing when they were supposed to—or when they weren’t supposed to? It was humbling. To have a cast and crew take your work seriously, to have people buy tickets to see your work. There are many other things people can spend their time and money on, and I was truly honored to share that moment it all came together.
We’re still in rehearsals for Free To Go, but it’s already shaping up a little differently than I envisioned. This is my second time acting in a play I wrote, and it teaches me so much about how to read a script that I can then apply to writing the next one. Both Alonzo and Jason have a keen instinct for how to embody words. I had no idea how many ways one line could be said and how one intonation can transform an emotion from one end of the spectrum to another.
Would you ever consider adapting any of your fiction/non-fiction pieces into a play? If so, which piece would you choose?
Definitely. Some lend themselves to the format more than others. I have a nonfiction piece coming out that centers around a boxing gym in Cuba. Not only does boxing bring an inherent physicality that’s dramatic, but the stories of what these boxers are fighting for is equally dynamic.
What advice would you give to a writer who loves theatre and is seriously considering writing a play?
Read! Just as fiction or nonfiction writers should read everything in their genre they can get their hands on, the same is true of playwriting. I’d always read plays, but it didn’t occur to me—until I thought it was too late—that playwriting was something I could do. I didn’t even know that option was available to any writer. In my hometown all I had access to in school and at the community theatre were plays by dead guys. As far as I knew original plays stopped at Tennessee Williams.
So I’d say it’s never too late. Get involved with theatre companies in as many ways as possible. Volunteer, watch, audition, and experience a script from the point of view of an actor. It’s a steep learning curve I feel way behind on, making many mistakes as I navigate my way. But I’ve discovered a passion for playwriting that I can’t turn off. It’s worth the journey.
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Holly Morse-Ellington is a recipient of the Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Award in Playwriting for 2018. Her plays have been published or produced by Furious Gazelle, Pumpkin Theatre, Potomac Playmakers, and Palace Theatre. Fifty Miles Away, co-written with Jason Tinney, won first place in the 2015 Frostburg Center for Literary Arts One Act Festival. Her creative nonfiction is forthcoming or published in The Loch Raven Review and Broad River Review, among others.