Video: Tony Nominee Kara Young Wants to Change Your Mind and Make You Think

The last two years have been something else for Kara Young. Not only did she make her Broadway debut (Clydes, 2021), but she returned to Broadway just months later (Cost of Living, 2022) and earned Tony nominations for both performances. Her latest role, she is quick to point out, has been important to her on many levels.

"Like my character, I'm also a first generation American, so it was really meaningful for me to pay homage to people like me in the world, who know how our parents have done everything they can to give us a foundation... to give us life and make us comfortable," she told BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge.

Kara starred as Jess in Martyna Majok's powerhouse play Cost of Living, which concluded its limited run last November. Cost of Living was an insightful, intriguing work about the forces that bring people together, the complexity of caring and being cared for, and the ways we all need each other in this world. 

"There's a part of Jess that's very selfless," she continued. "I'd like to think that the act of doing work in the theatre is ultimately a selfless act. Doing a play like Cost of Living does take so much out of you, but you know that you are giving voice to a  life that is usually thrown under the rug. The play is about many things... but it's about the capitalistic structure within our world and people being in need of each other."

Below, watch Kara's full interview as she chats more about the play's message and so much more!