VIDEO: HADESTOWN's Rachel Chavkin Talks Directing the Way to Gender Equality

Know Your Value founder Mika Brzezinski recently sat down with Hadestown director Rachel Chavkin to talk about her call for greater representation in the theater world. At the 2019 Tony Awards, Chavkin used her acceptance speech to talk about this issue, saying, "I wish I wasn't the only woman directing a musical on Broadway this season. This is not a pipeline issue. It is a failure of imagination by a field whose job is to imagine the way the world could be."

During the August 5 interview with NBC's Brzezinski, Chavkin said many people consider theater and the arts to be "amongst the most progressive industries because they're industry is filled with progressives ... and yet unfortunately, there's the same systemic white supremacy and patriarchy that we see operating in so many different industries around the world."

Chavkin tells Brzezinski that she tries to find success while elevating other women. "This is something that has become an increasing core value of mine over the years, and as I've gotten more established in the industry I have more say over," she said. "So I do try to prioritize working with both women and more artists of color when I can. And I love collaborating with women," said Chavkin.

Watch the full interview below!

Hadestown marks the first time in over a decade that a woman has been the solo author of a musical: writing the music, lyrics, and book, and is the fourth time in Broadway history a woman has accomplished this creative feat. The show originated as Mitchell's indie theater project that toured Vermont which she then turned into an acclaimed album. With Chavkin, her artistic collaborator, Hadestown has been transformed into a genre-defying new musical that blends modern American folk music with New Orleans-inspired jazz to reimagine a sweeping ancient tale.

Following two intertwining love stories - that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone - Hadestown invites audiences on a hell-raising journey to the underworld and back. Mitchell's beguiling melodies and Chavkin's poetic imagination pit industry against nature, doubt against faith, and fear against love. Performed by a vibrant ensemble of actors, dancers, and singers, Hadestown delivers a deeply resonant and defiantly hopeful theatrical experience.