Interview: Jesca Prudencio On Guiding the INTERSTATE & POI

The East West Players presents the rolling world premiere of Interstate, an Asian-American pop-rock poetry musical (opened last week). Jesca Prudencio directs the cast of Jupiter Lê, KRISTIAN ESPIRITU, Jaya Joshi, Michelle Noh, Reuben Uy, Stefan Miller, Natalie Holt MacDonald and Krystle Simmons.

Jesca took some time between her two productions to answer a few of my queries.

Thank you for taking the time for this interview, Jesca!

The creation of Interstate began in 2012. You first directed the 2020 production of Interstate at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis. What initially brought you into the Interstate universe?

I am drawn to projects that explore the intersection of community, cultures, differences, and how people coexist. I'm interested in challenging work that pushes the boundaries of what theatre is. When I first read Interstate, I was drawn to how it challenges what a musical is: in form and structure and also content. It's incredibly personal, it's moving, it's entertaining, and I think there's something for everyone in it. As soon as I read it, I was drawn to it and knew I had to meet the writers. Our agents set us up three years ago, and Kit, Melissa and I immediately clicked. Since then, our collaboration has been full of honesty, curiosity, joy, and delicious hot pot meals!

Is anyone from the 2020 production reprising their roles?

We have a mostly new cast with two members who have done the roles in readings in New York City, and a completely new design team. These collaborators are bringing a fresh take and new eyes to a piece that I've been with for years. Kit and Melissa have been with for over a decade. Since 2020, the production has changed and developed a lot because we are not the same people we were in 2020 and the world is not the same either. And so, therefore, we're bringing new ourselves to this new production.

Have you worked with any of the other Interstate cast or creatives before?

Michelle, who plays Adrian's mom and other roles has been with the Interstate family longer than I. I have seen her in several other roles and enjoyed seeing her grow with and shape the mother character. Kristian did a reading of this production in 2013 and has returned to the role as if a day hasn't passed by! Otherwise, everyone else is new, including our complete female design team. It's important to us within this production that our cast and creative team on the stage reflect the stories of the people on the stage.

What would your three-line pitch for Interstate be?

Interstate is a pop-rock, spoken word musical that explores what it means to be a man; and what it means to be yourself. We follow a band that takes a cross-country tour to connect with their community they represent as queer, trans, and Asian American artists, intersecting with Henry, a teenager who is stepping into his true self-guided by the music and media of his idol. Interstate is a vibrant, heartfelt, and healing theatrical experience that exposes the beautiful mess on the concert stage, backstage, and the journey in between.

This is not your first time directing at East West Players. You helmed Anna Ouyang Moench's Man of God in early 2019. What about East West entices you to flex your directorial talents there again?

I had a high school dream to do theater at East West Players. I remember googling "Asian American theater," seeing East West Players, and knowing I wanted to do theater there focused on my community as an Asian American woman. I've watched productions at East West Players over the years and always had and had an eye on and hope of wanting to work there. To work in a community that is focused and dedicated to our voices and stories. Now returning for the second time, I feel incredibly supported under Snehal's (Desai) leadership, who truly understands the gravity of this story and impact we want to make for the EWP audiences and beyond.

Have you mastered juggling your duties as Head of Directing at San Diego State with your directing projects?

I wouldn't say I have mastered it yet! I am learning hard lessons on balance, that's for sure! I am a professor because I love the process. My teaching practice feeds my creative process as a director. Although they are separate, they coexist together. I'm a better professor the more I direct, and I'm a better director the more I am a professor. I am grateful to have such a supportive department at San Diego State University that allows for growth for me as a director, choreographer, and artist. I've solidified such a great community of students. My assistant director, J'Arrian Wade is a current student of mine. And our costume designer, Brooke Kessler is an alumni of the MFA design program. Since I have become a professor, my directing career has grown exponentially, so something is working!

What did you want to be when you were a teen? A choreographer? A director?

When I was a teenager, I did it all. I was a big musical theater kid who also played the violin, played sports, studied dance, and also performed with my Filipino cultural community. I had so many afterschool activities. My parents who are both physicians and immigrants from the Philippines were incredibly supportive. I learned pretty early on that I wanted to be a director. I was doing musical theater and performing in high school and decided to step back and assistant direct due to vocal issues. From the age of sixteen, I realized I wanted to be a director because I wanted to have agency in shaping the experience of the audience. I felt more myself taking on the responsibility of the entire experience, rather than one specific aspect like performing on stage. So I studied directing undergrad and got my BFA at Tisch school of the arts at NYU and I got my MFA in Directing at UC San Diego. In the more recent year, I find myself loving choreography and drawing upon my experience and love of dance and movement. Working with movement and storytelling with the body in addition to text completes the vision.

You've directed productions all over the U.S., as well as internationally. If you close your eyes, would you be able to tell distinct audience reactions from the different cities and countries you've played in?

Theatre has a place in every county, city, and community. It exists as an expression and need of the people. I've worked on a production where people needed to laugh, or people needed to heal or people needed to be educated on something. In my experience, directing productions all over the world, audiences come wanting to be moved. I encourage a vocal and engaged audience. I want "oo's" and "aah's" and collectively breathe and gasp. I want them to feel the art on stage no matter where I am in the world.

What motivated you to be the founder of the non-profit People Of Interest in 2014?

Another adventure of theatre that I have is documentary theatre/interview-based theatre. We pick a specific issue or topic and go to a specific community and conduct interviews as a team, from there we devise an original project with the themes in mind. It is "People of Interest" because we are focused on people-centered projects. When I do these projects I can integrate the community fully within the art as collaborators, actors, and crew.

Is there a specific POI project that you're most proud of?

A project that sticks out to me is A&Q, I developed it from 2017 to 2019 with the support of San Diego State University and I was allowed to bring students with me to research and workshop. The piece was created to investigate what was going on on the human level regarding the political situation in the Philippines concerning the president, the war on drugs, use of sex. There were multiple perspectives around the Presidency at the time, and we so wanted to hear from the people about what their experience was, so we conducted interviews that were split.

This piece was performed in Manilla, the Philippines featuring stories of real people about what it was like to live in the current day.

Through this piece and making theatre in the Philippines, I learned a lot about being Filipino, being a Filipino American, about what it is meant to make theater in the Philippines. I learned about how, in a way, how similar the Philippines and America are due to parallel political division. And ultimately, I don't want my work to give answers, I want my work to ask questions.

How soon do you start rehearsals on your next project, King Liz, at The Geffen Playhouse?

I start rehearsals two days after Interstate opens before the rehearsal process at The Geffen Playhouse for King Liz Written by Fernanda Coppel. This work looks at what it means to be a powerful woman in a male-dominated industry which I think is very real at least within this time and context.

Is there a dream production that you want to eventually direct and choreograph?

To be completely honest, Interstate is a show that must be seen by more people, and we have a collective dream to take this production to many cities and more audiences to experience it. The more we explore Interstate artistically, the more people have fallen in love with this piece. I know there's a future for it and would love to see it on a larger scale for audiences all over the world to see.

Thank you again, Jesca! I look forward to seeing both Interstate and King Liz!

For tickets for the live performances of Interstate through June 26, 2022; click on the button below:

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