Interview: Estelle Bajou in WILD HORSES at NJ Rep

Wild Horses, a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, will be performed at New Jersey Repertory Company (NJ Rep) from February 22 through March 25. The play is by is by Allison Gregory, directed by SuzAnne Barabas, and Starring Estelle Bajou.

Wild Horses is a coming-of-age story about a time when anything was possible, when the world was full of promise, young love was still a fantasy, and a group of 13 year-olds who recognize injustice can throw caution to the wind and take the initiative to act upon it.

Broadwayworld.com had the pleasure of interviewing Estelle Bajou who plays The Woman in Wild Horses about her career and the upcoming show.

Estelle Bajou is a Drama Desk-nominated Actor, Composer, and Writer. She's French-American, raised in a furniture factory town in the mountains of NC, based in The Bronx. Broadway: Once (Actor/Violinist, First Nat'l Tour). Theater: PS122, Edinburgh Fringe, LaMaMa, 59E59, A.R.T.: Boston, Barrow Street, The New Ohio, HERE Arts, Shadowland Stages, Kennedy Theatre (NC), Under St. Marks, et al. TV: "Boardwalk Empire" (Actor, HBO); Ken Burns' "Prohibition" (Violinist, PBS). Feature Film: Spielberg's The Post (Actor/Violinist, 20th Century Fox); Fireworkers (Composer); Beneath Disheveled Stars (Composer); Chaplin of the Mountains (Actor, Set/Filmed in Iraqi Kurdistan). Short Film: Broke (Actor); Lullaby for Ray (Actor/Co-Composer, Best Short: Toronto Independent Film Fest); Henry Buys a Hat (Actor/Composer, Gold Remi Award: Worldfest Houston Int'l). MFA in Acting: The New School.

When did you first realize you were destined for a career in the arts?

I've never had an "Aha!" moment in terms of my creative identity. Since I was little, I've followed my curiosity where it leads me. I have always been endlessly curious about people, the way they live. I agree with the anthropologist Yuval Harari, who wrote in his book Sapiens, that "fiction has enabled us not merely to imagine things, but to do so collectively. [It gives us] the unprecedented ability to cooperate in extremely flexible ways with countless numbers of strangers," and storytelling has long been at the center of my work. I believe, as the theater-maker Ariana Mnouchkine does, "in light. I believe in dazzling. I believe in the stimulation of beauty, of light, of hope, of joy, of laughter, of tears. I believe in emotions. I think they are the vectors of thought, the vectors of intelligence, and that all those are the vectors of life." For me, story in its many forms is the way we ask the questions and share the lessons of our experience with others. Story is, as Harari points out, the thing which connected us as early humans, and the thing which can most profoundly connect us today.

So much of your work has been centered in urban areas. Do you ever miss living in the type of rural setting you grew up in?

I've been very lucky to travel a good amount for work, experiencing life in villages and very small towns in Greece, Iraqi Kurdistan, Mexico, etc., areas even more rural than the furniture factory town in the mountains where I grew up. Those experiences, and solitude in nature, definitely shape me as an artist-person, as much as the energy of cities. Because acting is a group sport, it feels good to live in a place where I can be around lots of people, where I can learn from and be inspired by and collaborate with people who are different than me, who are passionate about things I've never even heard of, a culturally, ethnically, socio-economically diverse place where communal life is just a fact. Part of me is attracted agrarian life, but for now I love living in The Bronx, and also hope to keep traveling to new, more rural places.

Tell us a little about someone who has been a great inspiration to your career.

I find all people fascinating; everyone has a story. I guess I'm most galvanized by people who endeavor to express themselves--their humanity, their compassion, love--even though life can be a struggle. My work is as informed by the wonder I feel at the fry cook who works at the soulfood joint on my block, who takes genuine pleasure in giving and expressing himself and connecting with people that way, as by the artists and thinkers who have so generously mentored me or whose expressions have moved me.

There are so many creative aspects to your work that include performing, writing, and music. How have you been able to strike a balance between them in your career?

When I was younger it often felt like I was spread too thin. Our culture champions specialists, mastery, expertise, so it took a while for me to figure out how to synthesize all my interests. Today I identify as a polymath, a person laboring and learning in many areas. I try to listen to my impulses, to chase new challenges, to stay open to the opportunities and collaborations and ideas that come along, without spending too much energy worrying about whether I'm balanced or not.

Tell us a little about your role as The Woman in Wild Horses.

As The Woman, I'm drawn back to the place where I spent my early adolescence in the hopes of seeing a friend who played a vital role in my coming of age, in my first autonomous act, my first act of bravery on behalf of others, and my first big disillusionment. I think I'm trying to process that experience, now that I have young teen children of my own, so I can better guide them through their own coming of age.

What would you like area audiences to know about the show?

It's funny. The older I get, the more attracted I am to humor. I think laughter opens people. And when people are open they can go deep, ask really big questions, connect. Allison Gregory has written a very smart play that doesn't take itself too seriously, populated by characters who are funny because they're true, we recognize them, identify with them. That kind of recognition is what helps us understand ourselves and our own communities. That's where stories hold their power.

Why do you feel the mission of NJ Rep is so important to the theater community?

I see theater (and art more broadly) as a medium through which to investigate questions crossing all disciplines. As a company focused on new work, I think NJ Rep is exploring and expressing what it means to be alive today, and I think people need that. We need to communicate and connect as we are now, with ourselves, with the people who've joined us in taking time to suspend their disbelief in a dark room, with the people we encounter out in our shared, wide, wild world. We are none of us alone.

For the future? We'd love to know what is coming up next for you!

For the future? Like Margery Williams' Velveteen Rabbit, I long to become Real.
Creatively, I've got a bunch of irons in the fire that I'll get back to once Wild Horses closes. I'm developing several projects as a writer, including a theatrical-orchestral piece for young audiences called Violet Von Vinny the Violinist, in collaboration with the director of the Winston-Salem Symphony; and a TV pilot, set in rural North Carolina, about an artist grappling with the onerous ethical question of whether to use the life insurance money she is awarded after her brother's death in the Iraq War.

For more information about Estelle Bajou, visit her web site at http://www.estellebajou.com/. And follow her on social media: Instagram: @estellebajou and Twitter: @estellebajou.

Wild Horses will be performed at New Jersey Repertory Company from February 22 through March 25. The theatre is located at 179 Broadway (rear entrance), Long Branch, NJ 07740. Opening night with reception is Saturday, February 24, pre-show starts at 7:30 pm. Regular performances are Thursdays and Fridays with a pre-show starting at 7:30; Saturday's pre-show starts at 2:30 and 7:30; Sunday's pre-show starts at 1:30. Call 732.229.3166 or visit: http://www.njrep.org/.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Estelle Bajou

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