BWW Interviews: Elaine Smith, Playwright for ANGELS AND MINISTERS OF GRACE at NJ Rep

Angels and Ministers of Grace will open at New Jersey Repertory Company in Long Branch on October 23rd and run through November 23rd. Directed by Marc Geller, it is written by actor, director and playwright Elaine Smith. Broadwayworld.com had an opportunity to interview Smith about her career and the show.

Angels and Ministers of Grace is a compelling story of a close-knit, yet eccentric family's struggle to overcome life's ups and downs. The play captures the current issues that confront families throughout the heartland and urban centers of America and reveals in bold relief forces that threaten to destroy the American dream.

Smith is an award winning playwright. Her other works include The Looking Glass and Ten Minute Life among many others. Smith holds a B.A in Theater from the University of Delaware and Masters in Theatre from the University of Denver. A member of SAG-AFTRA and the Dramatist's Guild, she is represented by Ron Gwiazda and Amy Wagner of Abrams Artists.

Smith became interested in theatre as a youngster. "I had the lead in my kindergarten class play because I was the only kid who could remember the lines. It was something about candy canes and gum drops, I think. I probably became a little more seriously interested in the 6th grade, when I had a teacher who not only directed the class play but did community theatre. A number of us went to see her perform at the Candlelight Dinner Theatre, and I loved the whole experience. Then, in high school, we had a terrific teacher who ran the drama club and directed shows with the help of student directors. He chose me, among others, and gave us real responsibility and artistic input, and I think that sealed the deal for me.

Smith told us about her many mentors and inspirations.. "I have had so many mentors: Carole Weisenfels in 6th grade. Frank Livoy in high school. Polly Bray and Rebecca Nordstrom in college. Judy Leavell in grad school. I studied with a lot of wonderful teachers when I lived in New York. Anne Bogart has a particularly fascinating way of looking at theatre. Julia Carey is a wonderful, life-changing acting teacher. I learned a lot about acting Shakespeare from John Basil of the American Globe Theatre. Julia Miles, who founded and ran the Women's Project, supported my early directing efforts. Jan Buttram and Sam Bellinger of the Abingdon Theatre Company have always given me invaluable advice and support, as have fellow playwrights-Margaret Hunt, in particular. Theatre Resources Unlimited (TRU) is a terrific source of information. And several commercial producers have been kind enough to give me guidance and advice. Pat Addiss, Meredith Lucio, Cheryl Wiesenfeld have been so helpful. Richard Frankel sat down with me. Also, the late Randall Wreghitt. The theatre community is amazingly generous."

She also commented, "A high point for me was when actress Linda Hamilton did an early reading of Angels.... It was so generous of her, and she did such a terrific job! I am a big fan of her work, and she turned out to be such a lovely person. The fact that she would take an interest and put herself out for this play was so encouraging. It really made me push myself to work harder."

Smith has been active in many aspects of theater. We asked her how she has balanced different roles and responsibilities. "A life in the theatre is always challenging, no matter which hat you wear at any given time. Acting stretches you mentally, physically, vocally and emotionally. Directing requires a strong visual sense, an understanding of how to help and support actors, the ability to deal with designers and technicians. Diplomacy comes in handy. And writing a play seems to draw on all those skills and more. I love that the challenges are always shifting. One day, you are researching epilepsy and suicide preparing to work on Marsha Norman's 'night, Mother and the next you may be learning how to maneuver through a doorway while wearing an Elizabethan farthingale. Today, I've been researching CB lingo because of a sound effect in Angels.... Theatre takes you everywhere.

She also expressed deep appreciation for her life in the theatre. " I feel very fortunate to have had all these different experiences. I think I am a better writer because I have been an actor and director, and I hope I would be a better director and actor now that I have been a playwright."

As Angels and Ministers makes its way to NJ Rep, we asked Smith about her inspiration for the play. "The initial impulse to write came out of the realization that there are a sadly limited number of roles for women past the ingénue stage. My first thought was to see if I could write something that would add to those opportunities. I thought maybe I could manage a ten minute play. Then I thought that as long as I was trying to write one good female role, maybe I should try for two. So I began to think about relationships among women: doctors/patients, lawyers/clients, mothers/daughters, etc. An unfinished line of dialogue came into my head, and I thought, "Hmm. I wonder what that's about?" I started writing, and I realized I was writing in the cadences and dialect of northern Florida, where my grandparents lived and where I used to spend summers. That gave me a setting, and some very quirky but specific character traits from which to draw and from which a lot of the humor of the piece arises. The whole thing grew from there. Along the way, I realized that, in addition to creating opportunities for actresses, I had something I wanted to say about people's connections to and responsibilities toward one another. Many, many rewrites later, Angels and Ministers of Grace is about to be seen on stage."

Smith is a great advocate for the work of NJ Rep. "NJ Rep is such a great organization with seventeen seasons of producing new work, much of it by new and unknown playwrights. That's rare. They produce year-round. Their shows are of consistently high quality. The production values are always so strong-which astonishes me when you consider what a limited budget not-for-profit theatres tend to have. They draw on an exceptional pool of talent for actors, directors and designers. We have a great cast: Dana Benningfield, James Earley, Maureen Silliman and David Van Pelt. I'm enjoying working with talented director, Marc Geller. I am so fortunate to have SuzAnne and Gabor Barabas producing this play. They did a reading of Angels... some years ago, and I am so glad that they continued to be interested while I continued to work on it. It's a very supportive, nurturing place to work."

We asked Smith if there was anything else she wanted our readers to know. "The journey to this production has been long. There have been all kinds of ups and downs along the way. But it's been exciting and rewarding. I've had so much help along the way, but I wouldn't be here if I hadn't also been lucky. I attended grade school and high school back when we thought the arts were important enough to get some funding. The next generation of great actors and directors and playwrights aren't necessarily getting that experience. I hope we can figure out how to do something about that."

Angels and Ministers of Grace begins preview performances on Thursday, October 23 and celebrates its opening night on Saturday, October 25 at New Jersey Repertory Company (179 Broadway, Long Branch, NJ). The play runs through Sunday, November 23. Tickets may be purchased by calling 732-229-3166 or online at www.njrep.org.

Photo: Courtesy of Elaine Smith