Interview: THINGS MISSING/MISSED Creative Team Talks the Devised Play's World Premiere at Obsidian Theater

We talk to Philip Hays, Melissa Flower, and Justin Locklear--the team behind the devastatingly original devised play THINGS MISSING/MISSED.

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BroadwayWorld: Can you give me more information on the story in THINGS MISSING/MISSED to ground the audience and me?

Philip Hays: The show follows two interwoven stories. One of a couple navigating the "gaps" in their relationship: the little quirks of conversation when they don't really listen to each other, the difficulty communicating what they really feel, and the sudden mysterious disappearances of their belongings. The second story is that of the hermit, a man who has renounced all intercourse with society and lives alone in the wilderness. He's based on a man named Christopher Knight who lived undetected in Maine for nearly 30 years, subsisting on what he could steal from the people living nearby.

Melissa Flower: I think a lot of people dream about packing up and abandoning everything to live in a rural place. When things get too complicated they fantasize about living off the land. One side of this story is this fantasy of a person who actually went missing, [so] we were particularly inspired by the story of the North Pond hermit, Christopher Knight, who was arrested last year for stealing candy and this journalist from GQ interviewed him. What was really the hook was the way in which the journalist treated the story, how moved he was by this man and all the expectations he had versus his actual interactions with Mr. Knight.

BroadwayWorld: Your title is THINGS MISSING/MISSED. Can you materialize the concepts it suggests by grounding them in everyday experiences?

Philip Hays: We wanted to explore the sensation of a "gap" or "hole" in your life [Pauses] that feeling that something was missing--a physical thing, something left unsaid, something misunderstood--but you're just not sure what it is. All you can say is that something isn't there where you thought it should be.

Justin Locklear: There is a curious sensation of missing something that you didn't think you could lose. In the moment, it feels like the universe is gaslighting you, like you are slowly losing your mind. Whether it be a pencil, a distinct memory, or why indeed you walked into a room in the first place, these things that go missing tear subtly at sanity. This gap that remains is what this piece investigates.

One perspective is from a couple who are experiencing this gap created by the hermit, and then, in turn, by each other. The hermit exists in a gap of sorts, and creates gaps as part of his survival. The texture of things "missing" pervades each interaction and detail of the show, illuminating the thin membrane between our ability to perceive and what is truly real.

BroadwayWorld: Justin, what role did you play in the collaboration process?

Justin Locklear: I helped curate the moments and fill in the blanks where it was needed. I play devil's advocate when we are stuck, and I provide a third eye and additional experience for the process.

BroadwayWorld: What was the creation process?

Justin Locklear: There is thorough research into the themes to be presented, and we build a direction as a result of this research and reflection. Melissa and Philip create shapes of narrative and character, and we discover what design will be crucial to tell the story. [Then] they start writing scenes, activities, and gathering aesthetic materials, like songs and visuals, and we all place our attention to them, and watch where they need to move. It's like a performative Ouija board. We say "yes" when we can, and "no" when we must, trusting in each other to do the same.

Melissa Flower: The main work I am bringing to the way we create is based on what I learned from composition training with the SITI Company in New York when I attended their year long conservatory. One thing is, there are no rules. We have the breadth of our experience and that is our technique--what we know as directors, dramaturgs, performers, poets, and movement artists. We rotate who leads rehearsals each day so the hierarchy is removed. Justin acts as curator and we have also brought in the help of Josh Hardcastle and Nolan LeGault where we test out ideas and they are able to give us an "outside" perspective. We are writing a play, but instead of at a computer we are doing it on our feet with proposals, analysis, bringing in our own writings and expressing ourselves through movement.

BroadwayWorld: There is quite an assemblage of elements in the play e.g. The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, hermitage, devised theater. How did this come to be?

Justin Locklear: Devised theater is open for business, and its currency is source material and inspiration. Prufrock deals with moments in life that are hidden away, and we found ourselves drawn also to the story of the hermit, also hidden, but almost a counterpoint to the character in the poem. Prufrock seems to yearn for connection, but doesn't achieve it. The hermit seeks isolation, but it requires him to reach out into the world to forage through people's' privacy.

BroadwayWorld: What is the design like?

Melissa Flower: The set is really about "found" objects. There is very little build and we are using the theater as itself a site. A part of this is to allow us to use the set as performers in a more dynamic way. So the space has emerged and continues to emerge as we create the show.

BroadwayWorld: Marketing describes the play as a meeting of materials and themes? What are the materials?

Philip Hays: We've supplemented [the story of the hermit and the poem The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock] with monologues and scenes we've written that were inspired by those pieces, our daily lives, and our imaginations. A particular well-known '80s pop song also plays a crucial role in the play.

BroadwayWorld: Philip and Melissa, you say you both bring different styles to the play. What are those styles and what do you think they bring?

Philip Hays: I have my experience acting in and directing what you might call "traditional" plays as well as my training in commedia dell'arte, which is very character- and narrative-driven. Melissa and Justin bring different perspectives from their experience in physical theater, dance, and devised work. We've found an interesting balance.

BroadwayWorld: Out of curiosity, [Philip], does your Shakespearean experience help?

Philip Hays: Shakespearean experience always helps! Several parts of this piece are quite poetic and presentational, and I can definitely draw on my experience "speaking the speech."

BroadwayWorld: You all seem to be very interested in physicality and sensuousness with THINGS MISSING/MISSED. Can you elaborate on the sensations you intend to illicit in audience members?

Melissa Flower: The body speaks as much as the voice. This is at the root of my training and belief about theater. We are working from a place where the the body and the text live as equal performers rather than the text being primary.

Philip Hays: I won't presume to tell the audience what they're supposed to feel during the show. I can say it has elements you might find in any play, but they've been deconstructed for a new effect. There is poetry. There is a dance. There is a table, and a tree. There are loud silences, and silent things spoken.

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

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THINGS MISSING/MISSED. Premieres May 12 and continues through May 28. Obsidian Theater, 3522 White Oak.

Reporting and writing by Katricia Lang; Editing by Natalie de la Garza and Katricia Lang.

All production stills by Pin Lim, Forest Photography.