Play4Keeps Podcast | Lived Experience: A conversation with Rachel Crowl and Natalie Symons

Rachel Crowl and Natalie Symons are unapologetically kicking ass and taking names. In this week’s ANPF Play4Keeps conversation, theatre creators Rachel and Natalie talk about the importance and thrill of new play development, the value of lived experience, creating better art by casting transgender actors for transgender roles, telling difficult stories with humor, and the intense urge as an audience member to yell out during a theatre performance. This conversation left us wanting more! We hope you feel invigorated and inspired by it, too.

Rachel Crowl is an actress, musician, photographer, designer, and storyteller currently located in Ashland, OR, where she is in her second season as part of the acting company of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. She rocked it as Pistol in HENRY V last season and is currently captivating audiences as Duke Senior in AS YOU LIKE IT and performing an array of memorable characters in BETWEEN TWO KNEES.

Natalie Symons is a playwright, actress and novelist based in St Petersburg, FL. She is currently the Playwright-in-Residence at American Stage, where she is developing her play THE PEOPLE DOWNSTAIRS, which will have its world premiere there in March 2020. Her play NAMING TRUE is part of our Play4Keeps premium collection and will be released next week on our free podcast for you to listen to! The play features beautiful performances by Rachel Crowl and Christiana Clark with stage directions by Ira Brady Rubin.

Play4Keeps Podcast is proudly made by Ashland New Plays Festival, in Ashland, Oregon.