Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathi Kaity.
The Right Brain Project, formed in 2001 and incorporated in 2005, was the brain-child of Anthony Ingram, Nathan Robbel, Colby Sellers, and Anthony Tournis – all alumni of Western Illinois University, and all equally passionate about bringing intimate stories to life on the Chicago stage. In 2009, the Right Brain Project acquired a home at 4001 N. Ravenswood: The RBP Rorschach, which housed 7 seasons of Right Brain work. In the past sixteen years, The RBP has evolved and found a concentration on intimate theatre that strives to bring the actor and the audience together in unique fashions. Whether that be through unexpected and intimate staging, clever design, or simply telling stories that unearth the rawest of emotions for audiences, the RBP strives to present daring work that leaves its patrons moved, shaken, and elated.
In Spring of 2017, the legacy of The Right Brain Project was passed on to a new generation of theater practitioners, led by Kathi Kaity (Artistic Director), Krista Reeves (Managing Director), and Hannah Williams (Public Outreach Director). Following this year’s national premiere of the Cuban classic, “”Electra Garrigó”, The RBP bid farewell to the Rorschach performance space, in hopes that an itinerant company would allow The RBP to fulfill their mission of becoming more accessible to multiple neighborhoods and demographics.
Startlingly intimate, proudly raw, and innately political, The Right Brain Project is excited to stage further productions that reflect the passions of both their artists and audiences.
Notable Productions include:
“And They Put Handcuffs on the Flowers” (2009)
“Marat Sade” (2012)
“Titus Andronicus” (2012)
“The Bacchae Revisited (2013)
“Salome” (2014)
“Endgame” (2014)
“The Illusion” (2015)
“The Dancing Plague” (2016)
“Electra Garrigó” (2017)
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Collaboration can always present its difficulties, but collaboration without capital can be near impossible. Being a small non-profit theater, we do not have the big budgets, resources, or pay checks that larger companies in Chicago are privileged to boast. While we fight tooth and nail to pay our actors and designers as much as possible, it is unfortunately never the amount they deserve – and our amazing Company Members serve completely on a volunteer basis.
But this issue also has its silver lining: we produce shows not because we can, but because we must. Everyone in the rehearsal room is there because their love and investment to our craft has brought them, not the paycheck. Our work therefore is more urgent, more necessary, more passionate.
The Right Brain Project – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We at the Right Brain Project believe that theater is not only entertainment – it is education, social commentary, and civic duty.
I relate this Mission back to a Velvet Underground song, “I’ll Be Your Mirror”, in which Lou Reed declares “I’ll be your mirror/reflect what you are/in case you don’t know.” THAT is what theater can and should be doing: offering up a reflection to our patrons to encourage them to think more critically about their lives, ideals, and choices. Let’s be honest, there are a lot of faces in that reflection of Chicago, so it follows that our narratives mirror multiple, diverse backgrounds. We look to uncover the stories and artists that give voice to marginalized perspectives, be that based on race, gender, or physical ability.
But positioning an inclusive ensemble onstage is not enough – The RBP also requires our work to be accessible to the communities that we are portraying. This means choosing our scripts, performance locations, and admission prices more thoughtfully. It also means that we put a higher premium on intimacy in our stagings – the audience is never more than 20 feet from an actor. You can actually see them WORK.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
A crowning achievement for me occurred whilst directing our latest production, Virgilio Piñera’s female-driven play, “Electra Garrigó”. The play was originally written as a protest piece, criticizing the Cuban government of the 1940’s, and unintentionally predicting the necessity of Revolution that would follow nearly 10 years later. Unfortunately, a lot of the content is applicable to the world we find ourselves living in now.
The ensemble’s (incredible) work – oftentimes approached in both English and Spanish – reached farther than merely creating a fictional world…we were talking about the reality in which we were now living. I remember hosting auditions the night after the Presidential Election. While I initially intended to use the evening for cold readings and movement exercises, our time quickly devolved into a support group: many of those auditioning was fearful that the new administration was going to have an adverse effect on themselves and their loved ones. Many were worried about their undocumented parents being deported or worse. It became clear from this moment that the entirety of our production process would be about more than just staging a play.
I never left rehearsal uninspired. This talented group worked tirelessly to create something paradoxically epic and intimate. And while our work and content is always inherently political, they made the smart decision to focus their intentions away from “soap-box preaching” and more towards Love. Love for their scene partner, love for their history, love for a singular race: the Human Race.
Night after night I would sit in the audience and overhear pre-show conversations in multiple languages, with families ranging in ages from 6-76. Many would tell me after the final curtain that it was their first time seeing live theater, and that they wanted more. We had patrons who traveled from as far as Miami to see a story THEY recognized and could relate to. It was an extremely humbling experience, and has wholly shaped the “mirror” that The RBP intends to hold up as we look towards the future.
Pricing:
- Events, Workshops, and Productions range from Free-$22
Contact Info:
- Website: TheRBP.org
- Phone: 9782105434
- Email: TheRBP@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/therbp
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/therbp
Image Credit:
All work by Tom McGrath and Joseph Ramski
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