Jessica Hughes
Theatre Practitioner 

    My interests in dramaturgy stem from the way dramaturgs engage. Dramaturgs never cease engaging, with a text or play, with people, with a production, with a good book- the list goes on and on. This is because dramaturgs are voices of advocates of inquiry and exploration. They ask questions in order to grow understanding, and to invite conversation and discussion across different fields, and ultimately across the stage to audiences.

 

    This summer I was accepted to the Kennedy Center's New Play Dramaturgy Intensive, lead by Mark Bly. This week long intensive was an opportunity to sit in rooms with dramaturgs, playwrights, directors, and actors as they worked together to develop new plays. It was truly exciting to be a participant in engaging with these new plays, and seeing how the plays changed and grew from the exploration in the rehearsal rooms. 

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   The people I met here were from many different backgrounds. We each had our own style, our own path, and our own ways of thinking about theatre. Although we were called "The Dramaturgical Corps of the Potomac" by Mark Bly, because of our location in Washington, D.C., this group of dramaturgs, directors, teachers, students, and playwrights went beyond D.C., and beyond any one definition of dramaturgy. The breadth of experience and knowledge within our group reminded me that there are never enough opportunities to learn from one another. Dramaturgs empower with curiosity, patience, and kindness, and I felt empowered to continue to learn and grow as a dramaturg beyond this week at the Kennedy Center.