INTERVIEW: Issues of aging explored in ‘Battles of Richmond Hill’
Photo: Nora Chester and Alan Safier star in The Battles of Richmond Hill. Photo courtesy of Emily Hewitt / Provided by Emily Owens PR with permission.
The Battles of Richmond Hill, the new play by Penny Jackson, follows Sheila O’Connor as she tries her best to remain in her home in Richmond Hill, Queens, despite the efforts of her grandson to relocate her to an assisted-living community. The two fight it out one night, and a couple glasses of vodka complicate matters.
The Battles of Richmond Hill plays through May 11 at HERE Arts Center in New York City. Kathy Gail MacGowan directs the production.
Jackson is an artistic triple threat: a playwright, novelist and screenwriter. Her previous work includes Before, a play about gun violence, and Becoming the Butlers, a novel. She has been previously represented at 59E59 Theaters, Dixon Place and Theater Row.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Jackson about Richmond Hill. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
What do you believe The Battles of Richmond Hill says about aging and a person facing the next chapter in life?
My play examines the difficulties and complexities of leaving behind one life and taking a journey to a place you may never intended to take. This theme is universal. No matter where you live in the world, one day your parent will age. I don’t see this as a negative change. I know friends’ parents who have made new friends, found new interests and are enjoying their next chapter in life. But like a chapter in a book that is still unread, it’s hard to predict what will happen next. Aging is frightening and can be lonely, but it is also a universal process. I really like Betty Friedan’s quote: ‘Aging is not ‘lost youth’ but a new stage of opportunity and strength.’
Was there anything or anyone specific that inspired the play?
My mother and my mother-in-law recently moved to assisted-living residences. They had to give up their homes and their freedom in some respects. So many of my friends are going through the same process with their own parents.
On one hand, we all want our parents to be safe. Yet we are asking them to abandon so much what they love, be it their home, their neighborhood, their car, a sense of purpose that comes with freedom.
I’ll never forget a friend of mine saying when he finally had to take away his father’s driver’s license, his father, a tough and big former detective, sank down to the floor and sobbed. This is a rite of passage for all families, and since I personally was experiencing the same situation as Brian, my main character, I felt very emphatic to both Brian and his grandmother.
How do you see the central character of Sheila O’Connor? What are her defining characteristics?
Sheila O’Connor is a woman who is funny, vibrant, sexy, manipulative, frustrating and faithful to her family. I see her as a woman who was deeply in love with her husband and suffered through life because of her daughter’s illness. I have spent much time in Ireland because my husband’s family is Irish, and I adore the humor and bravery of the Irish women I have met. What I did not want to create was a weak and lonely old lady. Sheila is surrounded by friends and has a wicked sense of humor and liveliness that many people half her age would envy.
Has the play changed a lot throughout its development?
This was originally a two character 10-minute play. Then it was a 20-minute one act. I decided to expand it to a four character one-hour play. After working with my director, Kathy Gail MacGowen, we realized that the play still needed more depth and added two more characters. Now The Battles of Richmond Hill has six characters and is 90 minutes.
When did you first fall in love with writing plays?
By seeing theater when I was a child. I was fortunate enough to live in New York City and have parents who took my brother and me to Broadway shows. My first show was Sleuth, and I remember thinking I would so love to write a story and dialogue that I just saw with such pleasure.
I am an avid theater addict, and I often will read the play after I see it. I love working with actors and directors. Although I also write fiction, I miss the collaborative aspect of creating plays. I am also a huge dialogue writer. I often eavesdrop on people and scribble down what they say. Some of my best lines are from people in the subway!
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
The Battles of Richmond Hill continues through May 11 at HERE Arts Center in New York City. Click here for more information and tickets.
