Playwrights Foundation Interview: Brian Thorstenson

Hello, This week’s playwright is Brian Thorstenson. Enjoy.

Question: Where do you most often find inspiration?

Brian: Most often? Characters out in the world, people I see and hear during the day. Next would be stories I've read, mostly in the paper. They all act as some kind of trigger to get me thinking about a play.

Question:  What one tip can you offer aspiring playwrights?

Brian: Keep developing your writing practice. That will get you through the ups and downs of working in the theater.

Question: How did you get your start in playwriting?  Where and when was this seed planted?

Brian: I started out as an actor, but got tired of the kind of parts I was doing so I wrote a play for myself. I only realized much later that I had been wanting to write for a very long time.

Question: What was your most embarrassing high school moment?

Brian: Oh god, there were so many starting with horrible haircuts and bad outfits. Maybe dropping my lunch tray in the middle of the cafeteria at the height of lunch and it clanging and clattering to the floor.

Question: Beckett or Stoppard? One word only please.

Brian: Unimaginable.



To learn more about Brian Thorstenson, and the rest of our Resident Playwrights, visit the page below:
www.playwrightsfoundation.org/index.php?p72"