Meet Raina Lawrence | Director, Playwright and Production management assistant and usher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Raina Lawrence and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Raina, how do you think about risk?
Being an artist in this generation is not a cake-walk of starving artist tortured dreams anymore. It’s about sufficiency and being able to make calculated risks and endeavors. I currently have become a realistic dreamer. I approach my life through the lens of what I can do with what’s laid out in front of me than in my head. We are dreamers, all of us but I can’t live in dreamland and hope it all comes through. I have to push myself, work the room, resource myself with many useful skills. I always enhance my skill set and ask myself what will make me excellent more than what will make me successful.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am a multi-disciplinary artist that ranges from being a teaching artist to a director. I seek to be the person who knows the business and creative side of theatre. The Yin and Yang of theatre.
Coming from Kolkata, India to New York, America is an Odyssey of dreams shattering but rising from it, a Phoenix of reality and strengthening heart. I’m a survivor. And I put it to test when I wrote my final thesis play- The UNFORGIVABLES- it talks about the destruction of American dreams. Maybe we think there is this big dream but it wanes for people who don’t get to afford to live that dream. I want to pioneer the New Wave of American Theatre – where diversity is the crux of people and stories from different backgrounds and cultures is the layers we build this new wave.
Challenges are brought on by rejections and non-adherence to ideas like this and it’s okay. It’s okay to be rejected because it’s good. Why is it good? Because I believe All is Not Lost.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Huntington Beach comes to mind! Relax alongside the beach in cold water and cooler sand.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to dedicate the people who support me: Chantel King, Patrick Surillo, Tea Alagic, Dael Orlandersmith, Sanjit De Silva, Cara Hagan, Gayle Fekete, Jermaine Hill, Stephen Brown Fried. Patrice Johnson, Andrea Haring and Jim Nicola.

I would like to thank whole faculty of The New School- The College of Performing Arts, The School of Drama.

These people are multi level talented individuals who bring the world to them and create a whole universe

Facebook: Raina Lawrence

Image Credits
Nathaniel Johnston