Meet Adriana Lea Plaza | Professor, actor and writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Adriana Lea Plaza and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Adriana, let’s start by talking about what inspires you?
My dear professor Anna Deveare Smith once told me to look for what makes me holler, that is, those things that I need to express at all costs and get out of my chest with urgency. Today I feel inspired by those themes that have moved or changed me in some way, for example, loss and the process of mourning and death. When my father died, I couldn’t express what I felt in words, which was very strange since I dedicated my entire life to the theater and it was never hard for me to talk about my feelings or express personal emotions. It wasn’t until I started writing that I was able to let off steam and understand my grieving process. I believe that each of the branches of the arts has the power to serve us as an indispensable tool in each stage of life. For example, right now I am very inspired in expressing those same themes by the performance of images, exploring their power inside a story, that is, metaphors and symbolism within the characters or circumstances. Before writing a story, for example, I wonder what animal would represent this? What is the most creative way to say this without saying it? What is the weirdest shape to narrate this journey? Can I construct this character I created with geometrical shapes? A story has a lot in common with life itself, it doesn’t always have to be linear, but chaotic and messy and different for everyone.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
What I thought was a curse before, had become a blessing for me and, especially, for my career path. I am an extremely sensitive person and that made some stuff hard for me in this industry. I had a really hard time in drama school the first time, I would let people hurt me and criticize me not necessarily in a constructive and professional way, that also happened to me in play productions later, when I had to accept bad conducts and screams from directors. I have learnt that my non-confrontational way of being and sensitive personality are a perfect match for an actor, since empathy it’s the number one factor we need to portray a character. This is also a humanities field, which means that collaboration and connecting is all that matters, so I am more picky now, and I know my way around a project it’s different to others, it’s a match or it isn’t, so in a few words, I have learnt to reject working with people whose attitudes don’t align with my values, no matter how good the project is. On another note, working in the theater in Bolivia has taught me to be the most humble person, because you are creating art from nothing, no budget, no producer, no nothing. So I’ve had to learn to do everything I could to make my play come to life, carry heavy props, raise every cent, lighting, stage design, etc, so I feel that I have to respect everyone in the room always, and to value every piece of work they do. I always try to teach my students that education comes first from being kind and leaving their egos at the door.

What I’m proud about? I am very proud and excited about an upcoming opera that I co-wrote with five amazing women writers I admire so much, it’s going to be presented in Bolivia and internationally soon, the collaborative process was just something that thought me lots of things, specially to listen and give away some ideas I had for the play script, also agreeing and disagreeing with respect and patience.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
It’s hard to see NYC in a week, but I would definitely take my friend to the MET, to the Virginia Wolf exhibition at the Public library, to the New York Theater workshop or the Public theatre to watch a play, to the Brooklyn museum to see the Warhol exhibition, and finitely to some of my favorite bars, Employees Only, Honey’s or Ray’s. And definitely to eat the one dollar pizza.

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?
Anna Deavere Smith

Instagram: adrianalpd

Facebook: Adriana Lea Plaza

Image Credits
Martina Novakova Amalia Torrecillas