Review Fix chats with Chanel Glover, playwright of “How to Eat an Oreo,” who discusses the inspiration for the play as well as her goals for the future.
For more information on the play, click here.
Review Fix: What was the inspiration behind the play?
Chanel Glover: Apparently we write the same character over and over again and my one character seems to have strong connections to my suburban / militant upbringing and my journey of embracing my sexuality. I am also slightly obsessed with exploring how adults and society can affect, mold, change, or embrace a child’s identity…and discovering how a young person may digest all of that. Young people are just such a blast to write. They literally can and will say anything. They have no filter and few inhibitions.
Review Fix: Were there any particular challenges during the writing process?
Glover: This play went from four characters to three, then finally it became a two-hander. The biggest challenge was reconciling the fact that I did not need the other two characters, and the most interesting and actionable drama is between the two surviving characters.
Review Fix: What makes you different from other playwrights?
Glover: I’m pretty much only going to write plays about teenagers (or young-ish people) and plan on making adults hear, listen and understand how not only is there so much wealth to be gained from adolescents, but also realize how their words, actions, etc. can reinforce or undermine a young person’s development of themselves. I plan on making plays about kids universal to adults.
Review Fix: How do you want this production to affect people?
Glover: If anytime you walk out of any play and you have questions about the universe, society, relationships, etc. that push you towards a better or deeper understanding of the world, another human, or yourself…life is good.
Review Fix: Bottom line, why should someone see it?
Glover: If you have ever felt pressure from society, a parent, a pastor, a family member, a teacher, or from any symbol of authority, it just might serve as a cathartic experience.
Review Fix: What have you learned about yourself through this production?
Glover: I am a big kid. I wish I went to a summer camp. I wish I could go back in time and experience a summer camp. And I can find humor in some pretty dark places, even if no one else thinks it’s funny; I’m laughing.
Review Fix: What’s next?
Glover: You can expect the young female protagonist of this play to make another appearance in my next play. I’ll be exploring both the concept of intuition and the psychosis of a gay woman constantly falling for straight women, because there has to be some crazy there, right?
Leave a Reply