Review Fix Midtown International Theatre Festival Coverage: Jordan Stovall Talks ‘Corpus’

Review Fix chats with playwright Jordan Stovall about his new production, “Corpus” set for a run at the 2016 Midtown International Theatre Festival.

About Corpus:

CORPUS by Jordan Stovall. In a run-down New York health spa, Renata, a brash fifty-year-old Serbian widow, finds an unusual kinship with Matthew, a twenty-something who believes he’s being visited by a dead lover. *AEA Performance Schedule: Mon 3/14, 6:00pm; Thurs 3/17, 7:15pm; Sat 3/19, 2:30pm

Review Fix: What was the inspiration for this project?

Jordan Stovall: It sounds silly in retrospect, but one night back in 2008 while my ex and I were going through a rough spot, I took myself out to get a haircut. The woman who cut my hair was Eastern European, abrasive, hilarious, and just what I needed to knock me out of the self-pitying rut I was in. Her name is Monica, she worked at Hair Espirit on the Upper East Side last time I spoke with her. That was the first scene I wrote for this play, where Matthew meets Renata, for a playwriting class in college. At the same time, my grandmother lost my grandfather. They were together for over 50 years. She wouldn’t talk much about it, but she believed he would come back and visit her at night. Some of the most heartbreaking points in the play are based on her stories. There is something so special and magical to me about that kind of love – so it became a large basis for the storyline of Corpus.

Review Fix: What makes this different or special?

Stovall: Specifically for this play, it comes from a very personal, heartfelt place that I think a lot of people who have grieved for the loss of a loved one will understand. In general, I like to create strong characters. I really find it fascinating to deeply consider the philosophies and beliefs that guide them forward. It comes from a place of empathy, inquisition, and remaining imaginative. Once I’ve really figured that out, I find the characters sort of take over and the dialogue/motives for action comes much easier. I also try to write with theatricality and staging in mind as a method of storytelling.

Review Fix: What did you learn about yourself through this process?

Stovall: The way the play ends has changed as I have grown older; the characters have gained more fight. In a way the play has grown with me because I started writing it before I was even 20, so my understanding and interest in finding the beauty in ambiguity has definitely translated into the writing. From a more technical standpoint, I’m trying not to self-edit as much during the initial drafts of new work. Also, how difficult (but rewarding) funding and producing your own work can be.

Review Fix: How does it feel to be a part of something like this?

Stovall: Absolute bliss. This play has felt like a pipe dream for so long – and I can not believe the incredible talent that is rounding out the cast. It has been such a collaborative, supportive group. There are a lot of hands and hearts in this piece, including the incredible music by Jamieson Lindenburg. It’s also the first time something I’ve written is being produced in New York. So to see it go up is really quite a dream come true for me.

Review Fix: What are your ultimate goals for this production and for the future?

Stovall: Continue to gain feedback and improve the piece, submit it to more festivals, generate interest, use it as a springboard for some writer’s groups in the city. Who really knows? I don’t think this is the end of the road for Corpus. I believe it will have a future. I’ve been looking into submission processes in different festivals and states, including theaters surrounding my hometown of St. Petersburg, FL.

Review Fix: What do you think your audiences will enjoy the most?

Stovall: There are some really heartfelt moments between the characters, inter-spliced with sardonic one-liners, much like a really amusing, sentimental drunk at the bar you can’t look away from. Renata is really the heart of the show, and Kathryn Rossetter has been absolutely enthralling to watch color the moments. In the initial table read, I couldn’t stop grinning.

Review Fix: What’s next?

Stovall: I’m working on another play, Hash House, set in a greasy spoon diner off of I-95 in Georgia that mainly deals with race, prostitution, and without giving too much away, touches on the disparities of the justice system. As for Corpus, I’m going to continue to run with it and see what happens.