Review Fix Exclusive Planet Connections Theatre Festivity Coverage: Aileen Kyoko Talks ‘The Year of the Solar Eclipse’

Review Fix chats with Aileen Kyoko who discusses ‘The Year of the Solar Eclipse’ and what’s like to be a part of the 10th anniversary season of Planet Connections Theatre Festivity at the Theaters at the Clemente.

Review Fix: What was the inspiration for this project?

Aileen Kyoko: Around the time of the solar eclipse I had a major life change and heartbreak occur. When I was watching the eclipse, there was a sense of relief that came over me. It felt like a reminder that we are always in cycles in our lives- the dark times and the light times. It served as an encouragement that I needed to ride the natural waves of life and trust there were brighter days ahead. At the same time I quickly knew I wanted to write a script. As I went through a rollercoaster of experiences the next few months I paid attention to the themes and stories that were coming up. Then it was a combination between these themes and my imagination that led to The Year of the Solar Eclipse.

Review Fix: What’s your creative process like?

Kyoko: As a writer I absolutely must be tuned in to the scene I am writing emotionally. I cannot work without music. Certain songs help me be part of the scene and paint the world I am imagining. Ideally, I need to be in an environment that feels inspiring too- a cool coffee shop, a hotel lobby or in my room with lots of plants! As a director, I aim to create a safe, collaborative and creative environment. We start every rehearsal with a meditation to help the actors relax and get present.

Review Fix: What makes this different or special?

Kyoko: You don’t always see truly contemporary and relatable plays- and this production is 100% that! It’s also quite naturalistic and I’m excited to bring this style to the stage.

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

Kyoko: I’m still growing as an artist on every level but I’ve learned so much about trusting your voice creatively. When you put something out there it’s always going to have your unique voice and finding it and honing it is such a process! Also, as a leader it’s a balance between trusting yourself but also listening to the other very talented people around you. This play couldn’t happen without the amazing cast and crew.

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

Kyoko: The goal is to expand this play as much as possible. I have faith that it’s going to make you laugh and cry so next steps would be to bring it to another theatre as well as other cities. I also would like to expand some of the stories in the script. I’m excited to get some feedback and go from there.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 13821 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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