Talking to Southwest Shakespeare Company's Artistic Director Debra Ann Byrd

Debra Ann Byrd

by Gil Benbrook

Southwest Shakespeare Company opens their 2022/2023 season this week, with a production of King Lear led by Tony winner Trezana Beverley in the title role. However, it's not just the beginning of a new season for this theatre company that continually presents the works of Shakespeare along with classic works and modern plays, it's also the first season under the helm of their new Artistic Director, Debra Ann Byrd.

Byrd is the founder and Artistic Director of the Harlem Shakespeare Festival and she made a splash in town three seasons back when Southwest Shakespeare presented the Harlem Shakespeare Festival all female production of Othello, where she played the title role. She followed that up with her one woman show, Becoming Othello: A Black Girl's Journey, which started its run in town just as COVID shut everything down.

Due to the pandemic, Byrd found herself in Phoenix for an extended period but that time also brought her closer to Southwest Shakespeare Company, where she was eventually offered the position of Artistic Director.

As Byrd prepares for the season opener, she took a few moments to sit down and answer some questions about her past, where her love for Shakespeare started, how the Harlem Shakespeare Festival began, and her hope for the future of Southwest Shakespeare Company.

Your career has been focused on Shakespeare and the classics, but what was the first experience you had with Shakespeare's works?

"My theatrical career has indeed been focused on Shakespeare and the classics although it began with gospel theatre and many Black Theatre productions.  My first experience with Shakespeare came when I saw a troupe of black actors from the Public Theater, in New York City, performing various scenes and monologues. Needless to say I was intrigued, challenged and enchanted. That special event inspired my Shakespearean journey. "

I know you are Afro-Latina and that you grew up in Spanish Harlem. What were your pre-college years like? Did you perform in school plays? 

"Yes, I am Afro-Latino from Spanish Harlem. My pre-college years were quite typical with regular studies in junior high and high school. The only school plays I performed in was in grade school, around about fifth or six grade. I remember playing the snowman in one of the plays."

You studied Shakespeare at Marymount Manhattan College. What are some of your memories of that time? And what were your favorite and least favorite courses?

"Yes, Marymount Manhattan College is my alma mater. I had a wonderful career there as a student. I was a full-time BFA Acting student, was class representative for the theater department, was editor for the yearbook and received five awards in my senior year. My favorite classes were Period and Style, Acting IV Shakespeare, Critical Thinking and all of Professor Mark Ringer’s Theatre History classes. I believe I took six classes with him (Theatre History, Opera, Greek Tragedy, and Shakespeare). My least favorite course was calculus and algebra."

You are the founder of Harlem Shakespeare Festival and, before that, also Take Wing And Soar Productions, how did those companies come about?

"Take Wing And Soar Productions, Inc. was founded in 2003. It is a professional theater company founded to give centerstage opportunities to classically trained actors of color and help them reach their highest potential. The focus for the mission came out of conversations that I had with a few showcase professors who led me to believe that persons of color in the classics would have a difficult career path. I did not like that idea so I founded Take Wing And Soar Productions and produced 10 seasons of great classical plays. In 2013, I founded the Harlem Shakespeare Festival, mainly to create a new way of producing theater. There I produced 10 seasons of Shakespeare and the classics. I found it easier to produce a three-month festival than to produce a year-round season."

This is the 20th anniversary of the Harlem Shakespeare Festival. What can you tell us about the significance of hitting that milestone and the plans to celebrate it?

"It is extremely significant to have hit that 20-year milestone. Especially since there were days when I did not think that we would make it there. Running a not-for-profit corporation is a great deal of work. I remember almost quitting at year five.  To have created and maintained the organization for many years is indeed cause for celebration as we were one of two such companies run by persons of color, not only in America, but in the world. Several more have come along in recent years and we are proud to be pioneers and an example of what’s possible with a dream, a problem to solve, and a bit of hard work and determination.  We will soon celebrate with our Take Wing And Soar Spirit of Excellence Awards."

Ella Loudon and Debra Ann Byrd
Photo Courtesy of Harlem Shakespeare Festival / Southwest Shakespeare Company

You appeared in your all-female production of Othello at Southwest Shakespeare in 2019. Was that the first time you'd been in Arizona, and what was the experience like bringing that production to town? 

"It was great to bring Harlem Shakespeare Festival’s All-female Othello to Arizona. The production was presented by Southwest Shakespeare Company and it was indeed my first time in Arizona. The acting company was made up of four women from New York City and four women from Arizona. It was well received by Arizona patrons, selling out several performances and it also won Broadway World Regional Awards for Best Actress and Best Featured Actress in a play. "

I know after that production, and due to COVID, you ended up staying in town. What was that time like for a performer and artist, who suddenly finds they are unable to perform in front of a live audience?

"The following year after presenting the all-female Othello, Southwest Shakespeare Company presented my new Solo Show Becoming Othello: A Black Girl’s Journey at the Phoenix Art Museum. I was performing that show when Covid-19 hit and everything shut down. At first I was quite distraught. I soon realized there was another way of performing live in front of audiences. A company out of the UK was performing Shakespeare performances live via zoom (TSMGO) and I was asked to join them. Soon after, Southwest Shakespeare began presenting these live (TV) events. First up for SSC was (Othello), but this time with a full cast of male and female actors. We all busied ourselves with these kinds of live works. The program was called SSC Classics Live and we served about 100 actors and thousands of patrons.  It was sufficient until we opened live stage performances again last fall." 

What is your favorite Shakespeare play, and why?

"My favorite Shakespeare play is Antony & Cleopatra. One reason I like it is because it was my first big challenge as an actor. Also because of the poetry and the rhythm of the lines. I love it because it portrays a powerful queen. It is one of a couple of Shakespeare plays that highlights a powerful woman."

What is your least favorite Shakespeare play, and why? 

"I don’t know that I have a least favorite Shakespeare play."

Why do you think that Shakespeare is still the most produced playwright each year and why do you think his plays still resonate today, hundreds of years after they were written?

"Well, one reason why Shakespeare’s works are one of the most produced is because there are over 200 Shakespeare companies in America who produce many of his plays annually. Second, producing Shakespeare and other Classics saves on royalty fees for many producers. It is one of the reasons why Shakespeare was produced so much over zoom during the first couple of Covid years. Shakespeare’s plays still resonate today because they deeply reflect the psychology and emotional life and situations of people today just as it did people of the past. Who doesn’t understand war, weariness, pain and rejection, love, lust, cruelty and betrayal? We are in turn very much like we’ve always been. Human. Shakespeare plays amplify humanity at its lowest and its finest. "

You've been a Shakespeare fellow and artist in residence at various arts organizations, and have vast experience with Shakespeare training. Clearly training and continued learning is important to you Southwest Shakespeare also has a touring company that performs in schools in the state and you also offer student matinees of your main stage at the Mesa Arts Center in the season to expose students to his works. What can you tell us about the significance and importance of that part of Southwest Shakespeare Company, and are there any plans to enhance the program, or learning aspects the company offers?

"Yes, I was named Artist-in-Residence at The Folger Library and Shakespeare Birthplace Trust as well as an A'Lelia Bundles Scholar at Columbia University. Education is indeed important to me personally. One of my mantras is practice practice practice! What you practice you become good at! 

As for Southwest Shakespeare Company, its education mission is paramount. We take it very seriously as we endeavor to create works for students of all ages to enjoy. Our touring show (this year Love’s Labour’s Lost) is next up to tour several schools around the State of Arizona and will also have a limited run at Taliesin West in November. We have cast a fine group of old and new company members to bring this educational Shakespearean gem to the masses. 

Our daytime performances for students is one of the largest programs of the company, serving thousands of children from the Arizona Public and Private schools systems annually. This year we are offering King Lear and Antony & Cleopatra. Many of our student performances are already SOLD OUT, which tells us that many students and teachers love to see our Shakespearean works and we love to perform for them.

SSC Plans to continue offering these kinds of works and hopes to extend our touring show into more areas of the State by partnering with schools and various government entities. 

In addition we will continue to offer beginner and advanced training to actors, designers and directors of all abilities. "

What made you decide to accept the Artistic Director position, and were there any concerns you had in taking on this new role?

"I decided to except the Artistic Director position at Southwest Shakespeare Company because I was proud of the work that they did and I also really liked the people who ran the company.  My personal mission has been to support classically trained artists of color. SSC was doing some of that as well. So, when I got the call, I immediately thought, 'this could be a good fit.' "

Your first season at Southwest Shakespeare as the Artistic Director features a collection of four Shakespeare plays, plus a classic work and even a modern play. Can you briefly walk us through the plays this season and why you decided to present each one?

"For my first season as Artistic Director of Southwest Shakespeare Company I chose Shakespeare plays that I know well, King Lear, which I produced in 2009 with Tony Award winning actress Trezana Beverley in the title role. Then I went with my very favorite, Antony & Cleopatra for its rhythm and rhyme, love and loss. It makes for some good theatre. Then I chose Much Ado about Nothing because it is a comedy and we sure needed that after our first two dramas.  Shakespeare’s love stories are great too, so I went with the director’s choice for our educational touring show, Love's Labour's Lost. 

Keeping closely with our Shakespeare themed year, we chose Stephan Wolfert’s moving solo show, Cry Havoc.  It is the story of an US Army veteran turned actor when he happened upon a troupe of actors performing Richard III. His life was forever changed and now he helps veterans and others , through Shakespeare workshops) rid their lives of trauma and pain. This show marks our second year bringing a special show for our veteran community. Lastly, I went with Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist, in a funny new adaptation by Jeffrey Hatcher and directed by David Ira Goldstein who brought the play to my attention after a successful run in NYC. We are all looking forward to the new season and hope it brings joy and great theatre to many. "

What do you see as the future of Southwest Shakespeare Company?

"The future of Southwest Shakespeare Company looks promising as we work to build our internal operational systems, increase our capacity and produce old and new innovative, exciting, thought-provoking works for Arizona audiences. We’ve got a strong team and are looking forward to sharing great stories, through live theatre, for many years to come. 

What we ask of you is to wish as well, partner with us when you can, become a volunteer, buy a ticket, and inquire about joining our team.  And lastly, we’d love you to meet you in the lobby for a chat and greet you from our stages on opening night.  We wish you all the best for a great season.  See you at the theatre!"

CLICK HERE for more information on Southwest Shakespeare Festival