DJ Q & A with Miriam A. Laube

ML: My mother was born and raised in Southern India, the state of Kerela. My father was born and raised in Germany. My mother received a scholarship to the University of Frankfurt for her graduate studies, which is where my parents met. Eventually they moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and I was born and raised there. I am a proud Steelers fan. I live in NYC now, with my husband, though we spent 17 seasons in Ashland, OR as company members of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

DJ: How did you first connect with theatre life?

ML: I grew up across the street from a synagogue. When I was five years old, the synagogue moved out and a community theater moved in. The first show they did at this community theater was Man of La Mancha. And the gentleman playing Don Quixote knocked on our door and asked if we possibly had any lemons as he needed them for his voice and he invited us to the show. My parents took us (me and my siblings) to the show. I did not understand everything that was happening. But what I do remember was the sensation of feeling like I was inside of the music... inside of the story. And I’ve been involved with the theater, in some way or another, since then.

DJ: How did you begin directing?

ML: Bill Rauch, who was the Artistic Director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, mentioned to me once that he thought I had a director’s eye. So I asked to assist him on a project. That was a wonderful and eye-opening experience. He later asked if I would assist him again. Years later, Mike Ryan, who was the artistic director of Shakespeare Santa Cruz (and is now playing Dr. Philip Hayes in TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s Queen), asked me to direct at his theater on the recommendation of an actress/director named Laura Gordon. And Tim Bond, who I had worked with years ago at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, gave me this experience. So I’ve had many mentors and guides along the way.

DJ: When did you first learn of Queen?

ML: I first learned about Queen at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, where there was a new-play incubator of sorts called the Black Swan Lab run by Lue Douthit. She brought Madhuri Shekar up to Ashland to work on a play and she chose to work on Queen. I was not in the lab, but I remember actors talking about this interesting piece. I met Madhuri at that time and I’ve paid close attention to all of her subsequent work. I am a huge fan of Madhuri and her plays.

DJ: Do you generally discuss a play with its author in preparation for directing?

ML: Well, mostly I’ve directed Shakespeare and while I have conversations in my head with him, he doesn’t really answer my questions. I did in fact talk with Madhuri about this play. What stuck with me was that she was imagining what could be the worst thing that might happen between dear friends who are also colleagues. And for her the answer was if her friend said to her “you are not a writer”. That stuck with me.

DJ: Are you and your cast working with a dramaturg and/or beekeepers?

ML: I come with no knowledge of bees. We are going to speak with beekeepers and get some hands-on experience.

DJ: What would you say about Queen to someone with no bee knowledge?

ML: I would say that Bees are the “what” but not the “why.” At its heart, this play is about a friendship between two women who are not only dear friends, but are colleagues. They work together and share their lives with each other. And then a moment comes where they have to answer for themselves, “Does the end justify the means?” This question threatens both their professional and personal integrity as well as their friendship. The Bees are what this community, what this “hive” is studying. So we learn a little about Colony Collapse Disorder along the way. And we can examine the beautiful workings of the beehive as a metaphor for this community.

PLAY PARTICULARS: TheatreWorks Silicon Valley presents Queen at the Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Rd. Palo Alto from March 6-31. Written by Madhuri Shekar. Directed by Miriam A. Laube. For information about tickets, show times, pre-show discussions with the cast, audio described performances, open captioned performances, ASL interpreted performances and mask required performances, visit theatreworks.org, call 877-662-8978 or email boxoffice@theatreworks.org.