Set in Brooklyn 2017, PILLOWTALK brings to life one night in the lives of Sam and Buck, a recently married interracial couple. Through a formal exploration of theatrical naturalism and the codified gender norms of ballet's pas de deux, PILLOWTALK queers the intersections of race, gender, and class to challenge our assumptions of love and marriage. Confronting the backlash against marriage equality and #BlackLivesMatter, PILLOWTALK explores how liberation and oppression co-exist in our most intimate spaces, transforming social and cultural traditions into radical performances of change. 

Credits:

Written and directed by Kyoung H. Park
Performed by JP Moraga and Basit Shittu

Music by Helen Yee
Choreography by Katy Pyle
Sound Design by Lawrence Schober
Scenic and Lighting Design by Marie Yokoyama
Costume Design by Andrew Jordan
Dramaturgy by Jess Applebaum
Assistant Direction by Dana Greenfield
Stage Management by Jamie Rose Bukowski

Co-Produced by Kyoung’s Pacific Beat and The Tank
Presented by The Exponential Festival
Engagement + Communications Strategy by Peoplmovr
Partnerships + Engagement Lead: Shannon Matesky, Peoplmovr
New Media Strategy + Communications Lead: Denise Shu Mei, Peoplmovr
Graphic Designer: Daniel Lim
Marketing Advisor: Sooyoung Hwang
Promotional photographer: andytoad

PILLOWTALK was developed with Daniel K. Isaac, Raja Feather Kelly, Brandon Kyle Goodman, Chuan-Chi Chan, Irfan Prawira, Wade Kramm, and Luis Santiago.

PILLOWTALK received a public reading at the Ma-Yi Writer’s LabFest (June 2014) and was developed in Target Margin Theater’s Institute for Collaborative Theater-Making (March 2014) and the Lark Play Development Center (June 2015). A workshop production of PILLOWTALK was developed in part during a BRIClab Residency at BRIC House, Brooklyn, NY (September 2015). Kyoung’s Pacific Beat hosted a long-table titled “PILLOWTALK- Post Gay Marriage Politics” at the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies “After Marriage” Conference (October 2016) and was part of CUNY’s 2016 Prelude Festival at the Martin Segal Center Theater (October 2016). PILLOWTALK was written with support from a Creative Mellon Fellowship at the University of Washington (February 2017) and was developed in part during a residency at the Baryshnikov Arts Center, New York NY (March 2017) and presented in LPAC’s Rough Draft Festival 2017 (April 2017). The World Premiere of PILLOWTALK is funded, in part by NYSCA-A.R.T./New York Creative Opportunity Fund (A Statewide Theatre Regrant Program), WOVEN (We Oppose Violence Everywhere Now), The Indie Theater Fund, and co-produced by The Tank.