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“Pressure is a privilege.” -Robert D’Avanzo “If you’re not feeling those butterflies, you’re not taking a big enough risk.” -Ray Manzarek You were caught in the crossfire of childhood and stardomBlown on the steel breezeCome on, you target for faraway laughterCome on, you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine -song “Shine On You CrazyContinue reading “The Gift Of Being Nervous”

“Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change.” -Tony Robbins “Before a big movie comes out, I just remind myself: I was evicted when I was 14, we were kicked off the island, we couldn’t live in Hawaii, had no place to live, a lot of shitContinue reading “The Region Beta Paradox”

As the artistic director of Vs. Theatre Company, there are two questions I always ask myself before deciding to produce a play: (1) This very well could be the last play we ever do. Is this the one I want to go out on? (2) With the resources at our disposal (e.g. theatre space, finances,Continue reading ““Do I Mean It?””

“We don’t get a chance to do yesterday over again. The best reason to think about the past is because it gives us the opportunity to improve the future. Because we don’t get tomorrow over again either.” -Seth Godin “Pain + Reflection = Progress.” -Ray Dalio “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.”Continue reading “Look Back To Look Forward”

“There’s a kind of unexplainable energy you tap into — if you just start. One word, then another, and before long, you’re gone.” -Stephen King, On Writing “The mystique of rock climbing is climbing; you get to the top of a rock glad it’s over but really wish it would go on forever. The justificationContinue reading ““You’ve Just Got To Put In The Time””

“In pursuit of knowledge,every day something is added.In the practice of the Tao,every day something is dropped.Less and less do you need to force things,until finally you arrive at non-action.When nothing is done,nothing is left undone. –Tao Te Ching by Lao-Tzu (Stephen Mitchell translation) Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add,Continue reading “Take It Away”

“He that has once done you a kindness will be more ready to do you another, than he whom you yourself have obliged.” -Ben Franklin “Don’t be ashamed of needing help. You have a duty to fulfill just like a soldier on the wall of battle. So what if you are injured and can’t climbContinue reading “Let Them Help You”

Deciding by committee what art to make never works. At best, you get a watered-down, boring version. Certainly, nothing excellent. Rather the decision must be made by a single individual who is passionate and committed to that art. Once decided, you can absolutely produce said art by committee. Especially in film or theatre where collaborationContinue reading “By Committee”

“We once lived in an industrial economy—built on industry. Then we shifted to a consumer economy—built on consumption. And more recently we lived in a service economy—built on service. But we now are entering the age of the Annoyance Economy. And it is the inevitable result of corporations battling for your attention. They monetize yourContinue reading “The Annoyance Economy”

“It’s depressing. It’s confusing. It’s fraught. You don’t like where the world is going. You don’t like what’s happening. What are we supposed to do? Especially when we are so powerless, as ordinary citizens, people who do not hold office, especially when we are matched against billionaires, against madness, against inertia, against so much. “RemindContinue reading ““What Can I Do?””