Cold War Choir Practice' is a New Play About One Family's Experience of the Reagan Years

Summary

Podcast Summary

Podcast: All Of It with Alison Stewart
Episode: "Cold War Choir Practice" is a New Play About One Family's Experience of the Reagan Years
Date: March 17, 2026
Host: Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Guests:

• Ro Redick – Playwright of Cold War Choir Practice
• Alana Raquel Bowers – Actor, plays Meek

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on the new play Cold War Choir Practice by Ro Redick, staged at MCC Theater in New York. The story unfolds in late-1980s upstate New York and follows ten-year-old Meek, who navigates the surreal anxieties of the Cold War and her family’s drama while dreaming of adventure. The conversation explores the play’s quirky, heartfelt approach to politics, family, and what it meant to grow up during the Reagan era. Playwright Ro Redick and actor Alana Raquel Bowers share insights into the creation, themes, and performance of the show, while reflecting on representation, collaboration, and the magic of theater.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Inspiration, Recognition, and Getting Cast

• Recognition for Ro Redick (01:51)

  • Redick shares her reaction to winning the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize:

    "It's such a reassurance that the work that you're doing is being seen and is respected by your peers and people in the industry. ... It meant everything." (Ro Redick, 02:07)

  • She felt honored to join a prestigious list of past winners.

• Alana’s Unique Casting Experience (02:33)

  • Bowers describes being recruited while performing elsewhere, balancing shows in Philadelphia and readings in NYC.

    "They were willing to actually train me back and forth from New York to Philadelphia in order for me to do this reading because they were so adamant about the incredible piece that was Cold War Choir Practice." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 03:05)

  • She was drawn in by the vibrant, adventurous depiction of a Black girl protagonist.

    "I'd never witnessed or read a piece that embodied a little black girl with such complexity and such adventure. ... I was like, Ro literally wrote it. That's wild." (04:22)

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Writing and Development

• Origins Amid World Unrest (05:57)

  • Redick recounts beginning the play in 2022 during grad school, inspired by both geopolitical events (Putin’s invasion of Ukraine) and explorations of Cold War politics and culture.

• Creative Process

  • She resisted writing a solo show (the assignment), instead generating a series of monologues that became seeds for the play.

    "Everyone else is writing solo shows and I'm like, bring in this piece. But I'm kind of glad I didn't go with the theme that semester." (Ro Redick, 06:51)

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Portraying Childhood and Family Dynamics

• Playing Meek (07:15)

  • Bowers approaches her role by respecting the intelligence and perspective of children:

    "Children are so observant, they are so smart. ... I just wanted to make sure I was not making a caricature, but I was making a person." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 07:17; 08:49)

  • Inspiration from her goddaughter, emphasizing curiosity and connection.

• Meek’s Perspective on the Cold War (09:21)

  • Redick notes that Meek’s engagement with patriotism and fear is shaped by her choir’s messaging and her desire to protect her family.

• Power of the Choir (10:38)

  • Bowers describes how singing in the choir gives Meek a rare sense of agency and belonging, especially as the only Black girl in the group.

    "Singing this song about freedom and about assuming that this could do something for the country, for my family, for myself ... I feel like that excites Meek." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 10:42)

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Family, Setting, and Character Backstories

• The Roller Rink Setting (12:32)

  • Smooch (Meek’s father) is described as the "mayor of every room" and a community-minded former Panther struggling to keep the rink running.

• Family Relationships (13:04)

  • Meek’s life centers on her father and grandmother. Bowers likens their close-knit communication to a "familial call and response."

    "The soundtrack of her mind are these people." (13:13)

• Estranged Uncle and Family Conflict (14:16)

  • Uncle Clay, a Black Republican working for Reagan, adds generational and ideological tension.

    "There's longstanding tension between the two brothers. That kind of goes back to Clay sort of leaving the family behind to pursue his career in politics." (Ro Redick, 14:31)

• The Absent Mother (15:24)

  • The cast developed their own backstory collaboratively, with Redick purposely leaving the mother’s story open for interpretation.

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On Names and Characterization

• Meaningful Nicknames (17:13)
  • Many characters have playful or memorable nicknames.

    "I love nicknames. So when I hear nicknames in real life that feel interesting, I just kind of tuck them away in the back of my mind." (Ro Redick, 17:19)

  • The name Meek comes from Redick’s own childhood nickname.

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Surrealism and Theatricality

• Embracing Surreal Elements (18:05)

  • From the outset, Redick envisioned a choir that functions as a surreal, choral presence—commenting, performing, and creating strange stage moments.

    "I wanted them to be strange and weird and protean." (Ro Redick, 18:07)

• Alana’s Challenge (18:43)

  • The joy and challenge of teaching the audience how to watch something new and unusual.

    "There is nothing more difficult than teaching the audience how to watch your play. And that is the most fun for me." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 18:43)

  • Playing the “straight man” to the absurdity puts a special kind of trust in a child’s view of the world.

• Favorite Surreal Moments (20:19)

  • Redick delights in moments where the choir externalizes a character’s inner life, such as singing what’s in Virgie’s head.

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Research, Collaboration, and Representation

• Cult Research (21:11)

  • Virgie, Clay's wife, is written with attention to real-world cult psychology—drawing inspiration from both Nixxiom and ‘80s entrepreneurial cults.

• Being an Actor-Playwright (22:09)

  • Redick finds her acting background helps her write generous, playful moments for performers and makes her open to their creative input.

    "It's easier for me to sort of let go of the reins a little bit because I've been in another position in the room." (Ro Redick, 22:49)

• Alana’s Perspective as Actor and Producer (23:56)

  • She argues for more transparent, collective approaches to theatrical production, especially for people of color on and off stage.

    "With a little bit more transparency, we can arrive there in a way that feels collective and in a way that, like, everyone receives the reward." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 25:35)

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Personal Tidbits

• Ro’s MBA and Its Unusual Use (25:53)
  • Redick has an MBA she never intends to use, but says the training broadened her perspective and listening skills.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On artistic recognition:

  "It's such a reassurance that the work that you're doing is being seen." (Ro Redick, 02:07)

• On young Black girl protagonists:

  "I hope for a day and a time where black people, black women, black girls, black youth can live and breathe and embody stories like that ... And I was like, Ro literally wrote it. That's wild." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 04:22)

• On character inspiration:

  "I don't think Meek was any different from any other character that I played because she is a person seeing the world through very specific eyes." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 07:23)

• On surrealism in theater:

  "There is nothing more difficult than teaching the audience how to watch your play. And that is the most fun for me." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 18:43)

• On collaborative creation:

  "It's easier for me to sort of let go of the reins a little bit because I've been in another position in the room." (Ro Redick, 22:49)

• On producing and transparency:

  "I believe with a little bit more transparency, we can arrive there in a way that feels collective and in a way that, like, everyone receives the reward." (Alana Raquel Bowers, 25:35)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |-----------------------------------------------------|---------------| | Introduction to Play & Guests | 00:09 | | Ro Redick on Winning Blackburn Prize | 01:51 | | Alana Bowers on Casting and Early Impressions | 02:33 | | Playwriting Inspiration & Development | 05:57 | | Portraying Meek: Approach to Playing a Child | 07:15 | | Meek’s Relationship with Choir & Family | 09:15–13:13 | | Exploring Family Drama, Clay Character | 14:16–14:31 | | Creative Choices: Surreal Elements, Naming | 17:13–18:07 | | Artistic Challenges: Teaching Audience, Surrealism | 18:43–20:19 | | Researching Cults, Collaboration, Production | 21:11–25:53 | | Personal Reflections and Close | 25:53–27:19 |

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Tone and Style

The conversation is warm, thoughtful, and humorous, marked by mutual admiration and open curiosity. Both guests are candid about the quirks of their creative journey, the significance of bold representation in theater, and the complicated, joyful process of crafting something new for the stage.

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For Listeners

Whether you grew up during the Cold War or are new to its cultural echoes, this episode reveals how theater can make historical anxieties immediate, funny, and intimate, all through the eyes of one unforgettable young protagonist and the loving, messy family around her.

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Cold War Choir Practice runs at the MCC Theater through March 29th, 2026.

Transcript

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Foreign.

[Alison Stewart]

This is all of it on WNYC. I'm Alison Stewart. Imagine being a 10 year old girl and all you want for Christmas is a speak and spell and a nuclear radiation detector. Why? Well, it's 1987 and a war with the Soviet Union seems possible. That girl who goes by Meek is is our protagonist in a play called Cold War choir practice by R.O. redick. Cold War choir practice is surreal and down to earth. And that is where the laugh out loud and bit of pathos humor collide. The surreal part includes, for example, a scene trio of Soviet spies who look like the Andrew Sisters. The down to earth part is about Meek and her family trying to live like life and make a go of a roller rink in Syracuse. They don't get much help from Meek's Uncle Clay who has made it big. He's a hardcore Republican who works for President Reagan. He is on the nuclear talks and he has to go to Washington. But he needs one thing. Someone to look after his wife. She's recently been deprogrammed from a cult and it's a bit wobbly. And now he needs his estranged family's help. The reviews have been great. One called it a fun, antic and ingenious show and Vulture called it one to watch. You can see Cold War Choir practice at the MCC Theater on 52nd and 10th through March 29th. Joining us right now is playwright Ro Redick. Hi, Ro H. Hi. And the actor who plays Meek, Alana Raquel Bowers. Hi, Alana. Hello. So first of all, I want to congratulate you on winning the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Woo hoo. Right. For Cold War Choir Practice for people who don't know. Folks who have won it in the past have been, oh, Lynn Nottage and Jackie Sibley. Drury, where were you when you found out?

[Ro Redick]

I was heading to tech rehearsal and I got a phone call and yeah, it was, but I had to keep it under my hat. So I was just like having a really great day at tech.

[Alison Stewart]

What did it mean for you to get that award?

[Ro Redick]

It's such a reassurance that the work that you're doing is being seen and is respected by your peers and people in the industry. So I don't know. It meant everything. And like you said, you named some of the people who have gotten in the past. I've tracked that award in some of those playwrights and I love their work. So it was that felt surreal to be included in that group.

[Alison Stewart]

Alana, how did you hear about Cold War Choir Practice?

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

I was actually in Philadelphia Doing a show at the Wilma Theater. And I got an email from Maria Stryer and Michael Bolger from Club Thumb and an incredible downtown theater company. And they, they sent me this play and they were like, we would love for you to read the role of this 10 year old black girl. And I was like, well, I'm in Philly, so I don't know if I'll be able to make that work. And my show at the time, we weren't sure if we were going to extend, but if we did, it would be the same week of the reading. And they were like, well, what's your schedule for the extension? And I told them. And they were willing to actually trained me back and forth from New York to Philadelphia in order for me to do this reading because they were so adamant about the incredible piece that was Cold War choir practice. And they were equally as adamant about me reading Meek. So I was like, okay, I'll try. Yeah, like, I'll keep you posted. And that's exactly what ended up happening. I would do a show the next morning. I would go up to New York and do, you know, some reading. We would be workshopping it. I would go back, do a show that night.

[Alison Stewart]

Wow.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Come back and do. I did that maybe for like three days.

[Ro Redick]

I guess I felt like we were in that room for a week. It was like a full week.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

It was a full week. Yeah. And luckily I didn't have a show every night that week. But when we were in that room and I met Ro for the first time and I got a taste of what the language felt like altogether, it was one of. It was like nothing I've ever read before, first of all. And it was one of the most exciting pieces of theater that I'd sort of like put my vessel into because I'd never witnessed or read a piece that embodied a little black girl with such complexity and such adventure. I grew up watching things like Indiana Jones, you know, Star Wars. Like, I envision and I hope for a day and a time where black people, black women, black girls, black youth can live and breathe and embody stories like that and exciting obstacles that those characters and those stories in particular endure. And I was like, Ro literally wrote it. That's wild. And, you know, it was so cinematic and so the themes were just like jumping off of the page. So I don't know how it was gonna work as a play. I was like, well, you know, like my description.

[Alison Stewart]

It was hard to write the description.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

I think, first of all, incredible description.

[Ro Redick]

That was a Great description.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

That was a wonderful description.

[Alison Stewart]

Is there anything you would like to add to the description before we talk about the play?

[Ro Redick]

No, not at all. I thought it was perfect.

[Alison Stewart]

When did you start writing this play, Ro?

[Ro Redick]

I started in the fall of 2022 when I was in grad school. I went to Brown's MFA playwriting program. And the previous spring, like Putin had invaded Ukraine and like I had taken this class that was all about art history and politics and the Cold War and mid century technology. So I had all of these things swimming in my head. And we were supposed to write solo shows that semester and I didn't want to write a solo show. And I just started writing these monologues for these different characters for. I think I wrote Smooch's monologue that he, that he gives when he comes to give out the coupons. That was one of the first things I brought in. And I wrote this monologue for Virgie that no longer exists and a little song for the choir. And everyone else is writing solo shows and I'm like, bring in this piece. But I'm kind of glad I didn't go with the theme that semester.

[Alison Stewart]

We're talking to playwright Ro Redick about her work Cold War choir practice, about a 10 year old girl and her fight for her family and her country. Also joining us is actor Alana Raquel, who plays that young girl, Meek. You can see Cold War choir practice at the MCC Theater on 52nd and 10th through March 29th. You are a grown woman playing a 10 year old girl.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

I am.

[Alison Stewart]

How'd you prepare for the part?

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Oh, wow. I think first of all, children are so observant, they are so smart. And at the end of the day they're people, they're little people, but they're people with their own brains, with their own ideas, with their own dreams. And so I just started there. I don't think Meek was any different from any other character that I played because she is a person seeing the world through very specific eyes. Right. And at the end of the day that's all of us on earth. And then I really took a lot of my physical inspiration and sort of like the thing that shifts energetically in me from my own goddaughter who was 8 at the time that I started reading the play. But by the time we started doing it, she'll be 10 in July. And so she's arriving at Meek age and she is the smartest person that I know. She is so sharp. She is. So she asks questions to everyone. It doesn't matter who you are or how much leverage you have in the room, she wants to know the answers. And I think that she embodies what Meek desperately is asking for in this play, which is the ability to connect with people. And she was definitely my external inspiration internally. I think I just wanted to make sure I was not making a caricature, but I was making a person. And I just tried to play her as authentically as I can. And it's easier when the writing is good, I'll tell you that.

[Alison Stewart]

Ro, what has Meek be? Has she been sold about the Cold War? What does she believe?

[Ro Redick]

When we meet her at the beginning of the play, she's in a choir that is singing for peace and also, I guess, shoring up American values around capitalism and patriotism. So I think at the top of the play, she's just trying to figure out how to save herself and her family. And all of that is coming from this message that she's getting from the choir that there is this imminent threat and that music and her voice as a child can somehow protect her family in some way. She's trying to figure that out.

[Alison Stewart]

And you actually sang in a choir. I know you've talked about this a little bit, but would you explain a little bit. You were in a choir that was like this.

[Ro Redick]

Yeah, it was not quite like the choir in this play, but we did sing about nuclear annihilation and world peace, but it wasn't. There wasn't weird patriotism or nationalism in that choir, but it was a Cold War era choir and it was all about, you know, saving the world from itself.

[Alison Stewart]

Did you question what you were singing?

[Ro Redick]

Not at all. Not at all. Loved the songs, had a great time. Wasn't till I got, you know, I was an adult and I was telling people about this, that they were like,

[Alison Stewart]

hmm, well, what does Meek think about her singing in the choir? What does it do for her?

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

I think it grants her a type

[Ro Redick]

of

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

power and autonomy. I think it's hard. As the youngest in my family, it's hard. And Meek is an only child. It's difficult to be. To be a kid amidst adults because oftentimes they don't really trust you with certain information. You kind of feel left out. So singing this song about freedom and about assuming that this could do something for the country, for my family, for myself, is. I feel like that excites Meek. And even though she, I think because she is the only black girl in the choir, there is another sense of. Of pride that she has to be like well, you know, these people have a certain reason why they're singing and I have my own reason why I'm singing.

[Alison Stewart]

We're talking about Cold War choir Practice. We'll have more after a quick break. This is all of It. You're listening to all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. We're talking to playwright Ro Redick about her work, Cold War Choir practice, about a 10 year old girl and her fight for her family and her country. Also joining us is actor Alana Raquel Bowers, who plays that young girl, Meek. You can see Cold War Choir practice at the MCC Theater on 52nd and 10th Avenue through March 29th. One of the main settings for the play is a roller rink that's run by Meek's dad. Would you describe her dad, Smooch?

[Ro Redick]

He. I describe him in the front matter as kind of like the mayor of every room he walks into. He's a former Panther. He's very community oriented. He's all about like the people around him and sort of making sure that everybody is taken care of. And that's why, you know, he runs this space, this roller rink that's struggling financially, but really he wants it to be the heartbeat of the neighborhood.

[Alison Stewart]

What's Meek's relationship with her father and with her grandmother who comes in the show and makes a hilarious appearance?

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Yes, she does. I think her family means a lot to her. Her father and her grandmother are who she sees every day. They're who drop her off at school in choir practice, they're who tuck her in at night. And so when Meek is singing these songs and thinking about what nuclear war could do, the first people she has in her mind are her father and her grandmother. I think in the same way that I know I'm very close with my family, there are conversations that I have with myself where I feel like I'm using the voices of my family members because that's how close we are. And I think that is the same rhetoric that I could describe Meek with her dad and her grandmother because there are even moments in the show where she sort of, she repeats like, well, my dad said, grandma said in a way that feels like a, like a familial call and response because she just. The soundtrack of her mind are these people.

[Alison Stewart]

I think this is where the family drama comes in. Entertainment. The black Republican, Clay, the brother, he comes to visit the family with his wife in tow and Smooch is not having it. What's their beef?

[Ro Redick]

I mean, there's longstanding tension between the Two brothers. That kind of goes back to Clay sort of leaving the family behind to pursue his career in politics. And then there's a very specific incident that happens where Clay says some really hurtful things in the news that Smooch reads that sets off this particular. This very specific conflict that they have when he comes with his wife, Virgie.

[Alison Stewart]

I have that. I wonder, because I was watching the play, saw it last Thursday, and sort of the staunch Republican guy is a dark skinned actor, or Smooths is a light skinned actor. Is that in the script?

[Ro Redick]

That is not in the script. There's just a scene that's not in the script.

[Alison Stewart]

I just wondered.

[Ro Redick]

Yeah, it just. Yeah, that is not in the script.

[Alison Stewart]

Just curious. There really isn't too much of a description about the mom.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Right, right.

[Alison Stewart]

What do you think about that?

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

There's no mom. We as a cast. Well, we asked Ro and Ro was like, you choose.

[Alison Stewart]

Oh.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

And we were like, okay. So Lisanne Mitchell, the great Liz Anne Mitchell, who plays Puddin in the play, is really big on backstory. And so we as a family, not. No shade to Virgie, but not including Virgie. So the actor who plays Clay, the actor who plays Samooch, Ms. Lizanne, and had a conversation about where my mom is, why she's not there anymore, why we're all living under the same roof, when the wedding was, when the last time I saw Clay was. You know, things like that to really inform how we meet each other every night on stage for the first time or for the audience's first time. And that's why I love rich work, rich theater, because you get to. There are some things on the page that are undeniable. And then there are opportunities for the players inside of it to create even more richness off the page that one may not see, but could maybe sometimes feel, depending on how you're listening to the play. So we have our own secret about where Meek's mom is.

[Alison Stewart]

Okay. Yeah, don't tell me the secret. Ro, where do you come up with your character's name? Meek Smooch Clay? Well,

[Ro Redick]

I have a cousin who goes by Put in. Like, everybody just called her Puddin, and I love that nickname. So that's where Puddin gets her name. But that character's not based on my cousin Smooch. I just. I love nicknames. So when I hear nicknames in real life that feel interesting, I just kind of tuck them away in the back of my mind. And so I think I knew someone called Smoochie when I was really young. And I made it smooch. For whatever reason, I thought, that's a. That's a great nickname for him. And Clay just made sense for that character. And Meek, My full name is Raineke and I used to be called Nika and Neek. Neek when I was a kid. And so I gave Mieke a name. I imagine her full name is Shamika and they just call her Meek and Meek. Meek as a nickname.

[Alison Stewart]

This play has surreal elements to it. I should put that out there. Were these always a big part of the script?

[Ro Redick]

Yes.

[Alison Stewart]

From the job.

[Ro Redick]

Yeah. Because the choir was one of the first things that I was thinking about. A lot of the weirdness comes out of the choir, and they were the first. I was thinking about my experience in a choir and thinking about how I'd make my own choir songs and how this choir would function in a way that feels different than a traditional chorus. So I wanted them to be strange and weird and protean. And so, yeah, a lot of the weirdness came out of them.

[Alison Stewart]

Alana, what do you like about working in a play where you sort of have to suspend reality? And also what's challenging about it, too?

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Everything. There is nothing more. There's nothing more difficult than teaching the audience how to watch your play. And that is the most fun for me. I enjoy that challenge because I don't think this story has ever been told before or this kind of story has ever been told before. So what an exciting venture we have every night of allowing an audience into a thing that they may think they know what they're about to see or know nothing about what they're about to see and flip their minds regardless in this world. I think it is. I think the particular challenge that our director, Knut Adams gave me was somehow being a grown woman playing a 10 year old, but also being the straight man, because there's so much absurdity happening around Meek that the audience has to trust her eyes. And that is a very. I will say that is a very difficult ask. But the reward is so great because oftentimes we don't trust children's eyes. We don't trust what they are telling us and how they are seeing the world. And so I try. I take that responsibility very seriously. So it is very hard, but the challenge. And the challenge is hard, but the reward is so great.

[Alison Stewart]

Ro, what is a surreal moment that just every time you see just makes you. Makes you happy that it's in this play?

[Ro Redick]

I don't know if there's like one particular surreal moment But I do love any moment where the Virgie is sort of in her own world and the characters in the play don't know what's happening in her head, but the choir sort of singing what's happening in her head. So I do love her taking the bomb out. Oh, that's a spoiler. But I also like at the very beginning of the show when we first to see her getting help and they just sing this little weird la la la across the stage and they're lighting themselves. Knut has them shining a light on their face, the choir members. And I love that moment. Those are just like weird little moments that I kind of love.

[Alison Stewart]

Did you do any research into cults? Because Virgie is very much in a cult.

[Ro Redick]

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I was thinking a lot when I was writing this play about sort of the individual versus the group or like how an individual figures out how they fit, how hard it is to carve out, find some kind of balance between autonomy and belonging, group membership. And so that looks more or less fraught, depending on the characters that we're looking at. And with Virgie, it's probably one of the most fraught moments. So I was thinking about cults a lot. I was thinking about modern day cults like Nixxiom and I was also thinking about Lifespring, which was a cult in the 80s for entrepreneurial minded people. And so just tried to make something that felt of this world but was inspired by both of those sort of capital forward cults.

[Alison Stewart]

It's interesting about both of you because you both wear many hats. You were an actor.

[Ro Redick]

I was, yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

How did it make you a better playwright?

[Ro Redick]

I love giving actors fun things to do on stage. I love writing something. Writing something that they can either take or leave. Like giving them a little invitation to try something and to give. To give them a moment where they can really shine. I just love that. I just love actors and what they bring. And I'm okay with letting them have their interpretations of a character, which can be hard if you've never been an actor. You don't understand what their contribution is. It's easier for me to sort of let go of the reins a little bit because I've been in another position in the room.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

So. Huge. Yeah, huge. That's not. That's not common, especially with playwrights. With new playwrights or playwrights making their debuts, they're very. Sometimes it can be. It's very difficult to let go of the thing that you made. But Ro has been so incredibly generous and Selfless in allowing us to make it ours in a way. And it's just. I mean, I can't express enough how incredibly collaborative this whole team has been the entire time, from the designers to the creative team to the cast. It's just. It's truly like a one in a million experience.

[Alison Stewart]

But you've worked behind the scenes as well on the black tone play.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Oh, yes, the black wolf tone.

[Alison Stewart]

Yes, the black wolf tone. We had that on the show.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Oh, we had quacks on the show.

[Ro Redick]

That's right.

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

That's right.

[Alison Stewart]

And I thought you were an associate producer on that show as well. Yes. What did you get from working behind the scenes that you can use as an actor?

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

Oh, wow. I think. Well, I think collaboration. Me understanding that collaboration works on both sides of the stage because there is such an importance in ensuring that people of color are on both sides. But what's, I think even more important is understanding and making sure that everybody is speaking the same language, that everybody understands what the goals are and where we want to get to, and that everyone's goals look the same and we have similar ways that we want to get there. And I think that theater can. Theater is such a magical use of artistry and advocacy, but sometimes we get caught up because we assume that there are reasons to gatekeep. And I am excited to continue my producing ventures and allow more transparency into the conversation, because that's the only way. Because, like, actors are. Actors are smart. You know, designers are smart, writers are smart, directors are smart. Everyone understands why we're trying to get to where we need to get to. And I believe with a little bit more transparency, we can arrive there in a way that feels collective and in a way that, like, everyone receives the reward. So collaboration and understanding how that works on both ends, I think will continue to inform how I show up on stage as well as behind it.

[Alison Stewart]

Ro, on your website, and this has made me laugh and laugh. It says on your website that Ro has an MBA from nyu, which she has no intention of using.

[Ro Redick]

That is correct. No shade to nyu. I had a great time in that program, but I have no intention of going to the corporate world.

[Alison Stewart]

So does your business education help you at all in the field that you've chosen?

[Ro Redick]

It does. Because before when I was an actor, I mean, my perspective was so. And I'm not saying all actors are like this, but I was very much like, in my own world, and my perspective was very limited and specific. And then forcing myself to be in an environment where I was out of my depths in some regards and just completely different than everyone else who had it working from a different set of expectations. It forced me me to kind of pan out and listen more than I spoke and just figured out how to think in a different way. And that made me grow up a little bit and then having a real job after graduating also helped with that. But I know where I belong in this world and it is not in the business part of things.

[Alison Stewart]

I've been speaking with playwright Ro Redick and actor Alana Raquel Bowers. They're on Cold War choir practice at the MCC Theater on 52nd and 10th Avenue through March 29th. Thank you for coming to the studio.

[Ro Redick]

Thank you, thank you.

[Alison Stewart]

There's more, all of it on the way. Every day WNYC Studios is working to

[Alana Raquel Bowers]

get closer to New York and to New Yorkers. The underwriting we get from businesses helps power our independence.

[Alison Stewart]

Learn how your organization can join in at sponsorship.wnyc.org.