Finding Work-Life-Art Balance: Catching Up with Cara Greene Epstein
During the past two years, many forms of art that rely on people gathering were paused, with theater at the top of the list. The industry and audiences suffered — theater’s reliance on an ecosystem of people — not just an individual performer — had a ripple effect across the world. Thankfully, this important art form is back — back to connecting audiences to the depth of human emotion as they connect with the sights, sounds and performers on stage in real-time.
Cara Greene Epstein’s 2021 TED Talk, “How Theater Weathers Wars, Outlasts Empires and Survives Pandemics” shares a bigger story of why theater — particularly in this moment — matters to all of us. She cites historical crises and important moments of creativity that resulted and lasted. And she reminds us that in the “intermission” we experienced, creativity doesn’t lie dormant — we all can exercise our creativity, not just actors, ‘big thinkers,’ or musicians. An award-winning screenwriter, actor, director and teacher, Cara also uses her talents and energy to facilitate creative sessions with organizations to help people realize their own creativity.
Recently, Cara and I had a chance to connect and talk about her own creative practice, advice for others and the inspiration she receives from the people, places, and things in her world.
Laura: When did you know you wanted to be an artist? Was there a moment, or did it evolve over time?
Cara: I don’t remember not wanting to be an actor. That’s the first thing I wanted to do. But I don’t remember not seeing myself as a storyteller or a writer, which is the thing that I always did.
The umbrella is really storytelling — I’ve always written stories. Though for a long time, it wasn’t the main thing. I was a theater and a government double major in college, so my interest in activism was always in my consideration set, and there were some other ideas along the way. But art has always — always — been something I’ve wanted to create and do.
Laura: Who have been your greatest influences — whether people, places, or things — as you’ve developed as an artist?
Cara: The first is what I call big nature. I find large bodies of water very inspiring — lakes, rivers, waterfalls, oceans. Water is creatively fulfilling and a great place for reflection for me. I tend to go, go, go. When I’m near water, I’m reminded — without having to be reminded — to breathe and slow down. I also love big trees, mountains, and things that are outsized.
When I was in my acting MFA program, my voice teacher Jan Gist was a big influence for me.
She taught me technical skills like breathing and dialects. But she really encouraged me to do was play and reminded me that when I’m ‘in play,’ I feel the most connected. I tend to get worried about getting it right, but when I’m in play, my work feels more authentic than at other times.
There’s something she said to me once that I always remember — that life is like a spiral staircase. It’s about not just trying to get to the next level but a reminder that you’re always going to come back to the same issues and problems and things that are your “things.” The spiral staircase visually reminds us that hopefully you’re just encountering these things or issues at another level. That’s something I come back to all the time when I’m thinking “oh, how can I be dealing with this again? Didn’t I solve it?”
Another inspiration is Picasso. I backpacked through Europe one summer and went to the Picasso Museum in Barcelona. My mind was blown because I didn’t know he was such a skilled classical artist. I didn’t know that he could draw a perfectly realistic face and then chose to break that mold. For me, it was illuminating because it was all about mastering the rules so you can break them with the intentionality and authenticity of your own voice. I don’t think this always has to be the case, but Picasso’s inspiration reminds me to ask the question, “Do the rules serve the story I’m telling?” If I break the rule with something I’m creating, I do it intentionally, with choice and purpose.
There’s also a Martha Graham quote I love:
There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique, and if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium; and be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, not how it compares with other expression. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others.
— Martha Graham
Graham’s quote is brilliant. It reminds me that an artist’s job is to be a vessel and to allow creativity to move through us — not to critique it, evaluate it, or decide if it’s right or wrong — but to express it and put it into the world. It also reminds me about how perfectionism can be paralyzing and that the idea you have in your head is almost never — if ever — going to be the thing you’ve created. So, there may always be discontent with the creative process — and that is normal.
Finally, the writer and activist Sonya Renee Taylor had a powerful statement at the beginning of the pandemic about not returning to the normal we knew:
We will not go back to normal. Normal never was. Our pre-corona existence was not normal other than we normalized greed, inequity, exhaustion, depletion, extraction, disconnection, confusion, rage, hoarding, hate and lack. We should not long to return my friends. We are being given the opportunity to stitch a new garment. One that fits all of humanity and nature.
— Sonya Renee Taylor, via her Instagram.
I think that before the pandemic we normalized exhaustion, perfectionism, hustle, and busy-ness — and I think the intent of what she shares inspires us to imagine and weave a new tapestry that works better for all of us.
I think about this a lot as a parent too — and I think about it as work-life-art balance. I find that in a day, it’s almost impossible to have a balance of all three. Maybe over a week or a month I find a balance among the three, but I don’t pressure myself to have it every day.
Laura: Do you ever get stuck, creatively? How do you get unstuck?
Cara: Yes, I always get stuck. I have some ‘go-to- things to help me get unstuck. One is taking a shower — it’s my best place to think and I can’t get to all of my distractions like social media or scrolling on my phone.
Also, taking a walk with a podcast is a great way for me to get unstuck. I find that 10 minutes in, something that’s said will spark a new idea and then I’ll just start thinking my own thoughts — but I realize I missed the last 15 minutes of the podcast! Sometimes I will set an intention before the walk — I’ll say to myself, “I’m going to go on a walk, and think about this script or project or play I’m working on” and that helps. I don’t know what I’m going to think about it, but it reminds me that I’m in the art. I’m not in the mode of planning logistics or making dinner.
Laura: I loved your TED Talk last year — it inspired and resonated with me on many levels. Is there anything that shifted your own creative practice given the circumstances of the past two years based on what was happening in the world?
Cara: What happened in the world was really hard for me because I’m a huge extrovert. I like to be collaborative with my writing — I get energy from people. So, it was a big learning experience and I learned more about the quiet part of my process. I learned how to tap into myself or energy as opposed to relying on it from others.
I also learned about what was ‘busy’ versus what was ‘essential’ for my creativity. For my creative process, I took the quiet time we had to reflect on the people, places, practices, and organizations that were healthy for me versus the ones that were more about just keeping me busy. I wanted to keep what was nutritional and sustaining.
Laura: A big part of this series — and ultimately, this project — is about helping other people who may not identify as “creative” to think about how — if they want — to start their own creative practice. What advice would you give to people looking to do that?
Cara: I talk about this a little in my TED talk, but I do think the tip I shared from my work with The Memory Ensemble is a practice that’s very useful: Stop, breathe, observe, and use your imagination. It can be small. It could be a meditation or stepping outside, taking a couple of deep breaths, observing what you see and being curious about it.
There’s another educational tool in arts education, DAI, which stands for ‘Describe, Analyze, and Interpret.’ So often we see something, and we jump to an assumption of what we think it is without giving ourselves the time to really get curious and explore what it is. For example, out my window right now, if I was going to describe what I see, I see bright pink colors, oranges, and several trees. For ‘analyze,’ I would wonder about them. I wonder about the green buds and full fruit and wonder about orange trees and their blooming patterns. For ‘interpret,’ I might think about one of those questions, do some research and then I can start to have an opinion and say, “I think xyz…” and “it made me think about this.”
Laura: It’s your unique vantage point, that’s your creation based on observation and research.
Cara. Yes, exactly. I also like to brainstorm lists — and to not know where they are going to go. For example, I’ll think about a character I’m developing. What are the sports my character likes? And I’ll write down all the sports I can think of. Then I’ll move to another aspect of my character. This can lead to mind mapping or journaling, but it generates ideas and sometimes brings them together in ways I hadn’t intended — in good ways.
Another thing I like to do is play with opposites. For example, maybe I want to create something that makes the world a better place and I also want it to be something that’s visual and inspires action. So, I might make a list of things that make the world a better place, a second list of visual art forms and then a third list of things I think inspire others. I pick one thing from each of the three lists and then move on from there.
Other people need to be physically moving to get started — some people think better that way. Maybe it’s throwing a ball or swinging a bat, but it’s activating a different part of your brain and your synapses are firing in a different way. Or, if you’re a dancer, you make it a goal to put on some music for 10 minutes and dance or listen. It gives you the time to get to a different mindset — and maybe it sparks creativity. Not everyone needs to stare at the computer to get started.
The hardest part is getting started — and things like DAI, lists and mindmapping — can all help someone get started. And giving yourself like very simple, very simple goal. SMART goals are such a funny thing, but they’re helpful — you can say, “I’m going to write for 10 minutes,” and that both gets you started and gets something accomplished.
Laura: A final bonus question for you. Any song or songs that inspire your creativity?
Cara: I’m obsessed with Lizzo — I learned about her when I was making my film Dragonfly in 2013. I’m loving her song “Soulmate” right now, and “About Damn Time” is my summer anthem.
Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” is one of my very favorite go-to songs. And I’m a huge Broadway musical fan. I really like Stephen Sondheim’s “Finishing the Hat,” which is all about the artistic practice, the process and how it’s never done. Also, Lin-Manuel Miranda did a remix with Nas, Dave East and Aloe Blacc called, “Wrote My Way Out,” which is a big one for me.
While not songs, I’ll always remember important advice that stays with and inspires me. Jack O’Brien, the former Artistic Director of The Old Globe in San Diego, where I got my MFA, shared some compelling advice during my program. He always reminded us that we’re on our own timeline — not on anyone else’s. He didn’t get his first Tony Award until his 60s, and then had this huge period of acclaim, but before that, ran The Old Globe Theater and focused on producing great work there. That advice really models the reality of the creative process for me.
There was something I read recently that I really appreciate when it comes to creativity — reminding me that good is better than perfect — or maybe just doing the work is better than perfect. Just putting in the work gets you on the way.
