The Playwright, Director, and Cast of “Poor People”

The Present Theatre Company presents POOR PEOPLE, written by Lavinia Roberts and directed by Irene KapustinaEven being as into independent theatre as I am, I always seem to miss most of Fringe each year.

Thankfully, I was able to get out to The Kraine with a microphone for just one show in this year’s festival, and had the pleasure of talking with some of the creative people behind this heartbreaking theatrical adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s novel Poor Folk, here entitled Poor People.

Listen in as the playwright Lavinia Roberts, creator/director Irene Kapustina, and actors Alan Altschuler, Jarrod Zayas, Jennifer Stepanyk, and Eric Doss discuss adaptation, perception, killer mustaches, the difference between “bad guys” and “guys who make terrible choices,” the challenges of putting up a show in a festival, and the relationship between Dostoyevsky’s 1845 St. Petersburg and our 2015 New York City.

“…I really fell in love with Dostoyevsky’s humanist lens, and how perceptive he is about people, and able to really appreciate them for who they are, even when they behave in dubious ways. He has such a beautiful understanding of humanity…it was just such a really exciting world to dive in to…” Continue reading