The Meet & Greet
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Sarah
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SYNOPSIS
Emily wins a meet and greet with a member of her favorite boy band the day after one of his fellow StarBoys dies young.
PLAYWRIGHT’S BIO
Sarah Groustra (she/her) is a Brooklyn-based, Massachusetts-born playwright and theatremaker. Sarah’s work has been produced off-Broadway at the SheNYC Festival (Winner, Best Script 2023), Soho Playhouse, and at regional theaters across the country. She was awarded the 2024 Austin Film Festival Stage Play Award, was a finalist for the 2023 Jane Chambers Award, and was named a 2022 Ascending Playwright by Yonder Window Theater Company. Sarah has developed new work with the Valdez Theatre Conference, Under Construction Playwright’s Group (the Road Theatre), Purple Light Palette Cohort, the Parsnip Ship, Forager Theater Company, and Historically Close Friends. Sarah is an alumna of Kenyon College (2022), the 24 Hour Plays: Nationals (2022), and is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild. sarahgroustra.com // @ladypoachedegg
A BIT ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT
When did you start writing plays? If you had a moment where you realized you wanted to write, what was it?
I’ve always loved writing and storytelling, but I didn’t discover my love for theatre until I was in high school. By the time I got to college and learned that plays could be analyzed and studied, I was hooked. It was during this time that I really dove into writing plays and had the feeling that this was what I wanted to pursue once I graduated. I love the collaborative nature of theatre and the fact that as a writer, I’m just one small part in the greater whole of the production.
How did you come to write your OOB play? Was there a particular inspiration behind its creation? How has it developed?
I’m part of a terminally online generation with all the positive and negative effects that come with that. Our collective insensitivity and desensitized reactions to death is one of those negatives, and something that could be both positive and negative is the intensity of online fandoms and fan culture in general. I think it’s pretty clear that the play is inspired by One Direction and the tragic death of Liam Payne last year. Online, 20- and 30-year-old One Direction fans came out of the woodwork to post tributes to the singer, and the other members of One Direction had to post something about his death because that’s what you do these days. It was like everyone was collectively reverting back to 2012 but also strange to see how the real world suddenly infiltrated the happy, sparkly sphere of pop icons from our childhood.
What are five words that describe who you are as a playwright?
Feeling the largest emotions, always.
What/who are some of the major influences on your writing?
Annie Baker, Sheila Callaghan, Sarah Ruhl, Halley Feiffer.
What’s one fact someone would never guess about you?
One of my biggest regrets in life is that I do not know how to tap dance.
What are some of your favorite plays?
You probably wouldn’t guess from reading The Meet & Greet but my favorite play in the world is Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune by Terrence McNally. I love it so much. Whenever people are like “but what’s keeping them in the room?” I’m like “LOVE!!! LOVE IS KEEPING THEM IN THE ROOM!!!”
Any new projects you’re working on or shameless plugs?
I run an indie play publishing company called 1319 Press! Check us out and support emerging playwrights!
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