It was only a few years ago that Stefanie Zadravec made her playwright debut as a contributing writer for The Fear Project. Since then she has been a rising star in the world of theater. Stefanie’s work has been recognized by numerous awards, of which some are listed on her webpage. But perhaps the best indicator of the quality of her work is the swiftness with which the production companies are putting her work on stage.

Honey Brown Eyes, a play by Zadravec that won the prestigious Helen Hayes Award for Best New Play or Musical in 2009, is currently on stage at the San Francisco Playhouse.

Could you briefly tell us about Honey Brown Eyes?
Honey Brown Eyes is set during the first year of the Bosnian War. It follows two former bandmates, now soldiers on opposite sides whose lives are forever changed by women the war has stranded in their kitchens.

You were in college when the war in Bosnia escalated. How did you decide to write a play about the events that are so hurtfully recent for the affected nations yet so distant for the American public that followed them from afar?
When I set out to write a war play, I didn’t feel like an authority on any war. I do know people from Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Kosovo, whose stories made me want to understand it better. Reading about the systematic rape of 20,000 women, the genocide and the abrupt way the war broke out, seemed like something we should be talking about. The more I researched, the less it felt like a war over there and more like something I could imagine happening in any modern city, anywhere. The characters in this play could be any of us. They are us.

Is the play based on true events or actual people? How did you research the war?
I culled details from interviews and published personal accounts of the war and wove my story and characters out of the stories I gathered. The actual plot of this play is fictional, but I took great pains to make sure that it could be a true story.

I do not know how the Honey Brown Eyes ends, but do you think there is hope for people in Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia to live together again?
Honey Brown Eyes is the story of what it takes for an individual to reclaim their humanity. In all cases I think that requires some measure of contrition, selflessness and courage. I don’t pretend to know what it will take for Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia to live together again. I have met people for whom reconciliation is out of the question, and I have met others who would like to move on in some unified way. I understand both impulses. I think the most important thing is not to deny the facts of the war.

You are not only a playwright, but also an actor. How important is your experience as a performer in writing plays?
Having been an actor means character and dialogue come easily to me. I don’t think you’ll read a Stefanie Zadravec play and say that all the characters sound alike. Instead I will struggle and rework the plot and structure of a piece.

What gives you more satisfaction – to connect with the audience as a performer or touch them with a play that you’ve written?
Although I enjoy performing, I get a deeper thrill being the writer in the room. Theater is collaborative art form, but there is something powerful about writing the words. I love when I hear an audience laugh or gasp at something I’ve written. Sometimes I’ll get a letter or email from an audience member telling me how my play affected them; it’s hard not to be moved by that.

Your parents were both writing for The Washington Post. Your father Martin was a sportwriter (known as Martie Zad) and your mother Katharine a columnist who later became a poet and Emily Dickinson scholar. In a way your plays are about personal stories (poetry) that fit into a larger context (reporting). Have you ever viewed your work as the cross between the two?
I hadn’t thought about this before, but my plays have been described as being both poetic and accessible, so yeah, I’d say I bring a little something from both my parents to the table.

Your father is a child of Slovenian immigrants who grew up speaking Slovenian and Hungarian. Do you think this had any influence on who you are today?
My father is part of a generation that came to America to become Americans. His parents strove hard to make a better life and give their children opportunity. In that regard my father’s life exemplifies the American Dream. I, on the other hand, am from a generation that is curious about heritage. I’m always digging up old photos and trying to connect the dots on the family tree. Sadly the name of the exact town where my family is from got lost. I believe it’s somewhere along the Drava River.

What are you currently working on?
I’m working on a rewrite of a play called The Electric Baby for a spring production, a new draft of a play called Colony Collapse, and I’m beginning work on a commission I have for a play about an American town crippled by unemployment. And there is interest in making an international film of Honey Brown Eyes. It’s all very exciting but way too early to talk about!

You are also a current resident playwright at New Dramatists. What does this entail?
New Dramatists offers playwrights a seven year residency. They provide each writer a home from which to write, workshop and develop their work. Your plays live in their library among some of the greatest playwrights of the 20th and 21st centuries, and the staff help you define and realize your goals as an artists whatever they may be. The greatest resource however is the 48 other playwrights that are also in residence at any given time. They are among the best and the brightest working today and I feel so fortunate to be able to sit and strike up a conversation with them.

In addition to Honey Brown Eyes that is currently playing at the San Francisco Playhouse, are any other of your plays scheduled for 2011/2012?
The world premiere production of The Electric Baby at Quantum Theatre in Pittsburgh opens March 30th and runs through April 22nd. I am also a contributing artists on We Play for the Gods, a collaboration of The Women’s Project Lab which will have an Off-Broadway run at the Cherry Lane Theater beginning June 1st 2012.

Thank you, Stefanie!

Personal website: szadravec.com
Reviews of Honey Brown Eyes: “Brilliantly Cathartic.” and “Honey Brown Eyes is a triumph.”