Kyle Kellams: BookBrowse, a national organization serving book clubs, estimates there are about a half million book clubs in the United States. Let’s add one more. It’s the book club at the heart of TheatreSquared’s current production, “The Book Club Play”.
Playwright Karen Zacarías’ comedy focuses on one book club and what happens when the members become the subjects of a documentary. Every book club filmed, no editing. Rebecca Rivas, the production’s director, says this play explores all the levels and intricacies of a group dynamic.
Rebecca Rivas: Oh, 100%. I mean, there are new relationships, there are very old relationships, and a lot of secrets are revealed. They learn a lot about each other. And I think there are those moments where some of your closest friends, where you realize that maybe you don’t know them the way you thought you knew them.
There comes this point where a decision has to be made between both parties with how we move forward, if we move forward. And I think that this play does that in a hilarious fashion. You know, people talking about books — that can be dangerous in and of itself.
Kellams: You know, people talking about books can be dangerous in and of itself. I remember telling a friend that I like to read mysteries. And the look this friend gave me of disdain, of that’s below my friend, and perhaps my friend thought it was below me. I mean, taste can —
Rivas: Yes.
Kellams: Can be tricky.
Rivas: Oh, definitely. And it absolutely explores what some people consider literature with a capital L and what other folks don’t. I will say one of the books that absolutely gets a lot of discussion is “Twilight”. And there are some people who absolutely revere it, and there are some people where it is reviled in some groups.
So I think it definitely is an exploration of what each person finds value in and whether or not those things need to be — if that's enough. If it makes someone feel something, isn’t that enough? Or do books and taste have to be gatekept?
Kellams: Is enjoying a book simply not enough?
Rivas: Do boxes need to be checked in order for you to truly enjoy it? And I think that gets investigated.
Kellams: What do we call this, a comedy?
Rivas: Oh, yes. Oh my goodness, yes. I know we’re talking about these elevated ideas and relationships, but it is 100% a comedy. It is very funny. We just had our final dress rehearsal yesterday, and the folks that could make it out came by, and they were laughing. It was a good time.
Kellams: The playwright, Karen Zacarías, contemporary playwright. And this is a fresh script.
Rivas: Yeah, yeah, it’s pretty new.
Kellams: What I would call fresh.
Rivas: Oh, yeah. It’s definitely not Shakespeare or anything. It is fresh, and it feels — you feel that you’re seeing people and you know the time that it’s coming from. And for that reason, it’s incredibly familiar and I think it hits home quite well.
Kellams: So when I think of a book club in somebody’s home, people are scattered about. Is that how it’s going to be on stage, and if so, is that a challenge to direct?
Rivas: It definitely can be a challenge. It absolutely takes place in a living room. But I will say that the documentary also takes you to different places across the United States.
Kellams: Oh.
Rivas: So that was a fun challenge for myself and the designers and the actors to figure out how do we transport folks from a living room to New York City, to Washington, D.C.? That was a lot of fun, and I think we did a pretty good job. I hope people enjoy it.
Kellams: So you’re working with actors, you want to make sure all the basics are there, then you dive in deeper. But then you’ve got to think about getting us to New York City? Why would anyone want to be a director? That sounds so hard.
Rivas: I mean, it is a challenge, but to me, I think it’s a lot of fun. And you’re never alone doing it. You have your design team and the actors, and you all throw out ideas and something rises to the top.
Certainly there is a guiding force, and that usually falls to the director. But it always feels really supported and a lot of fun to figure that out with a bunch of people, as opposed to feeling like, oh God, you have to figure it out alone.
Kellams: It sounds analogous to a book club, a bit.
Rivas: Yeah. Someone has to get everything ready and prep and get everyone on the same page for sure.
Kellams: There are many book clubs in northwest Arkansas. Many. Some of them have been around for a century.
Rivas: Wow.
Kellams: Is this a good idea to go with your book club? Or should you go by yourself and talk about it later?
Rivas: Oh, I think it’s a group activity. If you’re a book club member, you and your fellow book club members are really going to enjoy it a lot. So absolutely, go as a group if you can.
Kellams: And just like when you’ve read a good book and you want to find somebody else who’s read it — “Have you seen this play yet?” — and talk to someone about that. That’s a fun exercise.
Rivas: Yes. It’s definitely one of those that you’re going to want to discuss when you get out. Hopefully you and some friends can come check it out. And if you like it, tell some friends so you can have a conversation later over coffee, maybe a good book.
Kellams: Rebecca Rivas is directing TheatreSquared’s production of Karen Zacarías’ comedy “The Book Club Play”. The play is on the T2’s stage in downtown Fayetteville through Feb. 15. Our conversation was recorded at the Carver Center for Public Radio this week.
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