I have had the pleasure of getting to know talented journalist and theater critic Retta Blaney over the past couple of years. She's worked for a number of publications and now specializes in writing about theater and religion, and whenever she can, the connection between the two.
Retta is the founder and organizer of the annual "Broadway Blessing" in New York City where performers come together each September to offer a variety of musical and dramatic offerings in a service designed to ask God's blessing on the new Broadway theater season.
Over the years, as a fellow journalist, I've come to respect Retta's skill as an interviewer. I can tell from reading her interviews that she doesn't approach a subject with any preconceived notions or with any agenda to get the subject to say something particular or in a certain way. She lets the person speak in his or her own words and the result is that we, the reader, come away feeling like we know the subject very well.
She's found a niche focusing on what's important to performers in their spiritual lives. Her book "Working on the Inside: The Spiritual Life Through the Eyes of Actors" (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2003) is a window into what some actors define as their spiritual life, how it is influenced by their upbringing, peer groups and other factors and how they draw upon it as a support for their career in the performing arts.
Actors including Kristen Chenoweth, Vanessa Williams, Phylicia Rashad, Liam Neeson, Edward Hermann and many others share their perspectives.
It's a good read and offers a lot of insight into the thinking of these actors. For more information on Retta and for information on how to purchase the book, go to her blog at http://uponthesacredstage.blogspot.com/ (you can find the link under "blog roll" to the right on this page.)
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