Megan Sandberg-Zakian’s There Must Be Happy Endings: On a Theater of Optimism & Honesty (3rd Thing Press, 2020) makes a powerful case for “militant optimism” in an age of chaos. The essays in this volume discuss the plays of August Wilson, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, and creating a rehearsal room conducive to creativity. Sandberg-Zakian weaves this analysis of theatrical craft with a deeply personal coming of age story, touching on the history of genocide on both sides of her family (Jewish and Armenian), her identity as a queer woman, and the process of finding an artistic voice of her own after growing up in the rehearsal rooms of her director/playwright father. This is a book that will provide insight and inspirations to anyone interested in telling stories that are both optimistic and true.
Andy Boyd is a playwright based in Brooklyn, New York. He is a graduate of the playwriting MFA program at Columbia University, Harvard University, and the Arizona School for the Arts. His plays have been produced, developed, or presented at IRT, Pipeline Theatre Company, The Gingold Group, Dixon Place, Roundabout Theatre, Epic Theatre Company, Out Loud Theatre, Naked Theatre Company, Contemporary Theatre of Rhode Island, and The Trunk Space. He is currently working on a series of 50 plays about the 50 U.S. states. His website is AndyJBoyd.com, and he can be reached at andyjamesboyd@gmail.com.
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