Among my secret vices is reading Westerns and watching re-runs of The Big Valley. I’m so into it that my daughter says when I’m old and need to be taken care of, she’ll simply set me up in a room where I can watch Westerns and write.
I’ve been reading novels by Louis L’Amour and Zane Grey bc I figured I’ll never write in this genre, so maybe I can get lost in the story without studying the writing so hard. Lo & behold, I started visualizing Westerns on stage and have launched into a series of plays that take place in the 1860s.
My Westerns aren’t the typical storylines of the 1950-1960s films, though. There were lots of ppl affected by the westward move besides str8 anglo-saxon men. These other characters whose stories are generally unknown may generate interest for an audience not typically intrigued by Westerns. So that might make this series of plays relevant.
But what else is needed? In a world looking to the future and rapid changes in technology and ease of living and continuous cultural clashes and folks who don’t want “change” and folks who say “changes aren’t happening fast enough” – what would draw an audience to an 1860s setting?
Romance: people in relationships in the 1860s and 21st century all have fears to overcome and miracles to embrace
Risks: still relevant today is how to step out of our comfort zone, whether it’s our domestic life, neighborhood, job, debt –
Survival: still relevant is how to navigate natural disasters
Politics: how to maneuver through the powers-that-be grabbing it all for themselves
Stretch our thinking: how to interpret others’ actions
From Wikipedia