In Part 9 of a series of interviews with the cast of WSC Avant Bard’s production of Friendship Betrayed—a classic comedy by Spanish playwright María de Zayas y Sotomayor—meet Christian R. Gibbs.
Joel: Where have local audiences seen you perform recently on stage?
Christian: Local audiences may have seen me on Studio Theatre’s 2ndStage, in Mary-Kate Olsen Is in Love, directed by Holly Twyford.
Why did you want to be part of the cast of Friendship Betrayed at Avant Bard?
I’ve wanted to perform with Avant Bard since working with Lynn Spears on One Thousand and One Nights. The energy of the creative team was warm, inviting, and magical. I felt a similar aura from Kari [Ginsburg], our director, when I auditioned. The space she facilitated permitted one to be free and fearless. Thank you, Maggie, for inviting me to audition, and Kari for allowing me to play!
Who do you play in the show? How do you relate to him?
I play Don Juan, the warrior of love. A man who champions, who conquers, yet is never conquered by, love. He is a mystical creature who traverses the line of truth and pretense, sometimes seamlessly. I believe Don Juan and I share the thought and act, that life has to be lived.
What’s the show about from the point of view of your character?
It is about revenge; a sense of justice ascertained through jealousy, all wrapped in a gift called love.
Kari Ginsburg, the director, has set Friendship Betrayed in the 1920s. How are you creating a classical character with Roaring Twenties appeal?
Don Juan expresses a sense of self-love that is filled with insatiable curiosity. He celebrates the endless possibilities of who he is and could be. He is timeless, yet exudes a sense of spirit specific to the Roaring Twenties.
What is your favorite scene that you are not in and why?
I love when Gerardo and Marcia (Megan Dominy) declare their love for one another. There is something so glorious about two individuals choosing to give each other the world.
What is your favorite line or lines that your character says, and what is your favorite line that someone else says in the show?
“Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s.” —Don Juan
“Love the day, but also hate it. Call out for the night only to despise it later.
Desire without knowing that you dare to desire, join pleasure and displeasure in equal measure, and liberate all good in this hope, If that is not love, I do not know what is!” —Marcia
What are you doing next on the stage?
I’m excited to perform in Unexplored Interior, by Jay O. Sanders, with Mosaic Theater Company.
What do you want audiences to take with them after seeing Friendship Betrayed?
Joy.
Friendship Betrayed plays through October 11, 2015 at WSC Avant Bard performing at Gunston Arts Center – Theatre Two – 2700 South Lang Street, in Arlington, VA. For tickets, call the box office at (703) 418-4808, or purchase them online.
LINKS
Review of ‘Friendship Betrayed’ on DCMetroTheaterArts by Gina Dalfonzo.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 1: Alani Kravitz.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 2: Daven Ralston.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 3: James Finley.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 4: Melissa Marie Hmelnicky.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 5: Zach Roberts.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’ Part 6: Connor J. Hogan.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 7: Brendan Edward Kennedy.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 8: Megan Dominy.
Meet the Cast of Avant Bard’s ‘Friendship Betrayed’: Part 9: Christian R. Gibbs.
