Story & Lesson Highlights with Dr. Cynthia Meier of Tucson

We recently had the chance to connect with Dr. Cynthia Meier and have shared our conversation below.

Cynthia, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What is a normal day like for you right now?
Mornings right now are spent with sleep and reading and responding to emails, phone calls, etc. and planning for the current season of plays or next season.
Afternoons are spent at the theater preparing for rehearsals or Shakespeare class plans or sewing in the costume shop.
Evenings are spent at the theater in rehearsal or welcoming an audience for a performance.
Late, late nights are spent with my husband, goofing off.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Theater is my passion and my delight. I am the Managing and Associate Artistic Director of The Rogue Theatre in Tucson. I am also the Co-Founder of The Rogue. And I am the Resident Costume Designer. I have been all of these things for 21 years. We just produced our 100th play at The Rogue, a small 160-seat professional theater in the heart of Tucson. We are dedicated to the mission of producing socially meaningful and challenging theater to a community of theater-goers. We have 1260 season ticket holders–a large number for such a small venue. The Rogue also has a Resident Acting Ensemble of 12 versatile actors who appear in most of the plays throughout the season. After every single performance, we hold a post-show discussion with the director and acting ensemble and any audience members who wish to stay to discuss the ideas in the play. I am currently preparing to direct and design costumes for Peter and the Starcatcher, which opens in January. I am also teaching a class on Shakespeare’s Heroes and Villains with Artistic Director Joseph McGrath at The Learning Curve.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
I am pretty much the same person I was when I was 6 years old. In first grade, I gathered my friends to put on plays for the Kindergarten kids. I loved to read fairy tales, to draw, to dress up, to write, to imagine other worlds. I get to be that person every day at The Rogue Theatre.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
For awhile in my late 20s, I stepped away from the theater. I couldn’t figure out how to do theater and make a living. I taught at the university and community college and made quilts and went hiking. I found other ways to be creative. But my love of theater was too deep, and I continued to seek out ways to be involved. I started one theater company in my mid-30s and another one–The Rogue Theatre–in my mid-forties. I still love to teach and sew and hike, but theater is just too dear to me.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
I try to be as genuine in my public life as my private one. I suppose that many people would be surprised to hear that I’m an introvert–gathering energy from being alone–because I spend so much time interacting with others, being on stage, talking to other artists and audience members and supporters.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
Worrying. I try to stop that wheel from rolling. It’s hard for me. Someone told me once that worrying is praying for what you don’t want. Yep, I would stop worrying.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.TheRogueTheatre.org
• Instagram: theroguetucson
• Facebook: theroguetheatre
• Youtube: theroguetucson

Image Credits
Tim Fuller, photographer, The Rogue Theatre