Q. and A. | Playwright Thomas Bradshaw on Race, Porn and Suburbia

[lsanderson]

In a 2012 New York Times interview, you said, “In New Jersey, where I grew up, people often said exactly what they were thinking. They didn’t try to soften the blow. But then again, now I live in the Midwest, and I find there’s a lot more subtext out here.” That’s interesting, as you’ve often said that you try to write without subtext. Can you give an example of the East Coast-Midwest split?

Growing up in Jersey, cursing in front of your parents was perfectly acceptable. We argued with our parents constantly. That’s almost unimaginable out here in the Midwest. There’s a different framework regarding how you deal with authority figures. Or, for example, in New York you’d say to the cashier, “You didn’t give me enough change,” whereas in the Midwest, you’d say, “Oh, I think you may have miscounted.” Out here, everything’s got to be couched as something else. Moar