Losing or winning an argument is not just a zero-sum game. Working together, collaborating is something that you have to learn. The most important part is not you getting all you want all the time, but learning how to feel satisfaction, even if your collaborator talks you into something else. How to find satisfaction within that and helping them to do the same thing. This seems esoteric, but you know something, it’s not. And I think that is something we’ve lost…and something that the world of The Arts could teach our public discourse.
Robert Viagas is an author and historian specializing in theatre. He was an editor at Playbill for 24 years, during which time he created Playbill.com, the theatre news service that’s now the standard source in our industry.
His latest book, Right This Way, tells the history of the most important collaborators of all—you, the audience.
Mr. Viagas’ other books include On the Line, about the creation of the longest-running musical in history.
Those little theatre histories you see in the Playbills? He co-wrote complete versions that appear in his book At This Theatre, with Louis Botto. He was the editor of The Playbill Broadway Yearbook series. And as far as collaboration is concerned, he literally wrote the book on it: The Alchemy of Theatre, essays on how the art of theatre is created in collaboration.
He also serves at Editor-in-Chief of Encore Theatre Publications, headquartered in Atlanta.
He is currently working on several books, including “It Came From the Orson Welles: Celebrating 50 Years of the Boston Science-Fiction Movie Marathon.”
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robert.viagas
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertviagas/
Personal Website: https://robertviagas.site123.me
Books are all available on Amazon.com.