The In-Between with Aly Kantor
Aly is BACK. For her second year as a CP playwright, she is bringing us another new play that we can't wait to see onstage. Speaking of bringing, we are also kind of hoping she'll bring dessert...
What was your first CP year? How were you involved (audience, actor, writer, producer, front of house, tech)?
My first CP year was 2024 as a writer (and audience member)!
How are you living - if at all - in a liminal space currently?
Like many people, I’ve transitioned to remote work since the pandemic, and while I absolutely love it, there is definitely a sense of “I’m always at work and also never at work,” which is at odds with the feeling of “I am always at home and also never at home.” Where am I? Who knows!?
Describe a time when you had absolutely no idea what would happen next?
Well, since, as discussed, I work at home and live at work, I spend a lot of time outdoors. I am lucky enough to have access to tons of trails and state parks within walking distance of my house. With that said, it IS the middle of the suburbs, so while we have some cool wildlife (and even better fungi - I’m a mushroom girlie), I’m not usually worried about large predators.
Recently, I was taking a pretty long hike on a warm day. I’d finished all of my water, but I was very close to home, so I wasn’t concerned about imminent dehydration.
I was so close that, spiritually, I was already in my living room with a cold drink. Thus, you can imagine my surprise when I heard a man up ahead of me, making loud clanging noises with a metal water bottle as if trying to scare off a bear. I gave him a look like, “What gives?” and he shouted back, “GET OUT OF HERE!”
I was like, “Uh, am I going to get mauled by something on this fine day? An animal? Or perhaps a man with a very large, heavy water bottle?” I really understood the whole “choose the bear” conundrum in that moment! Turns out you can choose neither if you run like hell!
I ended up having to hike back about half a mile to find a place where I could safely cross over a stream, and got onto a different path…and then had to walk another half a mile to get back to where I was…and then walk the rest of the way home. That hike ended up taking MUCH longer than intended, but I didn’t die, so…yay!?
What’s worse: the moment after a sharp inhale or before a long sigh?
I’m going to say a sharp inhale, because physically, that evokes pain to me. Like, that’s a stabbing. Let’s apply pressure and stop the bleeding, STAT!
A long sigh just makes me think, “I guess I have to fix the paperwork,” which is frustrating, but not as bloody or traumatic (unless you get a paper cut, I guess).
You’re stuck between two people in the middle seat on an airplane, buckled up for a long flight. Who are your ideal OR nightmare seatmates?
My ideal seatmates are quiet, respectful solo travelers who leave me alone, unless they’re saying “Do you know where the outlet is?” or “Excuse me. I need to get past to use the bathroom,” or "I do not want my Biscoff cookie and/or Stroopwaffle. Would you like it?" Especially the last one.
My nightmare seatmates are pretty much anything else - I am a VERY anxious flyer, so I just need to be in the zone so I can do my takeoff and landing rituals. I would also hate to be seated next to the water bottle guy and the bear from the other question.
Ice cream sandwich or deli sandwich? (Be specific)
I’m a vegetarian, so most deli sandwiches do not hold much appeal for me (though I do think egg salad, when prepared well, is an extremely underrated food).
I am, however, a huge ice cream fan. I love a good chipwich (not least of all because they are less likely to stick to your fingers like the chocolate part of a classic ice cream sandwich).
For the ice cream itself, let’s go with a really high-quality vanilla bean, but make sure the cookies are homemade salted chocolate chunk cookies… and let’s dunk the whole thing in a shell of French butter like those viral ice cream cones.
Unless.. Is a taco a sandwich? Because I feel like we could do some truly mindblowing things with the chocotaco template. Chocotaco sundae bar with endless customization? And, heck, let’s dip that in butter, too!
The TL;DR is: I am not going to say no to ice cream.
Be sure to catch Aly’s newest play, Concealer, Tuesday July 14th on the CP stage.