JustArts: Tell me about your past experience directing!

Elana Kellner: This is my first time directing a full-length play. Before this I directed a Quickie ... and I assistant-directed “She Kills Monsters” a couple years ago.

JA: This was a very ambitious first show to direct. How did you come to that decision?

EK: The play was proposed and I applied to direct it. So I wasn’t the one who chose the play but I thought it looked very interesting. I read it and it was hilarious, and I  thought it would be very cool, so I applied to direct.

JA: How did you manage the controlled chaos?

EK: The cast is amazing, so they were really great at working through all the controlled chaos. They just had so much fun with it and so did I. 

JA: Can you tell me about the set design?

EK: Molly Rocca designed the set and they’re amazing. The front [of each set piece] is … as it would be in the play within the play. It flips … a couple times and then it looks like the backstage. It’s really cool and very interesting. Molly did an amazing job.

JA: What’s your favorite moment in the play?

KW: I really like the [scenes] where there is someone on the upper level [talking to] someone on the lower level. I think it looks really cool and I think it’s really funny. 

JA: What were some highs and lows of the process of getting this show together?

EK: A high point is watching the whole show come together. After each rehearsal, running the scenes that we would do is so fun because we really go to see them come to life, and [see] the actors bring their characters to life. I would say a low point is when things were stressful. Sometimes there were a lot of logistics to figure out … but it always worked out and it was for the best.

JA: Is there anything else you’d like to add?

EK: Thank you to [my assistant director] Alex Harrington, she’s great. And the whole cast and crew is awesome.

—Maya Zanger-Nadis