Audio By Carbonatix
67: Kim Porter
Kim Porter’s philosophy: storytelling is a birthright.
The playwright and actor has produced award-winning plays that have showcased nationwide.
Porter was born in Texas and lived in San Francisco before moving to Phoenix five years ago. The Phoenix stages haven’t been the same since.
When Porter’s in town, she’s busy teaching. “I love helping people bring their visions to life, says Porter. “It’s probably fueled by my chronic codependency, but let’s not look too closely at it, shall we?” Her workshop, Writing for the Stage, is for playwrights and solo performers at all levels and is held in Space 55.
“If you have a story you want to add to the conversation, then that’s all the “permission” you need.”
1. List five things on your Inspiration Wall (real or imagined).
1. Postcards from previous shows I’ve written to remind me, when I start to despair from the isolation, that one day this script will be performed and my loneliness will end. For a couple of days.
2. A picture of Philip Seymour Hoffman torn from a magazine. Need I say more?
3. I spend a lot of time designing an imaginary tattoo whose job it will be to quiet my inner self-saboteur. It will remind me to stay focused on the fundamental truths of life. Truths such as; “Life is short,” and “Nobody’s perfect” and “Assume the best of others.” The older I get the more I realize that “what we tell ourselves” is the greatest indicator of future success. I haven’t gotten the tattoo yet because, clearly I’ve given it too many jobs and no one tattoo can do all that.
3. This video created by my friend and collaborator Carla Zilbersmith who died recently after a two and a half year battle with ALS. She was such a dedicated artist that she made two years ago while she was still able-bodied, kept it a perfect secret, and wasn’t even there in the wings to see how it played out at the funeral. And of course, no curtain call. Talk about delaying gratification.
4. Anything by Lynda Barry who is the greatest champion to creativity ever born.
