When I came to India to perform Kahani, I did not expect to fall for it. I did not fall in love persay, but through time I began to find myself drinking in India's dust like leaves photosynthisize the sun. I feel the same thing happened to my attitudes towards performing Kahani. State-side, performances helpfully forced me to rexamine myself and my personal parallels to my character Sunaina, and pushed me outside of my comfort zone. Here, it was a more outward exploration. Here, I was confronted with the question of "how do you know?" Whether it was Indian culture, the family, its workings and oppression and trust and bonds and relationships, or other themes, there was an outsider's question of that connection, which I was able to share my personal findings and bounce them off of others. The secret? Therein lies the same between the culture I know and the culture I explored, albeit different constructs. Performing Kahani in the location it was set made the international similarities all the more clear for me, and possibly more clear for the audience as well through our talkbalks. Here, our story (no pun intended) has come to fruition and clarity at a level that can break even language barriers and personal biases and stigmas, my own included.
McKenna Kring
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