Name: Julie Dunlap

Hometown: Lawrence, Kansas

Education: B.A. in Human Biology from the University of Kansas (I’ve used it to make four humans)

Favorite Credits: MotherFreakingHood! --- prior to that, probably Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at the Lawrence Arts Center in Lawrence, KS

Why theater?: Live theatre is a communal experience. As we all share the same space, breathe the same air, and witness the same uniquely created, fleeting moments, the audience, performers, and crew become one. There is no other form of entertainment as fulfilling.

Tell us about MotherFreakingHood!: MFH follows three unlikely friends as they bond in the very real trenches of childrearing. With raw, irreverent, truth we celebrate the absurdly unpredictable ride that is motherhood as Rachael, Angie, and Marcia find that ride is best shared with friends. And champagne. And sometimes Xanax, but mostly friends.

What inspired you to write MotherFreakingHood?: Sara and I dabbled in theatre, writing songs and one-act musicals while roommates at the University of Kansas. Twentysome years later, I enlisted Sara in telling the real story behind the mom jeans and minivans the term “motherhood” so often brings to mind. With six kids between us, we had plenty of inspiration. Also it was a great excuse to drink Jack Daniels.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: Theatre that becomes a part of me long after the curtain closes – whether it’s a line or a lyric or a soul-lifting melody or orchestration that play in my head as life rolls along – speaks to me the most. As for artists, I would give my right nipple to compose like Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber. Probably not my left one, as it’s usually a bit more sensitive and may hurt significantly more. I’d save that one for Robert Lopez who – time and again – combines musical mastery with heart and humor and most definitely would be left-nipple-worthy.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Melissa McCarthy, every day of the week!

What show have you recommended to your friends?: So many NYMF shows!! Night Tide, Numbers Nerds, Temple of the Souls, Errol and Fidel, Goree All-Girl String Band, Freedom Riders, A Wall Apart – pretty much all of them! Outside of NYMF, I can’t recommend 1984 and INDECENT highly enough. Not musical comedies, for sure, but both are exquisite pieces of art

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Tina Fey would rock the role of “Girl in braces with the Willie Ames perm” in the movie “(Mid)West Side Story.”

If you could go back in time and see any play or musical you missed, what would it be?: Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Nachos

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: WAAAAAAYYYYYY better paid

What’s up next?: After MFH takes over the girls’ night out circuit, I have an idea for a two-person, multicharacter play, but first I have to move another child off to college and probably take a nap.

For more on MotherFreakingHood, visit www.MotherFreakingHood.com

Name: Sara Stotts

Hometown: I grew up in Ponca City, Oklahoma but now live outside of Chicago in Wilmette, IL

Education: Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Northwestern University

Favorite Credits: My favorite role was in Co-Ed Prison Sluts at The Annoyance Theater in Chicago which at the time was the longest running musical in Chicago history. Also, I got to play our ensemble character, Marcia, in MotherFreakingHood! at our debut in Lawrence, Kansas which was awesome. 

Why theater?: Theater is a genuinely unique opportunity to be expressive and emotive and have others laugh or cry with you. It brings people together in beautiful ways. I have already made numerous friends in this incredible experience of being selected as an invited production for The New York Musical Festival. Nothing will match this very different and unique experience.

Tell us about MotherFreakingHood!: MotherFreakingHood! is a raw look at three women in different aspects of motherhood who meet and become unlikely friends as they bond through battling diapers, bullies, teenage hormones, Prom night and more. You don’t need a uterus to relate to this show - men go through much of the same thing, they would just sing about it in a lower vocal range.

What inspired you to write MotherFreakingHood!?: I wrote this show as an excuse to spend more time with my best friend and college roommate, Julie Dunlap. Don’t tell my husband- he thinks all these trips these past years have been for “production purposes.” Kidding! Julie and I had so much to say about this crazy and unpredictable rollercoaster we parents go through that is seemed natural to make fun of it in the best way possible- sing about it!

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: Comedy inspires me the most. I really love living in Chicago and having access to Broadway shows on tour or in previews and musical theater. Also, the improv scene in Chicago is incredible and I developed my funny bone at The Annoyance Theater and The Second City, both of which still inspire me today.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Carol Burnett rocks. She is the first comedienne that really inspired me. If I met her I would lose the ability to speak, sort of like a rigor mortis reaction. So, I guess it wouldn’t be really fun for her to work me…

What show have you recommended to your friends?: I have recommended so many NYMF shows! The Goree All-Girls String Band, Night Tide, Numbers Nerds, Temple of the Souls, Play Like a Winner, Errol and Fidel, Freedom Riders, The Fourth Messenger, Georama – all of the NYMF shows are amazing. Each of these shows are very different from another and are new works which is fascinating to see.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Chelsea Handler would play me in the Lifetime movie, “God F***ed Up a Little Bit, But It’s OK!”

If you could go back in time and see any play or musical you missed, what would it be?: I would love to see Bea Arthur and Angela Lansbury in Mame. I used to listen to the CD in college and would have loved to see them live.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Jack Daniels with a side of Jack Daniels.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: Saner

What’s up next?: I’m going to take a very long nap. Then we’ll take MotherFreakingHood! to theaters around the country. We want every mother and parent to be able to laugh at themselves with us!

For more on MotherFreakingHood, visit www.MotherFreakingHood.com