Tori and Mabelle talk with James Vásquez, Resident Artist of The Old Globe Theatre, about trading in his baseball glove for tap shoes at 12 years old. He talks about how his father deeply influenced his love of both the arts and baseball, and he shares his full circle moments from childhood to director at The Old Globe. He reveals why he loves being told “no,” why the tech process is his favorite part of directing, and his belief that artists should also be activists.
Writing prompt (courtesy of James Vásquez)
An Item From Your Childhood. Riffing off of “Under a Baseball Sky” – What is the item from your childhood that you have to reconcile with? James has his–and it’s sitting in a shoebox in the closet right now. What would that story be?
Connect with James Vásquez:
IG: @the_jimmyv
Website: https://www.jamesvasquez.com/
James’s bio:
Pedro James Vásquez is a Resident Artist of The Old Globe Theatre, where he directed Under a Baseball Sky, Hair, the West Coast premiere of Tiny Beautiful Things, the world premiere of American Mariachi, Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, Rich Girl, and Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show.
Vásquez received the Craig Noel Award for Outstanding Direction of a Musical in 2018 for In the Heights (Moonlight Stage Productions) and in 2010 for Sweeney Todd (Cygnet Theatre Company).
His other recent directing/choreography credits include Damn Yankees (Marriott Theatre), Cabaret (Goodspeed Musicals), In the Heights (Dallas Theater Center), American Mariachi (Denver Center for the Performing Arts Theatre Company), Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax (as associate director; Children’s Theatre Company), The Addams Family and Chicago (Moonlight Stage Productions), West Side Story and Cats (San Diego Musical Theatre), the West Coast premiere of [title of show], Pippin, and Next Fall (Diversionary Theatre), and Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Pageant (Cygnet Theatre Company), as well as developmental workshops at the La Jolla Playhouse and Goodspeed Musicals.
Vásquez is an amateur gardener, lover of dogs, and graduate of The Juilliard School.
James Vásquez directed “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” currently running at The Old Globe in San Diego, CA!: https://www.theoldglobe.org/pdp/23-season/the-merry-wives-of-windsor/#?startDate=2023-07-01&%3FendDate=2023-07-31