Chloe Zonis

Future Job: playwright/director

Classes/ECs that contribute to this form of art: Theatre Productions and International Thespian Society

Future College: undecided

Future Major: Theatre, BFA

Wingspan: What inspired you to start playwriting?

Zonis: “I’ve always known I was going into theatre, but I just didn’t know if I wanted to write shows because I had never tried. As soon as I started I realized how much I enjoy creating the stories that are going to be performed.”

Wingspan: How did you practice this?

Zonis: “I’ve always loved writing, but probably in middle school was when I started writing plays and novels for fun. After being in the Writer’s Guild throughout high school, it became more of a passion than a hobby, and I try to write a few pages of something everyday.”

Wingspan: How is it different from being an actress or being part of a stage crew?

Zonis: “Being in the crew means creating a story and acting means being in the story. They’re completely different aspects, where one requires more of an emotional effort, the other requires creativity.”

Wingspan: Is there anything you are working on right now?

Zonis: “Right now I am assistant directing my play, Ant Trap, which is going to be performed at the Frisco Discovery Center in March.”

Wingspan: How do you balance playwriting, school and any other activities you have?

Zonis: “I suppose I find some form of enjoyment in a chaotic work schedule. My planner is quite honestly my lifeline, because I do also work and take rigorous courses in school as well as the fact that I’m in a show as an actor right now too. However, it’s the days that I’m sitting at home doing nothing, I start to feel unproductive and anxious.”

Wingspan: How are you performing the play you wrote amid COVID-19?

Zonis: “For Ant Trap, we’ve ensured to keep social distancing in all our rehearsals, as well as requiring masks. It’s not an ideal situation, but we have ensured all of our actors that we will be maintaining the same FISD guidelines throughout rehearsals for everyone’s safety.”

Wingspan: How has playwriting changed you, as a person, and your views on theatre?

Zonis: “Before I started to write, I viewed theatre more as an artform than a medium of communication. By doing my research and writing about different perspectives, I have learned so much about humanity and people I might now have otherwise thought I relate to.” 

Wingspan: If you could give yourself advice on playwriting, and anything related to it, what would you say?

Zonis: “One piece of advice I have to remember (especially as a type A personality) is that not everything is going to be perfect, and not everything should be. Theatre is about humanity, and when we forget about that and focus on the end product (finishing a play, getting a role, etc.) we forget why we do it in the first place.”