Twice 5 Miles Radio, hosted by James Navé, welcomes master storyteller and actor Regina Ress (http://www.reginaress.com) to the microphone. When you first read this show's title, The Past Becomes the Present; you might say, "obviously, how could it not?" You might go on to say, "when you think about it, the past not only becomes the present, it also compliments, shapes, creates, and informs the present."
The idea that the past becomes the present reminds me of the opening lines of T.S. Eliot's poem The Wasteland, "Time present and time past /
Are both perhaps present in time future / And time future contained in time past."
Regina and I start this conversation about acting and storytelling in the present. Then Regina quickly turns our discussion to the past through stories of the young bohemians in New York's Greenwich Village in the early part of the 20th century, 1900-1925. Regina tells us that some of the notable people on the scene were Edna St. Vincent Millay, Eugene O'Neill, John Reed, and Mabel Dodge.
By touching on those early years in Greenwich Village, Regina beautifully illustrates how the past becomes the present, especially in artistic communities. The early New York bohemians influenced many generations of artists who went to Paris, Taos, Black Mountain College, and countless, far-flung places all over the globe. It seems as Regina points out, that art and restlessness go hand-in-hand.
In this conversation, Regina reminds us that storytelling is the number one delivery system that allows the past to become the present. We are who we are because of the stories we've been told, the stories we know, and the stories we tell. We exist in a timeless cycle full of all things, including stories. "Time present and time past / Are both perhaps present in time future / And time future contained in time past."
Enjoy this interview.
