Intersections Artist: David Emerson Toney

An Interview

Jacqueline Lawton: What type of artist are you?
David Emerson Toney: I would say that I’ve made every effort to use my art to lead me to a truth of the human condition.

JL: Where were you born? How did you end up where you are now?
DT: I was born in Cleveland, Oh. I came to DC straight after graduate school a long time ago. I really love this city. It took me 18 years to come back after I left. But I’m so glad I did.

JL: Who are your heroes?
DT: Ralph Waldo Emerson and Cleo Reginald Pizana.

JL: If you could be an animal, what would you be and why?
DT: I think I’d be a giant mutt of a dog. Brown with a black face. At heart I’m a care taker guardian and I’m loyal to a fault.

JL: What is your favorite quote?
DT: Nothing can bring you peace but yourself. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles. “Ralph Waldo Emerson”

JL: Why did you want to be a part of intersections?
DT: I feel it is going to be an uplifting event not only for those who come to see it but for those who participate directly. Since the thrust of it is to understand our connectedness.

JL: Finish this sentence: I am an intersection of...
DT: America, Hope, Pride, Blackness, Manhood.
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David Emerson Toney & Chris Youstra Musical
Elysian Fields, Act One of a vibrant new Toney-Youstra musical collaboration that resets Shakespeare’s King Lear in the deep South.
Sunday, Mar 7 at 7:30 PM
LAB 1
Tickets: $10
For audiences ages 13 and up.

Be the first to experience the compelling words of playwright David Emerson Toney and the haunting music of composer Chris Youstra in a word premier reading of Act One of Elysian Fields. Actor/singers will bring to life the story an old freed black slave in the Civil-War-Era South who, after a windfall, divides his property among his children. Inspired by Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy, King Lear, this musical asks: "When can we no longer blame the world around us for our own shortcomings?" The audience will be invited to share their responses to this powerful new work in a post-reading talk-back. The Atlas is proud to welcome back the playwright-composer team who created its opening production, Coming Home.