We were lucky to catch up with David Hilder recently and have shared our conversation below.
David, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
For me — and I say this as a cisgender white man, so, ya know, #caveats — I have a weirdly unshakable confidence in my talent, in my ability. It’s one of those things I know in my core; I can admire, respect, and be awed by the work of other directors and playwrights, but that doesn’t shake how I feel about my own ability to create art. Now, to be fair, this confidence has been augmented by productions I’ve worked on (both the successful and the less successful). But for real I feel a deep well of ability within me.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
As a director, I believe in crafting a production that tells the truth of a play or musical; in creating a safe and collaborative space where artists can do their sharpest, clearest work; and in taking the work, but not myself, seriously.
As a playwright, I’m all about characters struggling to confront the mess inside themselves, and the investigation of changes that may be small in distance but are gigantic in depth.
As a theatre person, I’m drawn to stories both light and dark that offer recognizable human behavior, even if it’s not particularly pretty, and the quest for connection.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
My inherently deep soft skills have been invaluable to my own career path. I understand people — both what they offer AND when they’re putting up false barriers to their own success.
Advice? I wish I had listened more! Just believed other people. Confidence can (or did, in my case) lead to a kind of myopia that is not valuable!
If you knew you only had a decade of life left, how would you spend that decade?
As a Gen X person, I find myself worried about remaining relevant. It’s not that I don’t have confidence in my work; it’s the concern that my point of view doesn’t speak to a large, large world.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.davidhilder.com
- Instagram: @hildernyc
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-hilder-77454120/
Image Credits
Maria J Hackett Photography
