Ain't Behavin'

On July 9, Knox’s artistic odyssey landed her at a meeting for freelance and emerging directors. She was in a jovial mood and spouted off on one of her favorite topics. “I don’t believe in the myth of ‘making it,’ ” she told the room of twenty or so directors. “I don’t believe in the idea that you have to work regionally or in New York for people to think you’ve made it. What constitutes ‘making it’? ‘Making it’ implies you’ve hit something, you’ve arrived, and that it’s easy street from then on. This myth is something that’s created and perpetuated by the media, which makes certain artists the darling of the month or of the year, which is counterproductive. Artists need to define their own standards of success. You could look at me and say I’ve only directed one show at the Guthrie and not much regionally, so I’m a big loser. But you can also look at it and say I’ve kept a small, professional theater alive for eighteen years.”

This was exactly what Genevieve Bennett, a twenty-nine-year-old director who moved here from New York City three years ago, needed to hear. “I didn’t know what to expect from her,” Bennett said. “I’m really glad she said what she did because it’s true. It’s good to be reminded of that. She’s amazing.”

For Knox, The Pillowman is simply another one of Frank’s ventures, which happens to take place inside a multimillion-dollar institution. If she harbors dreams of making it by being invited into the Guthrie—her show is listed in the same program as Jane Eyre, Ian McKellen, and the Royal Shakespeare Company, after all—she hides it well. “The Pillowman is not a show that’s going to be on the thrust stage,” she tells the group, gesturing with her beer bottle for emphasis. “This way, they can put it in the studio and say, ‘It’s that naughty girl who can’t behave that did it.’” When her audience laughs, Knox smiles triumphantly. She knows she’s speaking to the next generation of rabble-rousers, and they like her, frankness and all.