Meet Leigh E. Bicica | Theatre Artist & Freelance Writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Leigh E. Bicica and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Leigh E., what role has risk played in your life or career?
I have always felt strongly that risk is essential to theatre. Risk is built into the very fabric of it. The actors must risk walking on stage, vulnerable, in front of a crowd of strangers with the hope that they’ll get what the play is trying to say. Actors also have to take huge risks in trusting their director and fellow actors. But more than that, if you aren’t taking some sort of risk with a play, ie., risking alienating your audience, pushing your artistic team, then what’s the point? Audiences may think they want something safe and comforting, but really, they have television for that. The best theatre exposes our darkest thoughts, our hidden longings, our flaws as a society and individuals, and helps us make sense of them. Live theatre does so much more than film and television, but unfortunately, it’s expensive, is often inaccessible to the general public, and in many ways, has lost its way.

Generally speaking, anyone who attempts to turn their passion into a career is taking a risk. What if you’re not good enough? What if your work fails to connect with people? What happens when you have to decide between a gig and paying rent? I’ve had to make tough choices in my career, but it’s for those rare moments when everything you’re doing makes total sense – every artist is working together seamlessly, the audiences get what you’re doing – those moments make all else fade away, and they’re why I keeping pursuing this field.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Whenever taking on a new project, I always ask “Why now? Why is this piece relevant now? What do audiences need from this play?” The harder the challenge, the more I devote myself to the project. I think I get a little high off of danger and risk.

I moved to San Diego two months before the pandemic forced the world to pause. I lived in Philadelphia for ten years, and throughout my life there I always tried to work on projects that scared me a little. I knew I’d produce my best work that way. My last pre-pandemic project was a play called “The Live-Streaming Confessional of #stacylucky.” It was a one-person play about a young woman, lost and lonely, who starts a Twitch account and slowly exposes more and more of her inner life to her growing followers. I wrote, produced, and performed it, even though I hadn’t acted in years. The project was artistically risky, but even more so, it was a huge risk financially. I definitely lost money doing it, but that taught me hard lessons about managing a team, budgeting, and marketing.

I’ve considered re-staging the play here in San Diego. It’s probably more relevant now, post-covid, than it was in 2019.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
All my friends are big margarita lovers, so the first stop would be my favorite watering hole: La Dona. It’s on Bacon and Niagara in Ocean Beach, a ten minute walk from my apartment. Their nachos are amazing, too.

Anyone visiting SD has to spend some time out on the water, so I’d force them to go paddle boarding on Mission Bay (my friends are generally more into indoor activities), snorkel with the leopard sharks in La Jolla Underwater Park, and rent a pontoon boat. I’m a big hiker, so I’d start them off small, maybe with the Ho Chi Minh trail, or something in Mission Trails.

We’d go to Balboa Park to visit the rose and desert gardens, the Japanese Friendship Garden, and The Old Globe. The Old Globe is producing a Mary Zimmerman piece next year, and I cannot wait. I love Mary Zimmerman; she’s theatre royalty.

Dancing in Hillcrest would be a must. There’s some fantastic brunch spots in Hillcrest, too, so when we need to recover from all the partying, we could hit up Great Maple for their french toast logs, or Hash House A Go Go for a delicious scramble.

I’d bring them to the USS Midway since I’m a huge history buff. But what I love best about SD is slowing down, going for long walks, and watching the sunset, which is easy, because I live two blocks from Sunset Cliffs.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My peers in the Philadelphia theatre community helped me grow as an artist. Without their support and honest feedback, I probably would have left the field in my early twenties. It is essential for young artists to hold each other up.

Website: https://www.leighebicica.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leliz0o0/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leigh-e-bicica-367b8130/

Image Credits
Leigh E. Bicica, Jill Klecha, Lauren Sowa.