Laura Sacha Eslin ( 1983) is a theatre producer and contemporary dance choreographer born in Vienna, and is now living/working between Bangkok and Los Angeles. I attended one of her performances which was purely magical as it contained elements of dance inspired from ballet, and traditional South East Asian folkloric dance. Laura was working on a massive public performance in L.A. when the pandemic hit, and has since retreated to her home in Bangkok. Laura is in fact, not a fan of technology, and does not use a computer, so she won’t be seeing this interview….but we greatly thank her for having this chat with us as we get to the end of a chaotic year.

Greatest inspirations Laura:

I am inspired by nature, by the people I meet in all my travels, by art, music and literature. ( that I engage with in person firsthand, not on a phone or virtually).

How has the pandemic affected your industry or creativity:

I don’t want to sound like an asshole, but honestly having the time to retreat in my home here in Bangkok has been the best thing that could have happened to me. I finally have time to feel creative, to explore ideas, to experience life firsthand. I have tried everything, from writing, photography, painting, sculpture everything. How its affected my industry well this is complicated because my project was put on hold in May, and we are not sure when and if it will get the green light. People aren’t going to shows but I hope that will change soon.

Pet Peeves Laura:

Phones and social media. Influencers and people using technology in the wrong way. What is wrong with people? How can anyone spend so much time curating your fake life on Instagram? Why not post about your real life, the good the bad and the ugly? That would make it interesting. I don’t want to see your selfies. Do you think anyone really gives a fuck about your selfies? I really don’t understand people’s obsession and addiction for posting selfies of themselves. Taking them for personal reasons is one thing, another is that need for attention to have to share with the world….its really quite sad! The world is going to shit and you think “ hey let me just post some pics of myself” no wonder we’re so fucked.

That said, I’d love to hear what you think about influencers?

Hahahahahahaha don’t get me started Leila.

Upcoming plans or projects?

Things are a little bit up in the air still, but I am working on some interesting non profit work that we hope to launch in Spring. This year was challenging for everyone, but if we pull through and come together to support each other, good things can/might come out of these fucked up times. Thank you for your interest in my work. wishing you and your readers a safe holiday season.