Power can be mellow, vulnerable, beautiful. And yet ripple with invincibility in the face of whatever life can throw at you.  That is what actor, writer, director of Ay Ombe theatre and educator Josefina Baez embodies. The capacity to always be open to bliss and pain, learning and teaching, silence and celebration, spirituality and psychology, the idea of ethnicity and global oneness, music and meditation, past, present and future.

Author of two performance texts  Dominicanish (translated  into Bengali by Shukti Roy and Dibyajyoti Mukhpadhyay) and Comrade, Bliss Ain’t Playing (original text in English; translated into French by Sophie Mariñez), Josefina has travelled the world as a performer at theatre festivals and a teacher, conducting theatre retreats/workshops designed around her own performance autology. 

 Born in La Romana, Dominican Republic and a global citizen at heart, she laughs at the boxes of race, nationality, colour and  more that the world wants to trap people in. Though a Dominican, she lives in New York, has an Indian spiritual Guru and “has Spanish first and last names and that makes her (in other people’s words) less black, and for some others, too black to be Latin!” 

But this is what she says about her identity, “To make sense of the world, I do not adhere my meaning merely to my skin color, sex, creed or nationality but to what I consciously do or don’t from/with/to/for them. No flags. No need to title myself after my obvious attributes from birth. Needless to say that the other’s definition of my blackness, Dominicanness, spirituality or womanhood is their angle.”

 Theirs. Not hers. For anyone who wants to learn who she is, she has a simple answer, “Ask me.” Because “Dialogue would be preferred” to a hurried disregard of the fact that human identity is inclusive, not exclusive. No one knows or can know what it is like to be Josefina Baez because, “After all, I am the one living me.”

 

I first met her at Infinite Souls, a beautiful farmhouse owned by theatre personality Kirtana Kumar and musician Konarak Reddy. Between soaking in the bird songs, trying to learn some Chinese calligraphy and meeting 10 remarkable women from all over the world, I remember being struck by the energy of Josefina. Her absolute, unquestioning positivity that does not come from naivety but intense learning of humanity, of spiritual literature from all religions and love for a limitless life. I remember writing about her, “She is a backpacking yogi  without a map. Someone who can spend years learning Chinese calligraphy from a master and then spend time in India  to learn classical dance and yoga.”

 I also learnt from her that spirituality is not an esoteric but a practical discipline. It is not what you believe in but what you do to make yourself and the world, a more harmonious place. Just like religion, art/theatre/writing to her is also about the “sacred, sovereign individual in the context of the collective.”

 The quest is to not be wasteful, be it life or art and to find balance and capture the essence of a moment by staying in it. And to learn that everything is connected. And that those of us who make sweeping judgements about global terrorism should introspect and see if in our own lives, we try to “control or intimidate the other and have our way.”

“We want to change the world? Let us first just change ourselves,” she had said. In her life and work, Josefina shares everything, the spoken and the unspoken, her own struggles, her mortality, her imperfections.

 In the words of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize winner Junot Díaz, “Josefina Báez has been breaking open hearts and re-ordering minds for more years than I care to count. She is one of North America’s finest artists and she is, without question, one of my favorite writers. She is a sword bathed in flame, she’s a marvel.”

Unboxed Writers caught up with her and asked her to share parts of her rich and many dimensional life with us. 

 How did you know what was your calling and for how long have you been walking that path?

 I do not recall a conscious choice to walk the creative path. I remember myself on it at all times. Given my working class strata, I could not have made a conscious choice to be an artist, since it is really a profession fed by actions and passions that cost money. Lots of money (classes, books, the time to research, to write, to try and try again and again, the travelling). Since April 1986, I have been devoted to crafting my creative voice. Before that I worked for others, followed others. Since 1986 I have been working with others.

 Share moments, turning points when you saw clearly, spiritually, creatively what your path was..

 No eureka moment…I recognize the blessing tattooed in each day. Every day presents its menu; I make a choice. And get my consequences. Adjusting (to life) is required again and again. This trial and error is unending (in creativity and in life).

  Do you see yourself as a healer through your work? Speaking the words of the unspoken..the silence of the overstated? 

  I have chosen a life that heals me from all its angles. It might invite others to heal themselves too. ‘The words of the unspoken’ could be my national anthem.

 Explain if you can, your connection with India, the where, why and how of it..

  Like many people in this side of the world….I too gladly have my Guru story. Yes, I met a living philosopher in New York, a spiritual teacher, a Guru. He is perfect for me. Since his guidance has been at all times based on a practical spirituality with the most amazing results, I was initiated in Mantra Yoga meditation. His love and respect for India was intrinsic in his teaching. Thus the natural thing was to go to India. Since mid 80s, I have been visiting India. And I do not feel like a foreigner in its flow.

 And art, drama, writing, healing, connecting, teaching, how did all of this come about?

 Hmm..like cooking, life too is about putting the ingredients necessary in every part of the journey. One spice first…or many at the same time…the heat of the heart stir fries it.                              

 What have you understood about life? What do you make of the world? Of pain? Of the purpose of it all?

 When no theory can grasp life’s dance, then I just dance it. Including its walks, its pauses, as part of the overall choreography. When I need to cry, I do. And when I laugh, oh my, I do! I understand that all is part of it. And that everything is everywhere; that every time includes all times. Pain exists at the same time with no pain; as silence lives with sounds and darkness with light. I count on my contradictions. And keep it simple. Purpose is what you make of it.  

 Do you sometimes feel, being creative is both a joy and a burden because it demands so much ?

 The advantage for me in this kind of life is the constant unfolding of all possible inner knots.  And in the process, I have become a better person by facing my humanness. 

 What would you say to those battling a world driven by success and heedless ambition? Those who are embittered and defeated, depressed and alone?  

 Ask yourself what do you really want? Are you the so-called alternative-independent or progressive artist because you have not gotten the chance to be in the limelight or in the mainstream that you criticize the most? Redefine success. Redefine your path, every time you want. It is your path and only you have to live with the consequences.

Every creative choice has its sacrifices. None is better than the other. In fact they compliment each other. It is impossible to transform my surroundings so I work on myself. This is my most political act. This is my revolution. Evolution. Solution.  And there are so many people in this boat; so many that we have a global community. A humane globalization.

If defeated, let’s ask ourselves what we really want? Do we want what comes from or depends on others? If we do, then we do have a big problem. Since the others may have a different plan. Depressed? Look for help. Look for natural ways of tackling this malady too. The world over has its level of depression. In that, believe me, you are never alone. Instead of looking at what is missing, check out what you have in the positive side. All of us do have plenty to be grateful  for (our senses, to start with!)

Alone? Enjoy the aloneness. That will pass too. In fact, we have all been in company when we felt as if we were alone. So all is relative.  And everything is changing at all times. So are our emotions. This life just is. And its ability to change is the core essence of existence.

Pics: Giovanni Savino 

More about Josefina on http://about.me/josefinaBaezAyombeT

Reema Moudgil is the author of  Perfect Eight (http://www.flipkart.com/b/books/perfect-eight-reema-moudgil-book-9380032870?affid=unboxedwri )