Exclusive Interview: Devin Kawaoka Talks Slave Play, What His Character has Taught Him, and More

Devin Kawaoka is an emerging storyteller who has captivated audiences with the narratives he’s brought to life on the stage and screen. His past credits include The Path, Runaways, Good Trouble, and Goliath. Currently, you can see Devin in the thought-provoking Slave Play. Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Devin about his career, bringing Slave Play from Broadway to Los Angeles, and what his character has taught him.

PC: How did you discover your passion for the arts and storytelling?
Devin: My grandmother was an artist. She was a school librarian by trade but was always doing something artistic when we spent time together. We would paint with watercolors, watch old movie musicals and sing songs, but my favorite memories were her stories.

At the time, she and my grandfather had built a sailboat in their backyard in Michigan and sailed it through the canal system down the Atlantic to the Florida Keys. Every time we visited she would regale us with stories about barracudas that would bite off a fisherman’s hand or pirates that would try to take them hostage only to be turned away by my grandfather’s shotgun. You never knew where the truth ended and the fantasy began as she had a flair for the dramatic, but it didn’t matter. With a twinkle in her eye, she introduced me to my imagination and the joy of sharing it with others.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Devin: I’ve always loved acting school and still continue to take classes today. It’s where I feel at home, honing my craft with a community of like-minded individuals. The three years I spent at NYU Graduate Acting were some of the most impactful as it was sixteen hours a day, six days a week with some of the most brilliant theater practitioners in the world. Anything was possible there.

PC: Slave Play is a show that embraces the fact that audiences likely feel uncomfortable watching it and have a lot to process after. How does that audience reaction/experience feel compared to other shows you’ve been in?
Devin: I was once in a production of Deathtrap at the Pioneer Theatre Company in Salt Lake City, Utah. The twist in the play—spoiler alert—was a gay kiss that happened between the two main characters. Every night we’d have an angry patron or two that would walk out demanding their money back after the kiss. At the time I thought we were doing something revolutionary. But in retrospect, I have never been in a play that challenges its audiences like Slave Play. It does not ask to be liked. It puts forward a reality in America that we need to deal with. And it makes you converse with this reality. Whether you love it or hate it, if you are still talking or tweeting about it days later, the play has done its job. As Jeremy O. Harris writes in the play, “Thank you for listening.”

PC: You made your Broadway debut in Slave Play. Did anything surprise you about the experience? What was the biggest takeaway?
Devin: I never had big Broadway dreams. My ideal situation was always to be in a hit Off-Broadway play. So when I got to be on Broadway in a hit Off-Broadway play I don’t think I could have dreamed of anything better. Since I live in LA now, I was so happy to return to New York where I spent all my formative years and get to share this dream with so many people from my past. So many old friends, from kindergarten to graduate school, came out to support me and cheer me on. I never thought so many people would make an effort to come support this moment, and I continue to marvel at the community one forges in this life.

PC: What has it meant to you to bring it from Broadway to LA?
Devin: Since moving to LA, I’ve done mostly on-camera work and very little theater. So getting to return home from Broadway and share not only this groundbreaking play but also show my theater artistry has been really special. So many of the friends I’ve made here have never seen me on stage, and I feel so blessed that I get to share with them an art form that made me who I am and that I love deeply.

PC: Has playing Dustin brought up conversations with yourself and others that you hadn’t expected?
Devin: At the beginning of the process, I set out to teach Dustin everything I knew about being a gay, half-Japanese man in this world. To show him the ways I operate. However, throughout the run on Broadway and in LA, I realized how much Dustin could teach me. I’ve learned so much about how I listen—or don’t—and how I speak—or don’t. Dustin has taught me a lifetime of lessons, and I have been forever changed because of it.

To keep up with Devin, follow him on Twitter and Instagram.

Photo Credit: Emil Cohen