alfonzo kahlil
| playwright | performer | poet | voiceover artist |
alfonzo kahlil is a wordsmith that specializes in the dramatic arts. Raised on the W(b)estside of Chicago, alfonzo believes in the power of performance to document, the power of writing to dismantle, and the power of words to delectate. alfonzo holds a BFA in theatre from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and is the author of SCORPIO and THE NEW / NEW TESTAMENT; with additional contributions being found in The End of Chiraq. alfonzo is represented by Stewart Talent and was previously seen in The Island (Court u/s John), Allegiance (Goodman), The Dream Engine (Kirby), Track 13 (Young Fugitives), The Seekers (Bushwick), Lectures (Cloud), EFFICIENCY (Dixon), HOLD UP, and Free Street: 50 Years of Joy & Justice.
artistic vision
Don't Call Me Al
My name is alfonzo kahlil. Not Alfonzo Kahlil. Not Alfonso Kahlil. Not Alfonzo Khalil. Not Alonzo, not Alonso, not Alphonse or Alphonso. Not AL (especially not AL). My name is alfonzo solomon kahlil.
There are two things I believe in. Radical Politics and Questions. Radical, to me, is the embodiment and concept of Change. Questions, on the other hand, is the ability to execute Change. There is no Change without curiosity. There is no Change without the ability to Question. When both are combined, Art as a concept itself, is born. I see no need for Art for Art’s sake. Art is relational, meaning, it is always in dialogue with some idea or function. Therefore my Art has a function, it is not pure aesthetic. There is a belief that Art is aesthetic. I say aesthetic is the deathbed of Art, if we resign it there. I don’t like Answers in my Art. That’s because I have no Answers to give. Only Questions to raise. My Art seeks Change. There is no Change if I give an Answer, because the consumer, the audience, has not Questioned. I believe we live in a world where many Answers are given. This is not the same thing has seeking Answers. Seeking is movement. Seeking is active. We live in a world where we do not seek. We expect Answers. There are forces + people, in the Political World (or just the World because everything, and I mean everything, is political) who seek to take advantage of that concept. Therefore, if given an Answer, we must Question. And only then do we see Change. My Art strives to facilitate that process. I have no Answers. That does not mean I do not seek Answers in my Art. This only means, that the first step, is always to Question. My Art seeks to encourage Questions. My Art seeks dialogue. Therefore, Questioning can be the most Radical thing a person can accomplish and I want us, all of us, to be as Radical as possible. For Art’s sake.
performance.
voice.
