DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT

My husband André and I talked about making a memoir film for several years and I wrestled with how I would capture his larger than life story. I continued to ask myself, where wilI I begin? Until May 18, 2009, opening day of Wally Shawn's Grasses of a Thousand Colors, directed by André, at the Royal Court Theatre in London.

That afternoon André's brother called with the inflammatory information that their father and uncle may have been economic spies for Hitler. In combination with memories André shared with me about his father, it became the catalyst for beginning the journey of this film. It was the narrative key to the story of a very mysterious life, in the context of history and family evolution. It provided a new and startling perspective to re-imagine, or re-envision André's life and work.

Strangers approach André often to thank him for the effect My Dinner With André had on them. Not in the way one approaches a glittery celebrity, but with gracious awe, the way one approaches a great rabbi or teacher. The film, far from being his only great work, brought some of his deep insights, wisdom, adventures and stories to the world.

What many people do not know is that André Gregory is a master of the American theatre. His work has made an indelible mark on the history of the theatre arts. He has made a lifelong commitment to what he believes is the role of theatre in society: to be an active culture, one which awakens the audience and makes them question themselves, their society and the world in which they live. This active culture requires a small audience. Like chamber music, it cannot be appreciated the same way in a large concert hall. What happens in these small spaces, because of their intimacy, is that audience members become active participants in the ritual being performed.

Being married to André, I have the great opportunity to witness at close hand the making of this work; the extraordinary process of its coming to life. I watch this eccentric and devoted artist live in a deep and engaged way. I watch him age with grace and curiosity, cultivating new forms of creative expression, taking on new projects and meeting each challenge like a young student hungry for knowledge. He is a man who is not afraid to step into his own light, and is, therefore, a rare and precious bird.