Kate Ash
@kateashactor with her luscious pants and groovy glasses.
-Theatre-
This absolute “Almost Famous” queen. I love when my circle opens up a little bit and I get the chance to meet people I haven’t had the opportunity to photograph in a show yet.
We finally got together a day where we were both free to do the interview. You see, Kate is a funeral director when she isn’t acting and so I knew she had a very unique perspective on the huge number of deaths in our world right now and also a very busy schedule. Also, what a crazy day job right?
Interviewed 6.5.20
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Casey: First and foremost, how are you?
Kate: I am very fortunate that I'm able to work throughout all of this. And my life generally is very good. I've been overwhelmed the past few weeks and internalizing more than I realized the current chaos in the world. I get migraines and I have some, like, neck spasms. And the other day I had the worst migraine I've had in a long time. And I realized it was because I really have just been so stressed and haven't had my normal outlets to release it. So, I mean, really, I am fine and I am doing well. I more so internalize the pain and the struggle other people are going through.
Casey: Is it more good days? Is it more bad days?
Kate: It's more good days. And the older I get, the better I am at managing stress and deterring depression. And so it's definitely more good days. I think I have to be even more conscious of how I am treating myself. So the days that aren't good, I'm usually just like not getting out of bed, which still isn't the worst thing. But, you know, it's- I'm fortunate that my life hasn't been disrupted too much.
Casey: How is your family holding up?
Kate: They're doing fine, they're in Pennsylvania. So it's just me down here. They're OK. I'm glad they're taking it seriously and I don't have to convince them too much. So I'm glad about that.
Casey: Good. What have you been doing in quarantine?
Kate: I am both an actor and I am a funeral director. So my job is always there and there's always a need. So I've been working continuously and I haven't been able to audition or go to the theater and normal things that I love to do. But it has encouraged me to write more. And so my friend and I, who has been my creative partner for a few years, she and I have really been encouraged to write a lot. And I've been doing small things like sharing poetry readings on social media and just things to keep me engaged. And so creatively, that's where I've been. And it's actually been a nice re-set. Instead of just looking at it as more like an aggressive sort of means to an end type of thing. And so basically working and just grounding myself.
I started watching Schitt's Creek, which is hilarious. I love it. I've definitely been spending more time on social media and using a screen than I like to. Just because I haven't been able to interact with people as much. And so the past week or so, I've really tried to just reel it in a bit and focus more on tangible things.
Casey: Is that in part due to the recent things that have happened?
Kate: I've certainly been speaking out on social media and I want to do more than that. But I think that I've just become a little addicted to it. And I never have been before, especially with the global problems that are going on. I can still be engaged in those and learn about them rather than commenting on people's posts. I can watch the news. I can donate to charity. I can do other things rather than just using social. So I'm trying to diversify.
Casey: Sure. Kind of going back to creating, how has the motivation been to create, especially when you're working a pretty demanding job during the day?
Kate: It's been much more natural than it has been because I'm doing it for myself. And I'm not doing it for anyone else. And so I'm really grateful for that. I took a break from acting for almost a year because I realized I was using it to try and get some sort of fulfillment and prove something. And I really wasn't satisfied for a while. And I took a break because I knew I needed it and I didn't like how I was feeling. And I think this sort of social distancing lifestyle, and Georgia hasn't had a huge quarantine, but the social distancing lifestyle we're living now, it's allowed me to rediscover my creativity in ways that are very personal to me. The ways that I don't mean to flaunt. And so that's actually been a blessing.
Casey: Do you think you'll go back? When we are able to get back into theaters and things like that? What do you think your process will be like then? Will it be similar to what it was before or do you think you'll make some adjustments?
Kate: I'm going to go in it from a very different place and a healthier place, because I know I can always come back to myself. I know I'm not just an actor. I am a creative person. And so I think it will be a healthier place where I come from and more selective.
Casey: I hope everyone who says that gets to stick to it. So obviously we miss creating with people, we miss performing and being in the theater. What else do you miss about before?
Kate: I have always been introverted. I have to tell you, social distancing hasn't been a huge change for me. But in some ways it has, because the small things that I do are the only things I do. So going to yoga classes every day I have not been able to do. I miss doing that. And I co-run a book club for Atlanta actors. And so we've been doing it via Zoom, but I miss meeting up in person once a month and I miss just going out and meeting people or scheduling a lunch date with a friend, which like I said, I didn't do that often. I like my alone time, but it's become even more meaningful to me. And in my mind, I'm going to be more social than I was before. But I don't know if that's true.
I haven't started yet because I'm planning on seeing my father soon. But I've just been social distancing as much as possible. I think I might loosen up a little bit. But I'm still ordering my groceries. I still get a spike of anxiety when I'm in public and other people aren't wearing their masks. And so I'll have to see how I feel. I think that my main concern right now is if I interact with my dad, I don't want to be in a place where I can potentially become a carrier. And it's just that it feels like the numbers really aren't clear. Like, it's not clear if it's actually OK to go out yet. There still isn't a vaccine. We still aren't clear on how concise antibody testing is and what it means. So I'm still isolating as much as possible in this moment.
Casey: What will be the thing that makes you feel safe enough to go out again and do theatre and do auditions? Is it a vaccine? Is it numbers really low?
Kate: I think that it would have to be, if not a vaccine, at least common antibody testing that confirms that if you have antibodies to corona virus that you cannot catch it. Because that way, at least, you know you wouldn't be a carrier. But it's still not clear that's what it means. I think that would be it, unless this just drags on for so long that I give up.
Casey: Do you have any new sacred rituals or new habits or new spaces in your home or in your yard that you've found that bring you solace during this time that you want to continue to visit? To continue to do? Once we start a new normal.
Kate: No, but maybe I should.
Casey: So the things that you've been doing have been the stuff that you were doing before?
Kate: Well, I suppose so. But, you know, I've been missing the places I go to. For me. I need to get out of my house to feel good. And so really working out at home doesn't do it for me. And I really enjoy getting out when I can get out. And I like my home being for that purpose. So I haven't really carved out a space here that's separate from what I do. But that might be a good thought to entertain. I haven't thought about it.
Casey: So what's bringing you solace right now?
Kate: I have structure with going to work, which is good. Like I said, I've been expressing my creativity in some more internalized ways, such as writing and reading. That's bringing me comfort and I guess just not having that sort of external pressure to keep going. Which I've always done, and I'm sure it's in part to external pressure, but also because I like to stay active. You know go to work, go to rehearsal, go to bed, wake up, repeat. But I think that just being allowed to slow down has been a nice gift that I've been given.
Casey: Now, you were talking about how work has kind of been crazy right now. Can you talk a little bit about that?
Kate: Yeah. So thankfully, Death here is not like it is in New York right now. I was speaking to a funeral home from New York a couple months ago when this started. I was talking to them because sometimes we need to transport a deceased to another funeral home if there's a cemetery plot in another state. And so I started to ask this funeral director just the general questions. And he said, "Slow down and let me bring you into my realm of reality here. We have 40 bodies in the building. We're having 12 funerals a day." And I mean, they just couldn't accommodate what they normally accommodate. And it was really sobering to hear that.
I work at two funeral homes. One is for Jewish community and one is for other than Jewish community. And we have been busy. And we have had several covid cases. At least, I'd say, at least two a week now. And generally the deceased are people who are elderly and who had pre-existing conditions. And so it has been busier. And for just up until a week or so ago, we were working on a sort of graveyard shift, excuse the pun, where half of the staff was not interacting with the other half of the staff. So we were working three days on, three days off, like twelve-hour days. And now we're back to normal, but required to wear masks. So I'm sure the numbers are greater than we see because not everyone who's dying of covid is confirmed to have covid or are being tested for covid. I think the greatest risk for our staff is for those of us who go into hospitals or go into homes where covid is confirmed and they're exposed to the living with covid. And we just are taking more precautions, personal protective equipment when handling the disease.
And funerals are very different now. The governor just passed a new regulation that up to 25 people are allowed at cemeteries before it was up to 10. So funerals are really limited with who can attend. Many people cannot travel in from out of state or they choose not to because of the risks. And some funerals are being streamed via Zoom and Facebook, which is a different experience. Some families want it. Some are turned off by the concept. And so it's just hard to see the accommodations that families need to make at this time, at a time when you want to hug your relatives. When you want the people you don't see to be there. And when you want to be able to be with your loved one, when they're dying and you cannot be in the hospital with them, it's really sad to see. And we see death all the time so not that much is different, except that the whole world knows this is happening and we're seeing the effects.
Casey: What do you think you'll take away from this time? We can pretend this is the end and that we are just looking back.
Kate: Right. Definitely more value on how I use my time. And using it wisely. Keeping in contact with family. Really, it's just being there for each other in a way that... we are in spirit, right? We're there for each other in spirit, but we're not there in person. And I think we've realized that it's so important to have that human connection. I guess just not underestimating the value of that.
Casey: That's great. And hopefully, we can all do that. Thank you.
