Is creativity a talent you’re born with — or something you can train?

Playwright and theatre director Stan Lai, one of the most influential figures in contemporary Asian theatre, shares his philosophy of creativity, discipline, and lifelong artistic growth.

After studying directing at UC Berkeley, Stan returned to Taiwan in the early 1980s when there was almost no theatre infrastructure and helped build a modern theatre movement from the ground up. Over four decades he has written more than forty plays, including Secret Love in Peach Blossom Land, and developed a creative approach rooted in both craft and lived experience.

We talk about his idea of “wisdom and method” — that technique can be taught, but meaningful creativity comes from attention, failure, curiosity, and unlearning what blocks us.

In this conversation:

• whether creativity can be taught

• discipline vs inspiration

• unlearning perfectionism

• failure as part of mastery

• sustaining creativity over decades

• the role of life experience in art

• building meaningful cultural work

• staying humble through success

A thoughtful conversation about developing creativity not just as a skill, but as a way of living and seeing.

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