crew interviews
faybian kai (it/they)
assistant stage manager
faybian is a queer, disabled, first nations young person who has always had a passion for storytelling in all its forms. throughout their life, faybian has engaged in dance and voice classes, acting in shows put on through their high school and entering artworks into youth mental health exhibits.
faybian is also a strong advocate for at-risk youth with multiple intersectionalities due to their own lived experience. they now spend their time working with mental health organisations in boorloo as a youth consultant and hope to go on to empower young people to continue telling their story in whatever medium they so choose.
what has been your favourite part of working on ‘all the stars.’?
being able to work with an amazing crew to deliver a gorgeously heartbreaking story that talks about the queer experience in a way that few others have. it has made me feel so seen and heard and i hope this show gives that to anyone else who watches it.
if you were to pick one song to describe ‘all the stars.’, what would it be?
and all the stars above us will remember by ally kerr. i feel like the song talks about a love that you desperately want to hold on to but ultimately isn’t going to last, something that you will always remember but something you must leave behind.
how has your experience of queerness shaped who you are?
my experience of queerness has always felt muddled, hidden under bigger issues or just treated as everyday life that didn’t need to be looked at under a microscope. as i’ve grown older i have learnt that boxes we force ourselves into aren’t clean-cut. i was constantly asked when i first came out as a trans man if i was sure i wasn’t just a lesbian; cut forward a few years and i identify as a trans-non-binary butch lesbian and i’m more in love with myself than i ever have been. i’ve done that by engaging with my community but also taking steps back to allow me to be myself.
which character says your favourite line from ‘all the stars.’?
andie says “we did great. it wasn’t our fault. the house was haunted.”. with the vivid poetry in this show, it was hard to narrow it down, but this line from andie feels so validating. relationships come and go and we grow with them. people have experienced them before us, and people will experience them after us and there’s something beautiful and connective about that.
who do you relate most to; andie or tessa?
there’s an amount of myself that i see in both characters. tessa’s forced optimism and need to people please is a factor of myself that i am constantly trying to heal; andie’s fear of being vulnerable and constantly feeling like they are wrong for how they feel, for how they love, for what body they are in. ultimately i would say andie: i crack jokes to try run away from scary topics of conversation, i get tired of doing the same things over and over again but i’m also hopeful for the future when i stop and remind myself what i really am apart of.
if you could give any advice to your young queer self, what would it be?
you are you and there is absolutely nothing wrong with who you are. you’ll try on different labels feeling as if you’re trying on different masks and that you’ll never be able to find who you really are, but one day you’ll realise that your identity doesn’t need to fit into a neat and tidy box. that you, like any other living thing, are something that is constantly growing, learning and changing, and you will find people who won’t make you feel like any of those things are wrong. and you will fall in love with life again.
who is your favourite couple who is doomed by the narrative?
andie and tessa from this show. i had never really phased too much with couples doomed by the narrative because it was a narrative that i didn’t relate to. however with this show and this couple i feel as if i am being shown a mirror and what i see is beautiful.