A Quest for Ikigai
Sandy Rustin

There is a Japanese philosophy called ikigai which offers a thought on finding one’s purpose. It purports that when what you love to do meets what you’re good at doing meets what the world needs meets what you can be paid for … you have arrived at the sweet spot of your “reason for being.” I love this principle and seek to check these four boxes of ikigai with every new project I embark upon. Often, a commission checks that fourth box.

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Sandy Rustin
Sandy Rustin

is an actor and writer whose adaptation of the cult-hit film Clue has enjoyed over 4,000 productions worldwide and is currently touring the U.S.  Sandy made her Broadway debut with her feminist farce The Cottage (named one of the best plays of the year by Entertainment Weekly). Her concert adaptation of Dear World for NY City Center Encores! was a NY Times Critic’s Pick, and her musical adaptation of Mystic Pizza opened at Paper Mill Playhouse in January 2025. Her play, The Suffragette’s Murder, a winner of the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award, premiered at the Denver Center for Performing Arts in February 2025. She is a member of ASCAP, SAG, AEA, and the Dramatists Guild and is represented by UTA and Kaplan/Perrone. www.sandyrustin.com