Oklahoma has been a launch pad for talent for decades, and for good reason. There seems to be something in the state’s red dirt that both conjures and conducts the raw materials for greatness: resilience, ingenuity and the kind of warmth that come from a community that lifts up its own. 

If the yet-to-open OKPOP museum reminds us of one good thing, it’s the unsung but steady drumbeat of talented Oklahomans who’ve departed to create waves in other cities. From Kristin Chenoweth to Bill Hader and Sterlin Harjo, Oklahoma has seen some of its biggest talents strike out to claim their stake. And yet, many who leave feel a strong pull back—either to live, produce projects or draw creative inspiration. What do we make of that inclination to return? 

There’s something ineffable about Oklahoma, and to understand it is to reconcile tensions. It’s a place that is at once chronically overlooked and yet impossibly full of life; a young state built on bootstrapped reinvention, stolen land and grave atrocity that holds stories older than we can name. To be from here is to inherit a set of qualities that can’t be manufactured: humility, curiosity, the instinct to create something out of nothing and the arrogance to believe that you can. And perhaps most importantly, an imperative to reckon with complexity without rushing to resolve it. 

The “Okie spirit,” it seems, is magnetic, keeping people tethered long after they leave to thrive beyond its borders. But what does it mean to be from a place that is constantly trying to reinvent itself? What happens when the reinvention doesn’t match the picture you’d imagined? And why, no matter how far we roam, do so many of us feel the alluring pull of open pastures calling us home? 

Some questions don’t have easy answers, but in the year of our OKC Thunder National Champions 2025, Okie excellence is enduring and visible, and that alone is worth a conversation. We asked a few Oklahomans who’ve set out to build their creative practice in other cities how they feel about their home state now; how that connection drives their work; and if they ever feel the pull back. Here’s what they had to say. 

Bryan Bauer: Production Stage Manager, Oh, Mary! (Tony Award-winning Broadway play), Raised in OKC, Lives in New York City

Describe your current work, and your path to it.

“I’m the production stage manager for Oh, Mary! on Broadway, which means I’m tasked with maintaining the artistic integrity of a show each night. 

“Before Oh, Mary!, I was managing a touring production, but I didn’t love life on the road. I got a call from a producer about a new downtown show—something ‘gay, stupid and fun,’ as he described it. I was in. The whole idea with Oh, Mary! was that it was just going to be a fun gay romp, an eight-week run at a 200-seat theatre in the West Village. But it ended up being an overnight hit, and now it’s the longest running play on Broadway in the past 10 years.” 

Did you always dream of doing this?

“Yes and no. I went to Oklahoma City University on a business scholarship, but realized I needed to pursue the arts, and added a BFA in theatre. I never clocked that this was something feasible. We don’t have super strong examples of people making a living on theatre in Oklahoma, but I interned in NYC my sophomore year, and I realized that this was a real thing. 

“From then on, I became laser-focused. Once I decided I wanted to be a Broadway stage manager, I didn’t stop. Being able to do it at 30—I don’t take that lightly.”

How did you feel about Oklahoma when you left, and how do you feel about it now?

“I have a deep admiration for Oklahoma. I feel like when you tell people here you’re from there, they give you an, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry.’ But I don’t feel shortchanged by my experience at all. I grew up feeling part of a community, and I miss that feeling. I loved having a presence in OKC, where it kind of felt like everyone was your friend. It’s classic ‘small fish, big pond’ in New York.”

Photograph by Emilio Madrid

How does being an Oklahoman show up in your work today?

“Tangibly, I learned how to be a stage manager and grew up under the guidance of stage managers in Oklahoma, and owe that to them. But my job also requires an endless amount of holding people’s emotions. And I think Oklahomans are really good about seeing the humanity in people. It’s deeper than ‘being friendly’—I think we look for the heart, and I try to bring that into my style every day.” 

Do you recognize that Oklahoma “magnetism” in yourself, or Okies you meet in NYC?

“I do. A lot of my closest friends in New York are from Oklahoma, even though we didn’t know each other back home. There’s a shared pride there, partly because people often have such a limited view of Oklahoma. We want to show that Oklahoma is fun, vibrant, full of incredible food and culture. We’re inclined to push against it.”

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