Waiting for Godot in New Orleans

"The desire to bridge what we call art and politics is in fact a fear of both." At first glance this statement made by Paul Chan in a recent interview would seem to contradict his recent work. In light of the success of the production of Beckett's Waiting for Godot, with New Orleans as the natural backdrop, there seems to be a method to how Chan goes about his business. His organizing of the play could be seen as purely artistic, or purely political. Or neither.The original project has evolved into a multi-faceted program with many people involved. In a place in need of everything, including entertainment, it's not surprizing the play was well recieved.
Chan did his homework by talking to many of the local residents from different backgrounds who offered a variety of perspectives on the possibility of staging the play in New Orleans. "A country road. A tree. Evening." A perfect stage. Susan Sontag may have provided some inspiration with the showing of Godot in Sarajevo also.
Strangely, nowhere in the readings is the question of whether New Orleans should, or can be restored to it's former glory, pre-Katrina. The only people qualified to answer such a huge question would be scientists who understand the problems and expense of maintaining a city that is in large part below sea level, and in a hurricane alley. Maybe avoiding this issue was Chans' approach from the beginning. Instead of waiting for the congregation of politicians, scientists, commitees and everyone else to help, why not put on a play?
Chan's statement about the separation of art from politics makes sense in that his project was the result of the aftermath of a natural disaster. The situation in New Orleans became political in large part through the media. His simple idea to put on a play has taken on a life of it's own and politics have very little to do with it. It will be interesting to see if he tries to repeat his success with Godot or forges ahead with something completely different.