Brenda Blethyn
Congratulations on your Broadway debut!
Thank you! It's such an honor to be invited in the first place, but then there's the pressure. You've got to deliver! There's the generosity of asking me here, but now I've got to produce something. And that's quite nerve wracking really. It's been a little scary playing an American to an American audience! But the audiences have been so generous with their applause at the end; it makes Edie and I feel really good.
Had you met Edie Falco before?
We didn't know each other, Edie and I. We only met about three weeks before we started. I came over for a photo session for those photographs you see outside the theater. That was the first time we met. We just hit it off. We get along!
Were you familiar with her work?
I hadn't seen her in any theater at all. I'd only seen her in a couple of episodes of The Sopranos, which I think she's fabulous in. But a number of my friends, who go to the theater more than I do, and whom I respect and admire, had seen Edie in a number of things and were saying, "Hey Brenda, this lady is dynamite!" I think it's always good to up the ante. If you're working with someone who is really good, it makes your work better. It's like playing tennis. It's always better to play with someone that you have to aspire to reach or equal.
Well, I have to say you'd be forgiven if you were in the next room and thought we were rehearsing riotous comedy. [Director] Michael Mayer is such a joy to work with. He's not precious in any way. He made it such a wonderful environment for actors to try and be creative. You don't feel foolish if you have a silly idea, so it was a really good process.
Of course, it's not really riotous comedy; it's a highly emotional play. How do you tap into such a wide range of emotions in this piece?
I don't really know how to describe my process. I just try and go where that lady is. I'm not a method actor, for sure. I always look at the character objectively. I try to understand how she came to be in this predicament. The play's so beautifully written, you even expect the characters we just talk about to walk in the door any minute because they're so well-conceived. They're very, very vivid. It doesn't feel like a two-hander really. It's hard to do it well. You have to give it total commitment.
Are you exhausted by the physicality of it?
No. It's physically demanding, but as I say, it's her, not me. Here's Edie and I, successful actresses playing on Broadway, and we're as happy as anything. It's only for an hour and a half that we'er onstage, and we can leave [the characters] behind when the curtain goes down and go back to being happy actresses on Broadway.
What's the biggest challenge with this character?
I think finding her center of gravity was the hardest thing. So just finding that--you know, what propels her along, what keeps her going, what she thinks every day getting up--is a challenge. As the play goes along, you discover she's not a particularly likable character; she's really not sympathetic. At the end of the play, where you see where's she done wrong, I have to find the redeeming features of her--even if the audience doesn't see it. I have to know what makes her tick.
I was expecting you to say the hardest part was doing the American accent!
Yes that was hard. That was really hard, but I think I might be getting closer to it. What did you think?
I honestly almost forgot to ask you about it because it's so seamless.
Hooray! You couldn't have said anything better.
Is there anything in particular that you've discovered about her as you continue to portray her?
No matter what, she'll survive. She's a survivor.
What were your thoughts when you read the play for the first time?
I thought maybe it would be solved. I was spellbound by the play. I think it is a beautifully written play. It's such a wonderful, wonderful dialogue between two women who are suppose to know each other, and they don't know each other at all. You know the daughter doesn't know the mother, the mother doesn't know the daughter.
In thinking about a play that deals with so many family issues, I was wondering about your own family.
I had six brothers and two sisters, but sadly my oldest brother and oldest sister are now gone. I'm the youngest. We are all so close. I think we're friends first, family next. I don't really know which way that goes 'round, but we like each other. We laugh a lot. That's my mother's legacy: we laugh, laugh, laugh. I think a sense of humor can get you through anything, and I think that's what wrong with Jessie [Edie Falco's character], she's lost it.
How do you pick your projects?
I have no idea. I think there's a world out there--outside of theater that's more important than theater. I love theater, but real life is more important. I've never been ambitious--I just have no ambition at all and that might be laziness on my part.
Come on, you must have some ambition!
No, I really don't. I never have. I like--no, I absolutely love--being here. It's such a trip; it's great. But it's not something I would lie awake thinking, "Wow, what am I going to do if I don't get this?" I've just never been that way. I just chose from what comes along--it's better that way.
What was the Oscar experience like?
You act like you're not famous at all. Don't you ever get recognized?
What are you looking forward to doing in New York City once the play opens?
Yes, I read that you're a runner!
Oh, it was so exciting! There were all these people I'd watch on the big screen. The most peculiar thing is that I was sort of gaping at them with my mouth hanging open, and they'd come up and say, "Oh, Miss Blethyn, we saw your film." I thought, "My God, they know who I am!" I wasn't expecting that at all. I had no expectations whatsoever of winning--except when Nicholas Cage was opening the envelope, I thought, "Oh my God, what if I won?" It was like three seconds, and then I felt foolish for even thinking that. The first time I went, people were saying I was going to win, but I didn't think so. But the second time I went for Little Voice, I knew I wouldn't win, and everyone agreed with me, so I just relaxed and enjoyed it.
In England people know me a lot from television. But I forget--I just simply forget that people recognize me. I mean, I'll be at the supermarket and think to myself, "Why are people staring at me? Is my hair crooked or something? Is my head on straight?" And then my partner [Michael Mayhew] will say, "They probably recognize you." And I think, "Oh, yeah." I just forget. Because me, I'm just Brenda, you know.
I intend to walk all over it. I'm a walker. I like to go out walking, or else I might go jogging around the park. I did the last three London marathons for charity.
A staggerer would be more accurate. I'm really not a runner ,but this charity for children with leukemia asked me to do it. I said, "I can't run! I can't even run around park!" My team and I have raised about 5 million pounds for children with leukemia. Of course, it takes me something like six hours to get around the 26 miles, but I do it. That's my philosophy in life: as long as you do it, it doesn't matter how you get there.