Theater stars know what’s hot in entertainment, fashion and pop culture, so Broadway.com decided it was high time to tap in to the after-hours obsessions of our favorite stage actors. Spring Awakening vet Phoebe Strole currently stars as Sarah in Manhattan Theatre Club's off-Broadway premiere of The Madrid. When she’s not sharing the stage with Edie Falco, Strole can be found listening to Peter Gabriel, scrolling through Tumblr and not watching sports. Read on below for more of this quick-witted star's obsessions.
TV SHOW: Battlestar Galactica
"At first I thought, 'obsession is a strong word to use about stuff like this,' but then I remembered that I Kübler-Ross-cycled through grief when I had no more Battlestar Galactica episodes to watch. I'm not sure I'm at acceptance yet, actually. Sometimes I listen to the soundtrack in my room with headphones on so my roommate won't know my secrets. If anyone wants to talk about it, I'll be here."
MOVIE: Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Monty Python movies
"I'm always in the mood. Also, I have seen the movie Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles more times than is normal. I don't want to write a description, because I'm hoping someone will go watch it after reading this and be as entranced as I am."
STAGE SHOW (OTHER THAN MY OWN): Murray Hill shows
"Anywhere, any time. Showbiz."
SINGER: Peter Gabriel
"I go through phases where I inexplicably want to listen to a lot of Peter Gabriel, so that's obsession-y. There's a chord progression in his newer version of "San Jacinto" that does something trippy to the chemicals in my brain."
BOOK: Dave Barry books
"I read quite a bit, but I'm not sure I'm obsessed with books in the same way as when I was a kid. I read all the Dave Barry books I could get my pre-teen hands on two or three times each, one right after the other, when I was around 12. I remember feeling very smug in my clearly sophisticated sense of Adult Humor."
ATHLETE
"Uh…look over there! *tries to run away from sports but falls down*"
CELEBRITY: Anita Gillette
"She's a show business gem and a peach of a person. I adore her from top to tail."
VACATION SPOT: Vancouver Island
"I had the great pleasure of working on Vancouver Island a few years ago, and it knocked my socks off. I made friends so I could keep coming back and staying for prolonged periods of time. It's all very 'Calgon, take me away' for me."
APP: Planets
"A conversation I frequently have with myself and my iPhone: 'What's that bright star in the sky? Tell me, Planets. What?? That's Jupiter?! Oh, Planets, you make me feel so infinitesimally small in the best of ways!' Huh, looks like I've had some wine when I have that conversation."
FASHION DESIGNER: John Varvatos
"Thank you for making men look even more good-looking than they already are."
BEAUTY PRODUCT: Embryolisse face cream and Atelier Cologne in Vanille Insensée
"This is gonna make me sound fancy as hell - Embryolisse face cream and Atelier Cologne in Vanille Insensée. Don't be fooled; I'm wearing 10-year-old sweatpants right now. But at least I smell like vanilla."
RANDOM OBSESSION: Tumblr
"I can fall down a rabbit hole of Tumblr weirdness for way too long."