we always want to know why; we’re hungry to be able to point to one concrete, definable event or reason in the child’s life and say “that’s where the anger comes from.” And one of the reasons I love this play is because I’m not sure it’s ever that simple.


TS: What do you look for in a director when working on a new play?


ED: I love a director who really trusts and respects actors. Someone who knows how to open the door for you and then step aside to let you walk through it. When I’m in a rehearsal process, I always want to have the time and the space to go too far and push the limits of a scene or a moment past what I think they “should” be. Working on a new play, you’re in uncharted territory and you want to stretch the text and discover the boundaries. When I’m really jamming with a director, I think she sets me free in the moment, sometimes pushing or pulling in directions I didn’t know I needed to go, while keeping a bird’s eye view of how any one scene ripples through the rest of the play. I feel free to make new choices all the time, and only afterward do I see the framework that was being built invisibly around me. And at the end of the day, I love a director who asks questions, but also knows that rehearsals are about trying on answers. There isn’t really a right one, so you just pretend there is until you figure out which ones are the strongest, the juiciest, the most essential for the story.


TS: How do you keep yourself inspired as an artist?


Photo: Jenny Anderson JD Taylor and Ethan Dubin in rehearsal for Bobbie Clearly


myself of how his life has been through that chronology. I want to get to know this world so that in rehearsals I’ll be ready to meet the people inside of it.


TS: Can you share some of your preliminary thoughts with us about Bobbie and his relationship to the community in Nebraska that he comes from? How do you see the relationship between Bobbie and Casey? What about between Bobbie and Darla?


ED: We’re in a really small town in Nebraska, where the murder of Casey affects everyone. As Derek tells us about halfway through the play, when Bobbie walks into a store or someplace in public, 90% of the people know who he is, and the other 10% are about to find out. Bobbie has been released back into the town he’s harmed, and the ripples of his crime are felt everywhere. They’ve ripped apart his family and any comfort and security he may have once had as a boy. It takes monumental steps to regain any trust, and the little of it he comes by is tenuous. I have so many questions about Bobbie’s relationship to Casey. I think his feelings about Casey have as much or even more to do with his feelings about Eddie, a boy he once had tons of power over, and then none. In Darla, I think Bobbie finds possibly the only example of a benevolent authority figure in his life. We don’t see him interact with other authority figures, but I get the feeling Darla has always expressed some kindness even in moments of deep disappointment, and that’s been a huge exception from a lot of other adults. I’m eager to discover more about Bobbie’s relationship with his family, what his home life was like. Seeing children display deep rage isn’t all that unfamiliar to us, but when a temper tantrum goes too far into something unknown,


ED: I love theatre, and I see a ton of it. Making plays is hard, it just is. And my community of theatre artists in New York inspires me all the time. I’m also amazed by how much inspiration I find in other forms of performance. Maybe it’s music or dance or an exhibition at a museum—I’m frequently amazed by how much inspiration I’ll get in acting from other creative forms. I try to take advantage of being in New York and take in as much as I can. And I try to keep things fresh, keep myself taking risks and doing the unfamiliar. A mentor of mine in high school said that, as a working actor, you have to keep your body engaged in some kind of movement practice, no matter what that looks like. A few months ago I started doing an Israeli dance/movement form called Gaga (no, not Lady). It’s all about providing your body with a framework for discovery and going outside of what’s familiar. It’s awesome. You should try it. I think it makes me a better person, so probably a better actor, too.


TS: NYC public school students will read this interview and want to know what it takes to be a successful actor—what advice can you give young people who want to act?


ED: Champion each other. It’s too easy to focus on the negative in what we do. But you’ll just hold yourself and your community back. Instead, find all the chances you can to talk about who inspires you, about someone in your community who’s doing amazing work. Be a champion for them, and someone’s going to come back around and be a champion for you. And another thing. I had an acting teacher here in the city say that no matter what job you’re doing, do the best you possibly can at that job. With all the crazy side-jobs we actors do in this city, that advice really stuck with me, and I think it’s absolutely true. You’ll keep your integrity, strengthen your discipline, and nurture your curiosity. You’ll also get bored. And boredom, it turns out, can be a powerful thing for an artist.•


BOBBIE CLEARLY UPSTAGE GUIDE 13


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24