Marius
nytheatre.com q&a preview by Ross DeGraw
September 14, 2012
What is your job on this show?
Actor.
When did you know you wanted to work in the theater, and why?
It was in the fourth grade. I always wanted to be a writer and I had written several short stories and poems that were submitted to local papers and kids publications. Then the school play came up and my mom wanted me to do it, although I didn't, and I was smitten. After that all I wanted was to be an actor. I joined the Drama Club in Middle School, did community theatre, and went to a Performing Arts High School.
Why do you do theater (as opposed to film, or TV, or something not in the entertainment field)?
I do film and TV as well, but I love the theatre because of the audience. There is a special relationship that the audience brings to the theatre. When we come together to create the evening together it is magic. In film or television you never get to collaborate with the audience at the moment of sharing the art. With live theatre the moment of sharing is real and immediate and it is special to me.
In your own words, what do you think this show is about? What will audiences take away with them after seeing it?
This is a show about a persons decision between their dreams and the people they love. For me, as a theatre artist and a husband and father, this story strikes on so many levels. As an artist we sacrifice a lot to do what we do. But I think that the audience, whether they are artists or not, will walk away with a better understanding of the sacrifices they make daily for the things they love and for the people that they love. We all know this sacrifice.
Groucho, Chico, Harpo, or Zeppo?
Groucho for sure.
Can theater bring about societal change? Why or why not?
Absolutely. Theatre is a way to explore who we are as a society and ask "Is this ok". Theatre is unique in this. Most of the vehicles we have to affect society revolve around a static document that we have a dogmatic impulse not to question. Theatre demands that we question and it is this questioning that leads to change.
