First stage performance ever? WOW! Huge promise on Broadway
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peterquennell — 10 years ago(February 10, 2016 03:34 AM)
Very supportive comments.
I can see now that TF's persona in this play (which is very well written and directed, and with name actors above any she has previously co-played with) is not like those in her TV series and some of her movies, always likable though she was there.
Insofar as she already has a "type" she has here been cast against it. Here she is a self-confident and very funny New Yorker in thigh-leg boots and great gear.
Maybe not totally unlike the Marisa Tomei part in My Cousin Vinnie or Jennifer Lawrence in American Hustle.
Comic timing was spot-on and the humor was both verbal and physical. I still laugh at one physical scene, the "matador v all the bulls" scene.
She is onstage 3/4 of the time. When she leaves all the energy (as written) goes with her, leaving a raw and quite sad ending.
Maybe TF was just born to play this part. But to me (and increasingly others) it DID look like exceptional good acting. On stage, it is hard to fake it.
I hope this helps some. -
ellie246 — 10 years ago(February 10, 2016 05:36 AM)
Thanks again for your feedback Peter.
Wow, Marisa Tomei or Jennifer Lawrence, now that IS a compliment.
I think I'll have to seek out the play & have a read as there's no way I'll be able to see it being the other side of the Atlantic.
I really hope it leads to good things for her. Doing live theatre does mean there's nowhere to hide, so if she's conquering that, she's in good stead.
All the best. -
peterquennell — 10 years ago(February 11, 2016 05:11 AM)
Hi ellie246
Well of course any play and any actor from London are like gods on Broadway. I was posting on the Alan Rickman forum about brief encounters with him.
Just in the last few months we had here Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Keira Knightly, Mark Rylance, Hattie Morahan, Helen Mirren, Ewan McGregor, Ben Miles, Nathaniel Parker, a bunch more. Charles III, Noises Off, View From the Bridge, Wolf Hall, some others, started in London, doing or recently did very well here.
Most took the RADA route (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art) so stage and in particular Shakespeare are natural to them. That is rare here which makes arriving on Broadway for first play ever a heartstopping thing. Taissa is a standout in not taking a formal training route, in jumping mediums (at that age), in getting picked for this Broadway play, not least by Sam Shepherd ("greatest American playwright of his generation"), and playing well - against type.
The same new-arrival thing is about to happen again, with a lot more forewarning to Saorise Ronan, four months older than Taissa. Next month she stars in Hove's "The Crucible" about whom there muchos buzz because of her Oscar nomination for "Brooklyn". She too has never before been in a play. If she interests you, take a look.
http://nymag.com/press/2016/02/saoirse-ronan-covers-new-yorks-spring-fashion-issue.html
http://nymag.com/thecut/2016/02/colm-toibin-on-saoirse-ronans-new-york.html
http://www.imdb.com/board/21519680/board/thread/246973410
I posted a few Broadway tips near the end of that thread. We see "The Crucible" on 16 March. -
peterquennell — 10 years ago(February 18, 2016 04:55 AM)
Reviewers differed a lot in what they expected - quite normal for such an iconic play! Okay mentions of Taissa:
http://variety.com/2016/legit/reviews/buried-child-review-ed-harris-1201708999/
On the same day that Tildens reasonably normal son, Vince (Nat Wolff), returns to the old homestead with his girlfriend Shelly (a nice, crisp performance from Taissa Farmiga of American Horror Story), the barren garden produces a bumper crop of corn and carrots.
http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/entertainment/article/Review-Family-secrets-dug-up-in-harrowing-6837958.php
The outsiders who arrive are Tilden's estranged, college-age son Vince (an intense Nat Wolff) and his naive, snippy girlfriend, Shelly (Taissa Farmiga, radiating innocent confidence). They're shocked when nobody in the family seems to welcome or even recognize Vince.
http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/theater/buried-child-review-not-the-deepest-shepard-revival-1.11481827
And what about his girlfriend (Taissa Farmiga), who fits into the family with a creepy, sensual ease not seen since Harold Pinters The Homecoming? -
peterquennell — 10 years ago(February 23, 2016 05:29 AM)
Its very unusual for movie or TV actors to have their first stage arrival in a prominent role on Broadway. I doubt it happens once a year.
We do have another "example" of a new arrival right now. Its Saorise Rona2000n who is about to open in The Crucible. They were born 10 days apart.
Shes done several good interviews about how its coming together. Theres a new interview on Taissa's own preparation process here:
http://www.interviewmagazine.com/culture/taissa-farmiga-1/ -
lauraehrhardt97 — 10 years ago(March 19, 2016 06:24 PM)
I saw it, too!
You're spot on. I was a fan of her before, so maybe I'm bias, but she really impressed me here. Maybe it was because the character is so different than what I've seen with her but she held her own and had great comedic timing and was powerful in all the right moments. I met her afterwards, too. She was super sweet and talked to everyone.
I never thought she was a bad actress and I don't understand the hate for her on here. She's just getting better as time goes on, too. I think most people have only seen her in AHS. The Zoe character was too similar to Violet so people think she's a one trick pony but she definitely proved that wrong onstage. She did the best with what she had in Coven. I still don't get the hate for her but whatever, I think she's a great actress.