Actors who do TV and movies are the ones that get all the press but before that, there was the theater, which is still very popular among actors and audiences. We frequently hear about big stars going to see a show and hanging out backstage after the fact. It turns out that is a pretty rigid stage tradition, although for Sarah Paulson it once didn’t turn out so well.
Paulson recently appeared on the Smartless podcast where the tradition of celebs visiting the cast of a show came up. While Paulson’s American Horror Story characters are likely what she’s best known for, she’s done her share of stage work as well. It seems that celebrities are expected to visit with the cast, not doing so is seen as an indication they must not have liked the play. But Paulson once had an interaction with an actress that she didn’t mind broadcasting because she was so upset by it. Paulson started out…
I did do a play once. The last time I was on stage, I did a play called Talley’s Folly at the Roundabout, and the actress — and I’m going to say this, and I’m not going to ask you to cut this out, because I don’t fucking care — this actress came to the play. Her name is Trish Hawkins — Hi, Trish! Hi, Trisha!. Trish Hawkins came to the play — am I going to get sued? I don’t care, because I think this is outrageous.
Normally, to keep the peace, actors don’t throw other actors under the bus. Rebecca Ferguson recently mentioned a bad experience she had with an actor on set but never mentioned their name. Nobody would have blamed Sarah Paulson for talking about what happened without naming names, but apparently, she is so upset by what happened she doesn’t care.
Trish Hawkins is a Broadway veteran who originated the role in Talley’s Folly that Sarah Paulson had played in the show. Apparently, Hawkins was a friend of Paulson’s mother and was her guest that night.
Paulson says the interaction began with Hawkins remarking that the dress that Paulson had worn on stage was a different color than the one the original star had worn in her production, which was a sign this interaction wasn’t going to go well. While the face-to-face conversation may have been slightly awkward, what upset Paulson to the point of being willing to tell this story publicly was what happened next. Paulson continued…
Cut to two days later, I got an email that was six pages long of notes and a communication to me about what she had done when she had done the play, what she recommended I do. It was outrageous. It was really outrageous. Trish Hawkins, I have not forgotten it, and I hope to see you never.
Needless to say, Sarah Paulson was not looking for Hawkins’ feedback. And six pages of recommendations that she do things differently is a bit beyond the pale of constrictive criticism. She explained to the hosts that, had she asked for feedback on performance, that would have been one thing, but she did not, and would not have.
Sarah Paulson is an amazing actress. Paulson’s movie and TV roles are considerable and always impressive. She’s an Emmy winner, who is currently nominated for a Tony award. Stephen King has praised her ability to do horror. Nobody needs to worry too hard about the choices she makes in her performances. She clearly knows what she’s doing.