You Can't Take It With You Star Rose Byrne on Annie Nerves & Bobby Cannavale's Broadway Advice

Rose Byrne says she takes time off—recent getaway spots include London and Paris—it just doesn’t look like it. For years, the Australian actress has delivered a non-stop string of acclaimed, diverse performances in TV (Damages) and movies (Neighbors, Bridesmaids). Now she’s on Broadway, making her debut in You Can’t Take It With You, the revival of Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman’s 1936 Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy. Byrne, headlining an all-star cast, plays Alice Sycamore, a young woman who introduces her businessman boyfriend (Fran Kranz) to her eccentric family. Below, Byrne talks about adjusting to a new environment (having a Tony-nominated beau, Bobby Cannavale, helps) and why—despite appearing in December’s film version of Annie—you shouldn’t expect her next Broadway role to be in a musical.

It's your first time on Broadway—how are you holding up?
Pretty good! The first week I was pretty tired. I’m getting used to the schedule more now—we’re rehearsing a little less in the day because we’re obviously still in previews. But, yeah, you’ve just got to take it easy during the day. It takes a minute to absolutely adjust. It’s very much like an athletic kind of experience.

You’re in a cast full of Broadway vets, including James Earl Jones, Kristine Nielsen and Elizabeth Ashley. How do you hold your own with those guys?
They’ve just been so wonderful. Everyone is really loving and supportive. Not to sound cheesy, but from day one they were all incredibly great and patient with me. And that was really nice, so my confidence got better as we went on through rehearsal. If anything, when you’re with such pros it just makes you better because you’re trying to keep up, you know?

Is it hard to not to get a little starstruck? You are sharing the stage with James Earl Jones!
[Laughs] I know, I know! And the funny thing is, he’s the most unassuming of anybody about his legacy. He’s so low-key. He really does not take any liberties with it all. He’s such a hard worker. He knew his lines before anyone. He was off-book from day one. He’s such a beautifully focused actor. He’s really a pleasure.

Alice has one foot in the Sycamore world and in another in the real world. What's the dynamic in your family?
My family keeps me very down to earth, so I’m not ever able to take myself too seriously in terms of the business and the noise around the business. I miss my family because they’re not around, because they’re mainly in Australia. I’m pretty close to them. It’s more like, “I want you to meet everybody!” They’re really wonderful people and they’re really easy people.

So nobody was making firecrackers in the basement or dancing around the living room when Bobby Cannavale met your family?
No. I’m really lucky. But I have friends who are still like that—who have trouble with their family or really get worried about this or that, like what do you think of this or that person? I’ve never had that. They’re interested in everything outside of the world. They’re not isolated people. They’re easy personalities for the most part. But there’s no “Dad’s going to show them the fireworks” or whatever. [Laughs.] 

Did Bobby give you any advice for your Broadway debut?
Absolutely! All through the rehearsal, he’d be going, “That’s normal with this and that.” That’s such a great thing to have when your man is in the same business. You can consult with each other and have those heart-to-hearts about certain things that people in the business maybe don’t quite understand.

What was it like to work together on Annie?
Really, really great. It’s nerve-wracking when you’re remaking a classic, and I was such a fan of that film. But at a certain point we have to jump off and jump in, and it’s actually a very different film in many ways. It’s very updated and the music is different and the characters are different. Yeah, I can’t dance like Ann Reinking, so I was very nervous about that because she’s such a legend. I’m excited. It should be a really fun movie for the family.

You were in Neighbors over the summer, This is Where I Leave You just came out, Annie hits theaters this December...Do you ever take a break?
[Laughs.] Oh, sure. You know, there are a lot of actors who used to work a lot and then they don’t anymore. I just think it’s such a business that there’s really no guarantee. I’m a worker. I love to work. I love my job. I’ve been lucky to have gotten some great work in the last few years. But I’m very aware of the fickleness of the business and how these things can come and go, so I think that’s part of me that doesn’t go away.

With Annie under your belt, would you consider doing a Broadway musical?
Oh, goodness me. I fear I wouldn’t be up to scratch for a Broadway musical [laughs]. I love them and I love going to them, but I don’t think my talent as a singer would quite cross over. I saw Cabaret and I was just blown away with what Michelle [Williams] did. I thought she was brilliant. Talk about someone who can do anything. I had no idea she had such a voice and was such a dancer. She was just fantastic and, obviously, already a brilliant actress. Saying that, I think I’d need a bunch of training to get to that level. But never say never, huh?

See Rose Byrne in You Can’t Take It With You at the Longacre Theatre.