It's Brian d'Arcy James Time! Catching Up with a Broadway Fave

With apologies to Annie Oakley, anything you can do, Brian d’Arcy James can do better. Baddies? See The Wild Party, Sweet Smell of Success and The Good Thief. Heartthrobs? Titanic andThe Apple Tree. Sad sacks? Port Authority. Comedy? Shrek and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Solid citizens? Next to Normal (original off-Broadway version) and his current role as a wartime journalist longing for stability in Manhattan Theatre Club’s Broadway production of Donald Margulies’ Time Stands Still. A week after collecting a stack of admiring reviews for playing Laura Linney’s lover, James chatted about juggling plays and musicals and how he really feels about having spent a year as Shrek rather than rolling the dice on a Broadway transfer of Next to Normal.

Congratulations on your great reviews in Time Stands Still! Did you read them?
It’s the first time in my life that I decided not to. I have been having such an extraordinary experience with this play, I felt like I didn’t need to read any other opinions. I can’t say enough about Laura Linney. Everybody knows how talented she is, but she’s also an incredible person, and the same is true of Eric [Bogosian] and Alicia [Silverstone]. We adore each other, as well as the play. It’s icing on the cake that people are saying good things about it.

It must be nice to play a normal American man.
It is! Right before Shrek, I played a Dublin man [in Conor McPherson’s Port Authority]. I suppose Next to Normal was another kind of modern portrait of an American man. There are certain similar qualities [to Time Stands Still] in terms of how these men are holding down their forts in light of what they’re dealing with. With this character, it’s been very satisfying to play someone who’s in the eye of the hurricane of current events.

Your character and Laura Linney’s have a basic disagreement over how to move forward after reporting in a war zone. Do you identify with this guy?
You know, objectively speaking, I can completely identify with what she’s experiencing. There’s a scene in which Jamie is trying to convince Sarah to stay home and live a quote-unquote “comfortable life.” I understand what that means—but for this character, it’s a sacrilege to admit that that’s what he wants. He might as well be talking about walking on the moon when he says. “I want to experience Netflix and teach myself how to cook.” That is sacrilegious in terms of the dedication and the time they spent doing the work they did.

Seeing you in this play, no one would know that you’re a musical theater star. You and Michael Cerveris are the leading examples of actors who do both things equally well.
I can think of a lot of actors who fit into that boat: Raul Esparza, Norbert Leo Butz, Denis O’Hare… there are so many people out there who are gifted at singing a song and creating a character in a musical, and then are just as compelling in a play. It’s definitely my goal to keep bridging those gaps and go back and forth. That’s been a real blessing.

Maybe it’s getting easier for actors to feel they don't have to choose one or the other.
I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that I think it has something to do with the nature of musicals these days. There is more of a need for people who can sing and play complex characters. Certainly with Sondheim, there’s such complexity to the characters and also to the music he’s written. Some of the shows I’ve been in, like Floyd Collins or The Wild Party, have changed the face of what people expect in a musical. So maybe the stigma is going away by virtue of how the musical is changing.

The musicals you’ve done vary tremendously in style and content. Which one was your happiest experience?
Sweet Smell of Success, for lots of different reasons. It was such a big deal for me in my life at that time. My daughter [Grace, now eight] was born right before we went to Chicago to do our out-of-town tryout. And the quality of the people! I was getting to act toe to toe with John Lithgow, who is and remains a hero of mine. [Composer] Marvin Hamlisch would walk in, and I’d have to remind myself, “Oh yeah, I’m working with him.” [Lyricist] Craig Carnelia and [book writer] John Guare and [director] Nicholas Hytner… it was just a very special time in my life.

John Lithgow said later that Sweet Smell was too dark to be a hit.
Maybe so. I hesitate to say why something works or doesn’t. Who knows?

How challenging was it to play Shrek for a year?
Physically, the challenge accelerated in the latter half of the year by virtue of the time [90 minutes a day] spent in the makeup chair and the physical toll and so forth. There was an accumulation of exhaust that made it more difficult at the end. But it was such a glorious experience to figure out how to make this unique character, with the makeup and the huge costume, work. It was so unusual and exciting, because it was like learning a whole new language. I loved it.

The show had its share of detractors. Did you think that was unfair?
There’s always going to be someone who [says a show is] not their cup of tea. That’s not my concern. I thought it was an excellent show. The production was top-notch in every way. I’ve been in shows where I didn’t necessarily feel that way. Care was taken to tell the story in a way that was true to what people expected from the movie, but also be true to what a theatrical experience should be. That’s where [librettist] David Lindsay-Abaire and [composer] Jeanine Tesori came in; they’re true voices of the theater. I’m exceedingly proud of that production, detractors or not.

Would you have said yes to Shrek if you’d known Next to Normal was going to make it to Broadway?
Well, that was a decision I did have to make. Because, in fact, there was a strong possibility that it would. David Stone, the producer, was not shy about saying he was intent on bringing [Next to Normal] to Broadway, and I don’t think anyone doubted it. It doesn’t surprise me in the least that it’s on Broadway because it’s a brilliant show. At that time, however, [the pre-Broadway production in] Washington was not in place, and it was a question of taking this wonderful opportunity [in Shrek] in the face of holding out for something that may or may not have happened.

Do you feel bittersweet about the choice you made?
Oh no! Not at all. I kind of put it under the category of “It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” Actually, that’s not an apt analogy, because I don’t feel like I lost anything. I had a distinct and integral part in the birthing process of [Next to Normal], which I feel lucky about. I know everybody in that production, and I think the world of them. It’s a unique thing to see a show you were part of at the beginning have a life, and I take pride in that.

You’ve dipped your toe into film with a scene in Ghost Town and TV’s Cashmere Mafia. Do you want to do more?
Yeah. You call it “dipping the toe in,” but it’s not for want of standing at the edge of the pool for 10 years [laughs]. The thing about actors is that until you’re actually doing something, you’re not doing it, so I’ve been chipping away at finding ways move my career into different paths. I’ve always been very, very curious about film and TV, but I’m still standing at the edge of the pool.

It can’t be easy to pursue film and TV when you’re constantly busy doing eight shows a week.
This is very true, and my commercial agents are saints. I can never go out for things because I’m always in rehearsal, and the time commitment on something like Shrek was unusually large. Ultimately, the work I’m doing in theater means the most to me, and if anybody in other arenas takes notice of it, that’s great.

You met your wife [Jennifer Prescott] in Carousel. What’s she up to?
She’s in the throes of creating a business, a passion of hers called Green Design Goods, which is about sustainable design and eco-friendly products. It’s a website now, and ultimately she will be a consultant/supplier of goods that you can buy in a store, for your home or your business. She’s extremely well read on the subject; it’s a passion of hers.

I stumbled onto a genealogy website of your extended family, and the photos show such a loving group of people.
I have an incredible family! In fact, I was just talking to my mom about a big family reunion we’re having before Memorial Day. The Kelly clan is an exceptional group of people. My mom comes from a family of six kids, and she’s a fascinating, wonderful and supportive person. She and my brother and sisters were just here for my opening. We celebrate each other and love each other so much.

I'm sure your father [who died at age 50, when Brian was 22] would have been thrilled by your success.
That’s very nice of you to say. I think about him every day. He was an amazing guy—and yeah, he would have gotten the biggest kick out of everything. He enjoyed life, and he enjoyed the successes of his kids, whether it was a test or a baseball game or a gymnastics event. I hope I have a sliver of what he had in terms taking pride in his family.

See Brian d’Arcy James in Time Stands Still at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.