S. Epatha Merkerson

Having recently wrapped her 12th season as Lt. Anita Van Buren on NBC's Law & Order, S. Epatha Merkerson may be one of the most visible and beloved African-American actresses on television today. But that doesn't mean the lady is resting on her badge-wearing laurels-nor, for that matter, her TNT residuals. Indeed, at heart, Merkerson is a creature of the theater. Having received a Tony Award nomination for her Broadway bow in August Wilson's The Piano Lesson back in 1990, Merkerson has returned to her theatrical roots this month, giving an emotionally rich and ultimately heart-breaking interpretation of the title character in the Second Stage production of Cheryl L. West's drama Birdie Blue. Co-starring Billy Porter and Charles Weldon, Birdie Blue follows a fragmented memoir of a working-class Chicago woman as she pieces together the shards of her life, while caring for her husband, stricken by Alzheimer's disease. The production reunites the Detroit native with director Seret Scott, who guided her to a Helen Hayes Award nomination in The Old Settler, as well as a 1992 Obie Award in I'm Not Stupid. Merkerson sat down with Broadway.com to discuss her commitment to her craft, encounters with Law & Order fans and what that intriguing initial really stands for in "S." Epatha Merkerson.

Now that your day job is on its summer hiatus, how come you're not doing what most TV stars do: take a vacation?
Well, you know I did take a week between Law & Order and the first rehearsal [for Birdie Blue]. I'll probably do another week before we start the show again. I just think it's important that I get on stage, you know? Cause there was a time where-when I was doing Law & Order-I didn't do any theater for six years. And I finally did a play again and realized that I had made a mistake by not going back to the stage. You need to do that every now and then. Especially me. I mean, I love doing Law & Order, but it doesn't really stretch a lot of muscles. And I want to keep that fresh, I don't want to lose that. And theater is where I started. It gives me a way to kind of stretch out and to be creative in a very different way. It's part of my salvation.

How did you come to choose Birdie Blue?
Carole Rothman [Second Stage producer] called and said she had this script and she wanted me to read it. And if I was interested, she'd love to do it with me. That was about a year and a half ago. So I read it and loved it. I'd been a big fan of Cheryl [West's] work anyway. So I said yeah, it would be a great piece to do.

Your character of Birdie Blue is really complex-as are the issues the play is exploring: race, family, class and death-was there any one thing that hooked you into wanting to do the part?
I think what attracted me to the play was the story of the caregiver. You always hear about people who are ill before you hear about the folks who are taking care of them, you know? So it was the strength of "Birdie" that attracted me, and also what I really liked about the script was the sort of flip-flop way of dealing with someone's life-and their decision-making process-which leads them to the decisions that they make. I found it fascinating when I first read it, and I now I find it fascinating to play. It's not only a challenge, but fun at the same time.

Yeah. Cause despite the play's seriousness, you do get to perform a little "number" with Billy Porter.
Oh, isn't he something? He is just wonderful. I love doing that part with him each night.

This is actually the third play that Seret Scott has directed you in. Obviously something is working.
Yeah, she knows my instrument. Because she was also an actor, she knows how to talk to actors, and that makes a big difference when you want something from someone. She's extremely creative. Very easy to work with. And that combination makes it really interesting for me-I know that I'll be stretched. And our friendship makes it a wonderful experience.

As two African-American women, as well as creative contemporaries, have you found any extra layers of authenticity or experience informing your work together?
Certainly we come from similar cultures that sometimes cuts down on the language we have to use. And when you're dealing with a play of this nature, with a time period [in particular, the 1960s] that we both lived through, it helped to have someone who understands that, to relate to.

How are your Law & Order fans responding to the play?
In fact I ran into some ladies going to dinner, and they were big fans of the [TV] show and they said they were really happy to see me doing something that was so different. That this gave me the opportunity for them to see the extent of what I can do.

How has playing Lt. Anita Van Buren on Law & Order for over a decade now changed your life?
Well, certainly it's made me more visible. [Laughs.] But I can still take the subway, which is kind of cool.

And do you?
Oh, yeah. All the time! It's still the easiest way of getting around the city. I mean, I could sit in traffic in a cab and be late.

For $15 dollars.
Exactly. Or I can take the subway and get to where I need to go. And what happens is, the face is familiar. But the way I dress and wear my hair is so different from Van Buren [that] unless you're like a real serious Law & Order junkie, I could sit right next to you on the subway and you wouldn't even know who I was. Like last week I was on the subway, and this woman sat down next to me and said, "OK, I'm gonna be really cool about this, cause I know who you are." And I was like, alright. Then she said, "Can I ask you one question: Why are you on the subway?" And I said, "Why are you on the subway?" And I just started laughing. I said to her," To get to point A to point B. I mean, I can't say anything more than that." And she said, "But you don't have to take the subway." I said, "Oh, so you gonna spend my money too?!" But seriously, it keeps me grounded. Law & Order has afforded me to be able to do plays and not worry about the rent. To live decently and enjoy things the city has to offer.

But you also give back to the city. During previews you produced a benefit performance of Birdie Blue for the not-for-profit Justice Works Community. How did your association with this program, empowering women impacted by the criminal justice system, come about?
Well, I also do a lot of work with Cancer Care and Lung Awareness. But with Justice Works Community, I produce a benefit for them every year. The Birdie Blue benefit was my third year. I met them through Ossie Davis. He did work with them. And I was raised in a family where you were told to give back. There's a phrase, "To those much has given, much is expected." And I've really been blessed. I came to New York in 1978 and-other than a month and a half-I have made my living as an actor. So I've been really, really lucky. I think that it's incumbent for me to give back. Jusitice Works Community is there to help people, to rehabilitate them. The grass roots ladies there, they really work hard. It's what they do. They put their hearts and souls into it. And by producing these benefits, in that way, I'm giving back. And that's what I do.

Finally, I've always wanted to ask you about your name. Cause it's got to be one of the most exotic and mysterious names in show business.
[Laughs.] Epatha?! It's from the New Testament!

And the initial S?
Well [Laughs.], you know, I'll tell you, I don't like using my first name. So I never tell anyone what it is, though they've printed it off and on. But it's a personal issue. Cause I just don't like people getting lazy and calling me something I don't want to be called. So that's why I don't use it, and that's why I don't tell anyone.

Still, I recently heard that on NPR you said the "S" stood for "Sweet." Was that the truth? Or were you just teasing?
Hell, yeah! [Laughs.] Yeah, that's right. Just call me "Sweet Epatha."

See S. Epatha Merkerson in Birdie Blue at Second Stage Theatre, 307 West 43rd Street. Click for tickets and more information.