In Little Bear Ridge Road, Micah Stock Finds Grace in Awkward Places

“I don’t know how to be a person.” That heartbreaking line serves as the template for Micah Stock’s beautifully nuanced performance in Little Bear Ridge Road, the overdue Broadway debut of playwright Samuel D. Hunter. Laurie Metcalf is the powerhouse “name” above the title, but Stock is equally compelling as Ethan, the emotionally stunted nephew who shows up at her door in rural Idaho after the death of his abusive father. For two years beginning in 2020, their characters co-exist uneasily, avoiding difficult topics while bickering over a TV show about aliens. As always, Hunter turns everyday life into riveting drama in a 95-minute play that’s also very funny.

Stock’s achievement in Little Bear Ridge Road is all the more noteworthy to those who remember his hilarious Broadway debut as a coat-check clerk in Terrence McNally’s 2014 comedy It’s Only a Play. In a cast that included Nathan Lane, F. Murray Abraham, Matthew Broderick, Stockard Channing, Megan Mullally and Rupert Grint, Stock netted the play’s only Tony nomination. The Brooklyn-based star chatted with Broadway.com during Little Bear previews about balancing comedy and drama on stage and screen.

Congratulations on coming back to Broadway in this demanding role. What did you respond to when you first read the play?
I immediately responded to the aunt and nephew relationship, which is not commonly dug into on stage. It’s not mother/son; it’s not friends; it’s not a sibling relationship. It’s a totally different dynamic, and this was a particularly ripe one. I’m also interested in things that seem inherently not theatrical being made theatrical. Watching television, for example, is something we spend so much time doing, so why shouldn’t there be a play where part of the conversation is about that?

It must be satisfying to be part of Samuel D. Hunter’s Broadway debut. What makes his writing special?
Sam’s wizardry is to take a part of the country [Idaho] that a lot of people judge, and show that those people are just as intelligent, just as emotionally rich as any coastal elite. His stories are so finely wrought. I’ve been friends with Sam for a decade and workshopped many of his plays, but this one felt like an alchemy, where it was finally time for us to do it together. I’m so happy for him.

How excited are you to return to the New York stage after almost a decade?
I’ve missed it so much. It sort of feels like no time has passed, but this is such a different play than the ones I’ve done. I loved It’s Only a Play and [the 2016 revival of] The Front Page, but a farce is like a math problem—you have to honor the equation, because if you screw up the rhythm, you’re screwing up someone else’s laugh. With this play, if we fall into any kind of pattern, it sucks the surprise out of it. It’s really a blast to do. When we get out there, everyone is bringing their heavy artillery, and we start the gunfight. Laurie is working with a bazooka. [laughs]

Any initial nerves about sharing the stage with Ms. Metcalf in the play’s premiere at Steppenwolf in Chicago last year?
Absolutely. I mean, she’s a legend. Doing it with her both attracted me to the play and was initially the most terrifying thing. But she has been a wonderful friend and scene partner, so some of that feeling has gone away. When you work with an actor as incredible as Laurie—the best actor—it actually makes your job easier. If I get lost, I turn to her because she is so specific. How did [director] Joe [Mantello] put it to me one time? She is a sharpshooter—she comes to each moment with a new and very specific tack, and so my job is mainly to ride those moments. I said “bazooka” before, but I’m going to change it to “sniper rifle,” just to go full hog on the firearm metaphors!

Ethan is an unpublished writer with a lot of issues. What’s it like to play a character whose life and career path are pretty much the opposite of yours?
I don’t think of it as the opposite; it’s just a matter of totally different opportunities. Ethan is a person who has never been given a leg up, so he’s come to not expect it. Anyone who is willing to offer him affection or help, financially or otherwise, must be lying. You want him to realize that he can escape his past. I try to help him do that every night, but he is prickly. Laurie’s character is a grump, to say the least, but they are extremely similar in a way he would never want to admit. They’re both terrified of being cared for. Unlike Ethan, I had immense amounts of support. My parents are economists, and they made me aware that [acting] would not be an easy path, but they supported me in pursuing it.

How did you go from Dayton, Ohio, to the conservatory program at SUNY-Purchase?
I had a mentor at an after-school arts program who called it to my attention, and when I visited to audition, it just felt very special. I knew I wanted to go to acting school, which was a different path from the other people at my high school. And I love Ohio, but I wanted to leave.

Let’s look back at your magical experience as the sole Tony nominee in It’s Only a Play, alongside six famous co-stars. Be honest: Were they all gracious and supportive?
They really were. They held me up beautifully at a time when I needed it. I was 25 and shot out of a cannon, and things I hoped would happen sometime happened very quickly. It was exciting, but I needed their guidance. They were like a warm blanket, and I felt well taken care of.

Did you think, “Now that I’ve done this, I can tackle just about anything”?
It certainly taught me not to be fearful of actors of power—internal power, I mean, not external fame. Nathan [Lane] and Stockard [Channing] are whirling dervishes, which prepared me to work with a lot of different kinds of performers. Nathan is like Laurie: The best actors and most hilarious performers are the best scene partners.

Your TV and film credits are so varied, including the Branden Jacobs-Jenkins sci-fi series Kindred and a recent funny guest spot on English Teacher. Where did your sense of humor come from?
I grew up watching Madeline Kahn and Robin Williams, people who could make you laugh at the drop of a hat but had intense emotional power when given the opportunity to rise to the occasion. My favorite actors were always comedians who surprised you.

What do you love about stage acting?
The athleticism that it requires. The stage is where you get better. And I love an event that requires intense focus. You’re there for 90 minutes, and then you can let it go.

Has this experience unleashed any new goals or dream roles?
I’ve never been someone who says, “I’d like to play that part,” but I love new American works, and I like to be surprised. I didn’t know that this play was what I needed until it fell into my lap, and then it just became essential. We feel like we’ve already won because the play is opening on Broadway.

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