Quotable Quotes: Digging Deep with the Stars of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Who: The stars, playwright and director of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Where: Backstage at the Longacre Theatre and at the party at Bond 45
When: March 20, 2005
"I wanted to play it ever since I was around 20." --Kathleen Turner on playing Martha
"It was clear immediately they were both very well-suited to it and to each other, so that was lovely." --Director Anthony Page on casting Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin in the leading roles
"This is it. This is the contemporary Hamlet as [playwright] Edward [Albee] says." --Bill Irwin
"It's such a thrill to be able to do like a brilliant classic play on a Broadway commercial stage. So rarely do you get to do something of such depth and power in a commercial production. I think it's fantastic." --David Harbour
"It feels like the most amazing dream. I still kind of reel about it." --Mireille Enos on being cast as Honey in the play
"This is the one that's on now, and it doesn't take second to any of them." --Playwright Edward Albee on previous productions of the play
"He knows every word in this play. He's had it for 40 years and he'll say, 'That was great but you left out a 'Ha!' and you'll say, 'Thank you, Edward'"--Kathleen Turner on playwright Edward Albee
"It's a haul. It's quite a show to do, but you can do it in any state really. It's fun!" --David Harbour
"It's a wonderfully written play. I won't say it's easy. It's hard work. But it's always very rewarding." --Anthony Page
"Every night is a growth, is a new discovery, a new idea. I don't think we're going to be finished discovering everything here for months." --Kathleen Turner
"Seven brandys in the course of the two acts and the rest of the bottle in the bathroom, so basically a whole bottle." --Mireille Enos on how much her character drinks throughout the play
"She goes overboard and he goes underneath and they end up exactly where they should." --Edward Albee on Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin together onstage
"She is an amazing gal." --Bill Irwin on Kathleen Turner
"I've always felt that the comedy has never been appreciated in this play. And so I thought Bill would be a fabulous addition to that."--Kathleen Turner on co-star Bill Irwin's background as a clown
"They're two of the most generous people you could ever meet. And talented! It's been like going to school every day just sitting and watching those two actors dig into this text and really discover it."--Mireille Enos on learning from the leads
"Kathleen Turner is an amazing Martha and Bill Irwin is an amazing George, and they work so beautifully together."--Edward Albee
"Thankfully we really like each other offstage, and so it feels fun to be mean to each other onstage"--Mireille Enos on working with David Harbour
"Having dinner during the show." --Edward Albee on his favorite part of opening night
"Getting to be drunk gives you a lot of liberty, and I just took it!" --Mireille Enos on making bold choices for her character
"Very good actors are always easy to work with because they let go and they take risks." --Anthony Page
Interviews by Beth Stevens
Compiled by Grace Hernandez