INTERVIEW: Alyssa Emily Marvin on her onstage and backstage family in ‘Appropriate’
Photo: From left, Alyssa Emily Marvin and Ella Beatty star in Appropriate on Broadway. Photo courtesy of Joan Marcus / Provided by Polk & Co. with permission.
Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ play Appropriate continues to be the talk of Broadway. This compelling, provocative family portrait opened to rave reviews at the Helen Hayes Theatre earlier this year and then extended its run by moving to the Belasco Theatre, where it continues through June 30. The show, directed by Lila Neugebauer and presented by 2nd Stage Theater, features a talented cast of stage, TV and film favorites, including Sarah Paulson, Corey Stoll, Michael Esper, Natalie Gold, Ella Beatty, Graham Campbell, Alyssa Emily Marvin, Lincoln Cohen and Everett Sobers.
The play follows siblings Toni (Paulson), Bo (Stoll) and Franz (Esper) as they meet up for the first time in years at their family’s home in Arkansas. Their father has recently died, and they have returned to sort through the details of his estate. The secrets that they unearth are earth-shattering, driving the family onto a journey of self-reflection, anger, shame and dysfunction.
Marvin, who is quickly becoming an in-demand actor on Broadway, plays the role of Cassidy, daughter to Bo and Rachael (Gold). The character is a curious teenager who is interested in learning more about the family’s controversial past and what exactly the adults in the other room are talking about. She actively engages with her cousin, Rhys (Campbell), but she also lingers around the edges of the stage, always listening and trying to piece together the narrative and the old divisions in this blood-related group of people.
“I first found out about the audition in July of last year, and immediately I knew it was something that I desperately wanted to be a part of,” Marvin said in a recent phone interview. “So I had a first in-person audition with the casting team, and then a few weeks later I had another audition with Lila, the director. And then I had another audition the next day after that and a final audition with Lila, our director, and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, the playwright, and also something interesting that I had never done before is we had a chemistry read portion of the final callback. So, I read with some of the actors being considered for Rhys, who is played by Grant Campbell.”
Marvin said she immediately responded to the character of Cassidy and identified with her journey through adolescence and her curious, inquisitive interactions with her family members. The character is invested in learning more about the world around her, and Marvin could see an opening for her to offer a unique take on the role.
“In the play, a lot of the adult characters really deprive her of information and knowledge, and she’s kind of on her own quest to understand the world and to understand the situation she’s in,” Marvin said. “And that’s something that I think I and a lot of other teenagers can relate to, trying to find your own place in the world and understand the life that you’re in, so I think I was really drawn to her journey over the course of the play.”
Marvin said one of the highlights of this multi-month engagement has been working with this incredible cast on an important play. At first, after she received the call that she landed the part, there were some nerves about joining the company of actors. She had a sense of responsibility to ensure that Jacobs-Jenkins’ show was done right.
“It’s been a wild ride, and I feel like we’ve all gone on it together,” she said. “It definitely is like a true family backstage, much less dysfunctional than the family on stage thankfully. For me, being young and at the beginning of my career, it’s a really awesome opportunity to get to learn and work with these incredible actors and have a front seat to their process. So that’s been the most rewarding thing about getting to work in a cast like this.”
To better understand the underlying themes of the play, which are better left unsaid so audiences can experience them without any spoilers, the cast had lengthy discussions around the rehearsal table. Marvin appreciated the opportunity to dissect the weight and gravity of what this family is facing.
“We had a few days at the table at the very beginning of the rehearsal process before we started blocking and putting everything on its feet, and we really took that time to delve into the issues of the play and to talk with Lila,” Marvin said. “We were very lucky to have our playwright, Branden, at the table with us and throughout the whole rehearsal process, so it was really awesome to get to hear his perspective on the play and truly get to hear directly from him what his intentions are so we could best represent the meaning of the play on stage.”
There have been many positive developments over the past few months, ever since Marvin signed on the dotted line to join this company. The reviews were stellar from critics, and performances quickly sold out at the relatively small Helen Hayes Theatre. Then, this Broadway production achieved a rare accomplishment: the ability to extend by moving theaters. Plus, there were numerous Tony Award nominations. Marvin, who made her Broadway debut in Grey House, took all of this in and savored every moment.
“It felt like a whole new part of the journey,” Marvin said of changing theaters. “I feel like we had another opportunity to delve back into the play and to get to bring this to a whole new audience. I think that was really what was exciting me the most, just the fact that so many more people get to experience this play and get to relate to it and kind of take it apart. I feel very lucky to get to be apart of that to bring this play to even more audiences at the Belasco.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Appropriate, featuring Alyssa Emily Marvin, continues through June 30 at the Belasco Theatre on Broadway. Click here for more information and tickets.
