ANDY DRACHENBERG: In your eyes, what is this story of The Glass Menagerie?
ZACHARY QUINTO:Essentially I feel like the story is obviously of a family and the ways in which each of the members are struggling to find some sense of hope and some sense of self in the face of a lot of adversity. Taking it a step further, the character of Tom is someone who needs to leave the situation in order to fully realize himself and in so doing really destroys the dynamic and destroys the lives of certainly his sister and in a lot of ways his mom which is unfortunate for everyone involved including Tom.
AD: Do you remember when you first heard about this production? What made you gravitate toward becoming a part of it?
ZQ: Well, John Tiffany, certainly. The work of his that I know has been so inspiring and moving to me. Also Cherry [Jones] was already signed on when they came to me about it. Originally, we were going to do this production just at A.R.T. (American Repertory Theatre) with no real certainty that it would ever find its way to New York or to Broadway. That was all unfathomably exciting as it happened because nobody expected it. The idea of going to Cambridge and working at A.R.T. with these incredible artists, to explore and reimagine this play was in and of itself enough enticement to have me come aboard. Everything that’s happened since then has been unbelievable and so thrilling.
AD: Do you have a favorite line in The Glass Menagerie?
ZQ: Oh, I can’t possibly answer that question. I mean this language and the poetry of this text is so rich. Every night I hear things differently and things leap out and grab me in a different way, whether or not I’m on stage, hearing over the monitor or watching it downstairs on the TV screen. There is a kind of poetry that’s almost alive in this play. I maybe could answer that question six months after we close, but right now I feel like I’m just drinking it all in and trying to listen to everything that everybody says all the time.
AD: Tell me a bit about Tom – who is he in this story? What’s important about him? How is he different from everybody else in the story?
ZQ: Tom’s a real misfit in his life. He doesn’t really belong anywhere. And I think that’s the biggest reason why he knows he has to leave. He’s in a dead-end job that he hates, but he knows that he has to endure it in order to provide for his family, where he also doesn’t feel particularly valued or understood. His father, who’s ultimately responsible for the weight of all this responsibility, left the family 16 years ago, and Tom knows that he is meant for the same fate to one degree or another. What he doesn’t bank on is how haunting the decision to leave will be and how much it will affect his life. He’s really caught between trying to capture some sense of purpose and some sense of self in the world, and also trying to escape the things that he had to sacrifice in order to achieve that. So he’s deeply conflicted. Tennessee says of Tom that he’s not remorseless but, in order to survive, he must act without pity. That’s something that I think is really universal and relatable for a lot of adults, children, and anybody that’s pursued their own dreams in the world.
AD: Do you think that universality is the reason why the play is still so resonant today and receiving such a great response?
ZQ: I think it’s part of it. The fact that we’re doing a play that was written seventy years ago and audiences are still drinking it up is indicative of Tennessee’s enormous talent. I think the love that we’ve worked to find between these characters in the play is something that people are really responding to. It seems to be giving people a fresh experience of the play and of the characters. John Tiffany is a kind of theatre magician that inspires people to want to see the productions that he works on. I think we’re all really fortunate to be collaborating with him on this particular production at this particular time.
AD: What is it like working with a magician?
ZQ: Well, surprisingly easy. That’s the sign that [John Tiffany]’s a magician. It’s effortless both to work with John and to follow his guidance as a director. His vision is so clear, but it’s not immovable. He’s incredibly generous and collaborative and gave each of us a sense of ownership over the characters that we’re playing and the circumstances that they find themselves in. Part of the conduit of his magic is inclusion and nurturing. It’s an incredibly healing experience to work with somebody like that and to confront the challenges of this particular play with his sure hand guiding us along.
AD: What are you hoping audiences experience at the show?
ZQ: I hope audiences experience whatever they need to experience. Our production doesn’t tell people what to feel or even how to even how watch the play, but we and Bob Crowley (our ingenious set designer) are creating a world every night that invites people in and draws them in. In being drawn in, they have to pass through what’s happening on stage in front of them. On the other side of what’s happening on the stage in front of them is this void, this very literal black void in which the action of the play seems to float and through which I think audiences are confronted with their own emotional histories and their own memories and their own feelings about family and ambition and self and love. Those are all very universal and important questions. I think good art asks those questions, but doesn’t tell people how to answer them. So, my only wish for people that come to see this play is that they are able to face what this play stirs up in them and in some way hopefully heel or grow from the experience of hearing these words.
ZACHARY QUINTO (Tom). Broadway: Debut. Theater: Angels In America, Signature Theatre Company (Theatre World Award, Drama Desk nomination); Side Man, Gross Indecency, City Theatre Company; Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow, Old Globe; Endgame, Odyssey Theatre Company, Los Angeles, The Bear, Tintreach Company, Galway, Ireland. Television: “American Horror Story,” “American Horror Story: Asylum,” “Heroes,” “24,” “Six Feet Under.” Film: Spock in “Star Trek” and “Star Trek Into Darkness” both directed by J.J. Abrams, produced and starred in “Margin Call.” B.F.A.: Carnegie Mellon School of Drama.