What is Mothers and Sons about?
Mothers and Sons is about how the AIDS crisis has affected the people in the cast. In such a short span of time, we went from a full blown AIDS epidemic (which coalesced the gay community) to now having won the right to be legally married and having children.
What role do you play and how does s/he fit into the story?
Katharine, the mother in Mothers and Sons, lost her son to AIDS twenty years ago. She comes to New York to return her son's diary to Cal, who was her son's lover. Cal is now married to Will and they have a son Bud. Katharine had been living in Dallas and caring for her husband who had lung cancer.
What are your character’s strengths and weaknesses?
Strengths and weaknesses? Katharine hates everything! She is a very multidimensional character. Katherine is just coming out from being someone's Mother and someone's wife and is now finding out how to be herself.
What do you find challenging about playing your character?
For me the hardest part of playing Katharine is finding her prejudices, which are so contrary to what I believe. Going to neutral before being able to embrace the characters differences is a constant discovery process.
What do you think is challenging/exciting/interesting about Mothers and Sons?
Terrance McNally is a very astute observer of human nature. He captures so much and is very judicious and economic in what the character says. Being able to trust that economy is what the actor must move toward. That is, of itself, a whole process.
What is your favorite line in the play?
Choosing one line would be like asking a mother of many children to name which one is her favorite. Each one has their admirable qualities.
What do you like about Mothers and Sons?
Catastrophe forces change, sometimes without enough time for natural transitions to ease us through. Changes are coming more and more quickly and we must adapt, learn and change or we will be left behind. The value of love and care and family is truly what will allow for us to transition.
Mothers and Sons is about how the AIDS crisis has affected the people in the cast. In such a short span of time, we went from a full blown AIDS epidemic (which coalesced the gay community) to now having won the right to be legally married and having children.
What role do you play and how does s/he fit into the story?
Katharine, the mother in Mothers and Sons, lost her son to AIDS twenty years ago. She comes to New York to return her son's diary to Cal, who was her son's lover. Cal is now married to Will and they have a son Bud. Katharine had been living in Dallas and caring for her husband who had lung cancer.
What are your character’s strengths and weaknesses?
Strengths and weaknesses? Katharine hates everything! She is a very multidimensional character. Katherine is just coming out from being someone's Mother and someone's wife and is now finding out how to be herself.
What do you find challenging about playing your character?
For me the hardest part of playing Katharine is finding her prejudices, which are so contrary to what I believe. Going to neutral before being able to embrace the characters differences is a constant discovery process.
What do you think is challenging/exciting/interesting about Mothers and Sons?
Terrance McNally is a very astute observer of human nature. He captures so much and is very judicious and economic in what the character says. Being able to trust that economy is what the actor must move toward. That is, of itself, a whole process.
What is your favorite line in the play?
Choosing one line would be like asking a mother of many children to name which one is her favorite. Each one has their admirable qualities.
What do you like about Mothers and Sons?
Catastrophe forces change, sometimes without enough time for natural transitions to ease us through. Changes are coming more and more quickly and we must adapt, learn and change or we will be left behind. The value of love and care and family is truly what will allow for us to transition.
