6 Questions: Tony Torn

Tony Torn takes on the role of Stephano in the Karin Coonrod/Elizabeth Swados adaptation of TEMPEST opening at The Ellen Stewart Theatre on October 2nd.  Tony took a break from rehearsals to answer our 6 Questions:

1. What about TEMPEST speaks to an audience today?
I think the message of reconciliation in the play is a challenging and potent message for us all in a world where we are constantly at each other's throats. And the magic dislocations of Prospero's island tell us to open our eyes to possibilities beyond what we think is real.

2. What other roles in Shakespeare’s canon would you like to play?
I have been patiently waiting my turn to play Falstaff ever since I saw The Merry Wives Of Windsor at age 10.

3. How is doing a play by Shakespeare different than a contemporary role?
It's not only that the language is poetic and rich…it's that it's so human! Each character is so deeply reveled in how they speak.

4. Tell us about the last great book you read?
Morrissey's Autobiography: a big, maddening, tempest of a book that swings from the eloquence to pettiness several times a page.

5. Who or what has influenced your work as an actor?
Being around my parents Rip Torn and Geraldine Page gave me incredible exposure to great acting, both from them and from the fascinating people they worked with. And working with brilliant experimental artists like Reza Abdoh and Richard Foreman during my formative years broadened my idea of what being an actor could be.

6. What does working at La MaMa mean to you?
The big room of the Ellen Stewart Theater at La Mama is a holy space for me. So many indelible experience seeing shows there, over decades: multiple works by Ping Chong and Meredith Monk, Andrei Serban and Liz Swados' Fragments Of A Greek Trilogy, Sam Shepard's Tooth Of Crime, and more recently Brecht's The Good Person Of Szechuan. Now, after appearing in both of the other La Mama theaters, it's my turn to play the Ellen Stewart. So thrilled to finally step out on that stage!

La MaMa presents

TEMPEST

directed by Karin Coonrod
music composed by Elizabeth Swados 

October 2nd - November 2nd, 2014

The Ellen Stewart Theater
66 East 4th Street
(between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $40 Adults; $30 Students/Seniors; 10@$10 Tickets are sold out!

See all three Tempest productions this fall for only $75  

Click Here for TEMPEST 3 Packages.

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE