Playing the Playwright

Guest blogging by actor Courtney A. Kessler. We wish her the best as she embodies Paul Mullin, a task that even Paul Mullin has trouble with. -ed.

I am playing Paul Mullin onstage in The New New News.

I have known Paul for a couple years now and this will be the third time I have been in a world premiere of one of his works. The first show I acted in at North Seattle Community College was “The Don Juan Cult Concerto. Paul explained to us at the table read that the show was his “love letter to Seattle”. I was cast as Jenny Wolfe, a young, sarcastic ball-buster of a lady . . . who just so happened to be based on Paul’s wife. That’s right, trivia lovers, I played Paul’s wife. There is a surprising amount of pressure that comes from being cast as a real person, especially when that person is the playwright’s wife and the playwright is sitting two seats away from you.

Oh, and you know for a fact that that person is going to come see the show.

Awesome.

Now, I am one of three current actors in NNN that were part of the world premiere of It’s Not in the P.I. in 2009. While there were real people portrayed as characters in that show, I did not play any of them. If I played a real person, I was unaware of it. I am glad of that. I can hardly do imitations of my friends I’ve known for years; how on earth would I pull off playing a real person I’d never even met before? It wasn’t easy the first time, but I was able to pull through knowing that she was a character inspired by a real person.

I don’t have that excuse this time around. I’m playing one of the playwrights.

When I discovered I’d been cast as Paul for this show, I wondered if that was a deliberate move on Dawson’s part. He knows I’ve known Paul for a while and, to be blunt, Dawson has a habit of casting me as men. At this point, I know I can play a man no problem, and therefore, playing a man I already know should be a cake walk. But playing Paul is not like playing some random reporter in the newsroom of the P.I. Playing Paul comes with expectations. Perhaps they aren’t intentional expectations, but they are daunting nonetheless. The scene in which I am Paul is a transcript of an actual meeting that took place between the NewsWrights. Paul is the one that transcribed it and put it in the show.  His piece, his words, himself.

Awesome.

At the first read, I chose to just read it instinctively instead of holding back out of nervousness. I felt like I knew the character of “Paul” pretty well, had a good handle on him in that scene and was able to convincingly pull him off, at least to my knowledge of the man. Paul is not a shy guy, so my standard “meek, but sarcastic” go-to trope wasn’t gonna play here, not even for the table read. Halfway through the scene, I already had physicality and mannerisms planned out and I began rehearsing them at home. This scene was just recently blocked and beforehand, Dawson showed the actors involved the video from which our scene is based. To my shock, awe and excitement, those 20 minutes were full of the same physicality I’d been practicing at home.  

Apparently, I know Paul better than I thought! However, those expectations I mentioned earlier? This is where they come in. This scene isn’t about how Paul sees himself; it’s real, it happened, and now it’s about how I see him and turn that into a character to play onstage. I can study that footage until my eyeballs turn blue, but whatever choices I decide to make as “Paul” come purely from my observation of his mannerisms, vocal patterns and behavior. These are observations he is going to see, sooner or later. Daunting? Oh yeah, only a little.

Despite the weight of not only playing a real man, but one of the men responsible for the show I’m in, I continue to find humour in the fact that I’ve played both Mullins now. It’s like they’re the bookends of my time at NSCC. Now Paul just needs to write a show with his kids in it next, and then I’ll have the chance to claim the boxed set of Mullin characters!