Jochy Campusano
Now that it’s 100 years old (older by a bit, actually), the Santa Fe Playhouse sure seems to be taking some big swings. Case in point? An upcoming production of The Baby Monitor by playwright David Stallings. A finalist for the 2014 National New Play Network, Monitor finds parents Damon and Phillip navigating the world with their young child, who was born with the help of surrogate Soledad, played by Orange is the New Black star Laura Gómez—for whom Stallings originally wrote the character. As their child grows, Soledad takes on the role of nanny and begins to develop feelings about her friends’ abilities, her place in the family and so on. By all accounts, it’s a complex tale of interpersonal relationships and the power of family, be it given or chosen. The show also marks the first time Gómez has been able to tackle Soledad. As such, we spoke with her in the lead-up to the first week of performances (7:30 pm Thursday, March 2 and Friday, March 3; 2 pm and 7 pm Sunday, March 4. $15-75, Santa Fe Playhouse, 142 E De Vargas St., (505) 988-4262) to get her insight. This interview has been edited for space and clarity.
I understand this role was written specifically for you some years ago, but this is the first time you’ll be able to perform it. Can you speak to why you’ve kept the hope alive?
Well, it’s a very easy answer—because David Stallings’ writing is absolutely beautiful, nuanced and detailed. I loved the play from the get-go. It was always circumstantial obstacles that prevented me from doing it in the past on the stage. It was always with regret that I had to turn it down: I was out of the country or I was shooting or I was working on Orange is the New Black and my schedule was very complicated. Yet, both the character and the play always felt important.
I know David from New York, too, so there’s a personal connection and we knew each other’s work. Plus, his partner Antonio...we actually know each other from Santo Domingo, and the fact that this character is Dominican and David plays so much with race and class...aside from the subjects of marriage and surrogacy, there are all these elements of living through his writing.
How are you building the role, particularly knowing it was written for you? The character is Dominican, and you’re Dominican—does that bring any particular thrill or challenge to what you’re hoping to portray?
More than a thrill or a challenge, I find it a pleasure to see it being cast so truthfully. It’s a delight as an actor to be able to know you can bring something to the table because your culture or your experience can enrich the character. [The Playhouse has] made an extra effort to cast this truthfully, whether it’s Dominican or Latina in a way that can honor a Dominican person, and I respect that. It made it every enticing, and I understand this character.
My experiences are not similar at all to the character, but they surround me, and I’ve lived through them in different ways. We’ve done a lot of table work during rehearsals and had discussions about how we relate to the characters. We’re talking about an interracial couple and a Dominican nanny, you have those elements that, specifically during the Trump era, makes it more complex. My character is so nuanced, and for me, bringing being Dominican to the table...the character differs from me in the way they experience the world or their circumstances, but I’m interested in the world and its systems.
What makes you want to keep a toehold in smaller community theaters like the Santa Fe Playhouse?
In this particular case, this is a play I read when I was living in New York, and it followed me a little bit. Secondly, it’s due to where I am in my life, which is exploring things not just because of what it gives me professionally, but what it gives me on a personal level; things that take me out of being typecast, which is something the Hollywood industry does a lot. I’ve been in two movies recently...that were risks on my part because I was getting hurt on the hamster wheel of Hollywood. But I was getting offered things about being in prison, being a maid, and I’m kind of done with that. I say I don’t mind waiting—I’ll do things that fulfill me. And to be honest, the idea of being in Santa Fe for two months, it wasn’t too bad for sealing my decision. It had to do with my desire to be in nature, and it has surpassed my expectations. I’m living in the Dominican Republic after 20 years in New York, and I think New York was such a rush that now I’m going for peaceful—the beach in the Dominican Republic, the mountains in Santa Fe.
