Though actor Pilar O’Connell, was born and raised in Santa Fe, they’ve called Seattle home since 2009—and it has been 18 long years since they’ve performed in town. Until now. Starting Wednesday, March 26, O’Connell will play The Narrator in a Santa Fe Playhouse production of the one-performer show Every Brilliant Thing by playwright Duncan Macmillan (with Jonny Donahoe). The show follows a kid who, while his mother is hospitalized, sets out to list every awesome thing he can. With a stripped-down take, direction from Colin Hovde and, O’Connell says, a whole mess-load of audience participation, the show is poised to be something special (see santafeplayhouse.org for preview and official run info and pricing). We caught up with O’Connell to learn a little more. This interview has been edited for clarity and concision. (Alex De Vore)
Can you give us any spoiler-free info about the nature of the show?
It’s a one-person show, so it’s just me, however, there are other cast members, but those people don’t know who they are until they come to see it. It’s about audience participation—always with consent; they play other characters. There’s quite a bit of participation which, for me, is a nightmare if I’m in the audience, but as an actor it’s really fun to do. Just know that you may or may not be participating. A lot of the show is a conversation, most of it is me talking and the audience is my other scene partner.
And it is fully scripted, but there is room to improv. I love a bit.
I like to have freedom. But I never try to go too far, I want to respect what the playwright and director put together. If I’m in an ensemble piece it’s important not to just throw shit at people. It’s an art. The reason I like doing theater more than film is that the way you wake up is different every day and there’s that, plus the energy in the room and whatever the audience brings. I will say that I don’t think people will see the same show twice. This is the second one-person piece I’ve done. I am nervous, but…once you get over the mountain, it’s the best view ever.
What made this the right time/right role for your return to a Santa Fe stage after so long?
I've always wanted to come back to performing in Santa Fe, but I wasn't sure how to do it. When I was growing up, there was really only the children’s theater stuff that existed other than one-offs, short runs. But the reason I’m an actor is I grew up here and met [Pandemonium Productions founder] Chris Leslie.
Every Brilliant Thing is about a person who makes a list of brilliant things after their mother tries to commit suicide. One of the reasons it was so important to come home and do it here is that one of my best friends, Entheos Bellas, passed away four, almost five years ago, and that was a person I had a soul connection with, and also a great performer, and because of what the show is about and Entheos, I wanted to do it here. It felt like kismet or fate the way I got reached out to about the show, the way it worked out time-wise. It felt right and it’s good to be home.
Does performing in a place where you first learned about theater and did your earliest work bear any emotional weight for you?
I think it really does bear emotional weight. It’s interesting, because I’m here, but I also know when I’m leaving, but this is the longest amount of time I’ve spent here since I moved in 2009. So yes, there’s a lot of emotional weight, and I think emotional weight that I would have been less willing to process 10 years ago. Just learning what it is to be home, appreciating what it is to be home. The way the air is? And the sun? The way people speak to you? It feels really magical. I said to someone the other day that they call New Mexico the Land of Enchantment, and how annoying it is for them to be right.
It’s something else growing up here, because it was boring and the only thing to do was get in trouble, but also I was in musicals. Within that, because there is freedom within this show and improv a little bit; and the show is direct-address—as in, I’m talking to people, so I think the existence of that emotional weight will make its way into the show.
It feels like any day we rehearse it…there have been spots where I’ve thought, ‘Ope, I didn’t think that was going to come up.’ I think I’m trying to be willing to take time in the role without being indulgent. It’s important to embrace how you're feeling in a moment and not worry about adding 20 seconds to the show. I’m caring for the audience as they are caring for me.
You have to figure out what your container is, what your exit strategy is. I fucking hate method actors. I mean, there are great ones. Jeremy Strong is a great method actor. But as long as you're pretty strict around your boundaries? I should be able to go though these emotional moments, then when I step offstage, take a few deep breaths and move on with my life.
