Wonderful Experiences Meeting Actors in Real Life

I was going to post on the good stage door experiences thread, but thought this might be thread hijacking. I'm curious as to your experiences meeting actors in non-work settings, away from the frenzy of the stage door, when they are perhaps tired, and when they are away from the spotlight and can more be themselves. I don't stage door when in NYC and I live in San Francisco, so don't get to see many actors away from the theater. But one time stands out.

A lifetime ago I worked at a Catholic parish. After a Christmas midnight Mass, as the congregation had mostly left and the lights were dimming, I was scouring the pews to pick up missles and hymn books. I saw a couple quietly walking around observing the statues and artwork. One looked familiar and sure enough it was Chita Rivera, in town for the THE KISS OF THE SPIDERWOMAN tour which I happily had just seen a few nights earlier, an Xmas gift from a friend.

She just had the unexplainable aura around her, that self-confidence that comes I suppose with being adored by so many and being so used to having people every day look at you and recognize you. As we were chatting, one of our parishioners, an elderly blind nun, joined us with her companion and as she did, started sharing prayers and some scattered stories. We all knew the nun well and she was beloved to us, but to others they usually tried to get away from someone they viewed as crazy. Not Miss Rivera. She listened intently for several minutes to the nun's ramblings. The nun couldn't see but I did, how Miss Rivera was genuinely interested in listening. She reached out and held the nun's hand while patting and caressing her shoulder.

A true class act.

BakerWilliams said: "Michelle Williams is slightly odd, but very very very nice in person.



"

I think she's just very introverted, especially in a crowd/ group of people. When Hollywood Reporter did that 2016 Tony Actresses Roundtable talk, she was the least comfortable of all the participants.

I've been starstruck exactly once in my life- when I met Jessica Chastain after The Heiress. She was wonderful, and helped me through our brief interaction even though I could barely speak!

muscle23ftl said: "I think there are two famous Michelle Williams, the blonde actress and the girl from Destiny's Child that was in Aida. Which one are you talking about?







"

I'm supposing the one who was one recently nominated for Best Leading Actress in A Play, since "Poor Michelle" hasn't been relevant in a long while.

At least that's the Michelle I'm referring to

Speaking of... I saw Martin Guerre in Los Angeles in 2000, and the next day I saw Hugh Panaro at my gym (sans wig). He was very gracious and when I told him how great he was, he sighed and said something like, "Thanks so much, but I'm thinking of giving up performing." I was shocked. "What? You're fantastic! The theatre needs performers like you." (of course, he was in Martin Guerre, which could make anyone want to give up performing He was flattered, thanked me, and we went back to our respective workouts. I take no credit for him continuing to perform all these years, but I'm glad he did!

I live and used to work near where the Australian soap opera Neighbours is filmed so have met a fair few of the cast when they'd come into my work. Tom Oliver who plays Lou and is the longest serving cast member was a regular customer and an absolute gentleman. He scaled back his work on the show so he would do 3 months on then 3 months off and he would spend his off time volunteering at an orphanage in Cambodia.

Amy Adams. Not just one of the nicest celebrities, one of the nicest people I've ever met. Period.

I was on the house staff of Into the Woods in the park and was working the gate that leads to the stage door the night after the first preview (which was rough). It was about 15 minutes before audience started showing up and actors were trickling in. I was sitting on a bench right outside the backstage entrance, looking through my ticket scanner, when she took a seat right next to me. I knew immediately who she was (I'm a huge fan) but didn't want to say anything since she was eating a sandwich. Color me shocked when she tapped me on the arm and said "Hi, I'm Amy." Naturally, I was so blindsided that my default was to be sarcastic and act like I had no idea who she was. The kicker is that she immediately was like "Oh, sorry, I'm Amy Adams. I'm in the show." So I backpaddled and explained I was just making fun and I knew exactly who she was.

She couldn't have been lovelier. We chatted for a few minutes about how a rocky first performance is good luck, how fun the show is, etc. I told her they were going to have a great second preview and she seemed genuinely thankful and hopeful, clearly someone who really loves her work and just wants it to be the best it can be for the audience.

She topped this interaction a week or so later when she showed up with cupcakes she made the cast and crew for HER OWN BIRTHDAY. And she offered some to us at the stage door. I turned it down, like a moron, because I didn't want to take advantage of her kindness or some irrational reason. Anyway, this is all to say that Amy Adams is a damn sweetheart.

Elisabeth Moss is a huge ballet fan and can be seen going to ballet performances, often just sitting in the cheaper seats. I was once sitting next to her. You realized what a great actress she is because she had NONE of Peggy's mannerisms. She's tiny, slim, and very feminine looking and sounding. Looked like a different person. She was very nice and sweet and I was awestruck that wow, Peggy is really an act, because the real life Elisabeth Moss looks and talks nothing like her.

I once met Paul Dooley, who played (among many other roles during his career) the father of the boy with blond hair in "Breaking Away," that wonderful bicycle movie. Paul's character is married to Barbara Barrie -- they are 'regular folk' who live in this Indiana college town. I have always loved that movie, and always loved Paul in it, so when I got to meet him (it was at some kind of fundraising thing -- in the 1980s -- can't remember the details) I got to tell him how one of my favorite scenes in that movie is when his son is serenading the college girl, and he is wooing Barbara. The camera keeps cutting back and forth between the two couples.

In this one set of shots, Barbara has a flower behind her ear and very flirtily takes the flower from her hair and puts it down seductively on the bedside table. Then Paul very gallantly removes the pen protector from his pocket and also gracefully lays it down. It's just a small move, but I remember how everyone in the movie theater laughed when he did that -- it was so endearing. So I got to tell him how much I loved that scene.

He almost jumped out of his skin. "That was my idea!" he said, "The pocket protector move -- that was my idea! No one has ever mentione that before -- that was MY idea!!!"

He seemed so happy -- it did occur to me that maybe everyone talked about that scene and he was used to hearing it -- but I really don't think so. I think he was truly thrilled that someone noticed that romantic move he invented. It made me so happy to think I could say something that made Paul Dooley so happy.

I love Paul Dooley. (checking ibdb, he was US and replacement for Felix in The Odd Couple and was in the 1954 production of Threepenny Opera) I remember the movie, and much of his work, but not that particular scene. How nice that you were able to express your enthusiasm for it.
So many magical, singular moments that come from an actor's knowledge of the character!

Updated On: 11/30/16 at 01:28 AM