Quick Q&A: Cristin Milioti

As The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter was ending its run at NYTW, I had the always great pleasure of talking with Cristin Milioti.

You mentioned that you’d be doing this show back when you were in Stunning. Is that a longer-than-usual gestation period?

It had been on my mind, but I didn’t throw myself into it until we started rehearsing while I was in The Retributionists. That’s when I read the book and started doing research. I was really excited to be working with Doug (Hughes, the director) and Rebecca (Gilman, the playwright); I’d known Henry Stram (the actor who plays Mr. Singer) for years.

Was this your first time working with Doug Hughes?

Yes and I hope it won’t be the last. I can’t say enough nice things about that man. It was extremely collaborative but he had a really good idea of what he wanted. He had the set all written out and we started blocking the third day. Some things changed in tech, but not really.

Did you have to push through any fear about playing such a well-known character from literature?

I did panic a little bit. Everyone I talked to, especially women, would say “she’s such an iconic character”; there are millions of people who know who Mick Kelly is and there have been all these essays written about her. If I thought about that too much I would have psyched myself out. Once we got started that went away.

Where did you start with the characterization – her age? the time period?

When we first started rehearsals I tried to be as simple as possible, not play her as a kid, and build her from there. I never feel like I am acting like a kid. I mean, I was Mick as a kid: I was confused for a boy and often alone; I was very passionate about certain things and no one understood when I would try to explain things. There was something really personal about the role. I tried not to play the time period either – Mick is such a freak for the time period with her haircut and clothes. She’s unaware, but she’s timeless.

production photos: Joan Marcus

Since she feels so close to you as a kid, did that make it easier or more difficult to play her?

It was easier in some ways; the thing that was hard was her confidence. I thought I bombed the audition and callback; I wasn’t playing her confidently enough, and I was self-conscious about going as big as Doug wanted. Mick is someone who can sing at the top of her lungs. She doesn’t second-guess herself, and I’m someone who second-guesses everything. I was just talking with a friend about this, about how at that age you feel like you are king of the world. That fades, as a part of life, but at that age it’s awkward when you have a passion. Of course Mick believes she will be a composer and write symphonies! The scenes later on when there is something broken about her were easier for me.

There’s a moment in the show I want to talk to you about, when Mick is outside a neighbor’s window listening to music and visibly swept up by it…

I grew up in a very musical family – I played piano and sang my whole life before I acted. From reading the book Mick describes that she hears colors and like she’s listening to God. This music – Beethoven, Mozart – does that to me anyway without having to work too hard. Imagine this child hearing it for the first time and not being able to get enough of it; it’s not that difficult for me to get lost in it on stage.

Which relationship in the show is most important for you?

With Henry as Mr. Singer, absolutely. I’ve known and been friends with him for years. He’s a generous loving person and an incredible listener. If the show doesn’t feel good one night, when we get to that scene where I tell him what it’s like to hear music he locks eyes with me and it’s enough to make me forget there is an audience.

Is there a part of the show where you take the temperature as to whether it feels good that night or not?

You’d think that I’d learn by now but I’m still constantly fascinated by how different audiences are. Usually a pretty sure fire laugh is when Mick writes “PUSSY” on the fence. The last couple of nights you could have heard a pin drop. I’m thinking “oh great, this sucks, I’ve done something wrong.” Then the show ends and they leap to their feet – they were listening and they were involved. Another sure fire moment is when Mr. Singer buys Mick a radio – there are usually gasps I can hear on stage. I love that moment and that’s where I take the temperature. That’s where I know they’ve connected to Mick’s story and understand how much that radio means to her.

Since the play condenses the book, you have to convey how Mick feels about Biff subtextually. Was that a challenge?

It’s never spoken, except for that one line “I don’t like the way he looks at me”. That character of Biff (played by Randall Newsome) is so fascinating. I think some would argue with this, but I don’t think he would ever touch Mick. It’s a miscommunication thing which is what the play is, people talking at each other and not really listening and getting lonelier. Biff cares for her and it’s almost like a Michael Jackson thing; he wants to be her best friend/mother/father. But that’s still kind of inappropriate. Mick just finds him creepy – there’s a part in the book where she is talking to him and she realizes that he’s staring at her chest. He’s the only character that makes her feel self-conscious because he reminds her that she is slowly approaching womanhood.

What kind of feedback have you gotten about this performance?

My family went nuts for it, absolutely loved it. It totally reminded them of how I was as a kid. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea but there are people who leave in tears and say it’s the best piece of theatre they’ve seen in years. Some women who identify with or know the character from the book have come up to me and thanked me for bringing her to life. When people come in with an idea of who Mick Kelly is and then tell me I did a good job, that’s the biggest compliment.

Always one of my favorite questions to ask you – what’s next?

I’m so excited, I’m going to be in a show at MTC in the Spring with Elizabeth Marvel! And it’s Sarah Benson, who directed Blasted – really excited to work with her too. Let me tell you, it’s gonna be great!