Stephen Kunken
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We caught RRTC Artistic
Associate Stephen Kunken — better known to our audiences
as Thomas Jefferson, Sherlock Holmes, and director
of the intern acting program — in between rehearsals
for Courtney Baron’s new play A
Very Common Procedure (set to run through
March 10th at NYC’s Lucille Lortel Theatre).
RIVER REP THEATRE COMPANY: Sounds like lots of great things are coming up for you, but is it true you won’t be joining the team this summer in Chester?
STEPHEN KUNKEN: Yes, it’s true and I’m very sad about it. I really missed Connecticut last summer. In fact I really missed our audiences. Over my last six years with the company, I’ve had the chance to get to know many of our subscribers and audience members. I really look forward to that connection each summer. It’s such a rare thing for an actor and an audience to share. The idea of missing two summers in a row leaves a real hole in my heart. I’m hoping that some of our CT audiences who find themselves down in NYC looking to take in a show will come visit and reconnect.
RRTC: Since River Rep’s last season in 2005 you have been up to a lot of exciting projects. How about some details?
SK: Sure. The most exciting project of all happened soon after the curtain fell on the summer 2005 season. As many of you may know, I married my longtime sweetheart and founding company member Jenn Thompson. We had a lovely reception on the shores of Fenwick, CT, surrounded by friends and loved ones. It was a perfect day... except for the arrival of Hurricane Ophelia that threatened to blow our tent away as the night wore on. It actually was truly magical, and I guess two actors couldn’t have hoped for anything more dramatic than having to battle Ophelia on their wedding day.
RRTC: You were on Broadway last spring did you get a chance to honeymoon?
SK: Absolutely. As a matter of fact, Jenn and I had a chance to make a lifelong dream come true when we went on safari in Tanzania. We had an amazing time. Soon after we got home I was cast in the play Festen.
RRTC: Festen was a West End (British) import to Broadway correct?
SK: Yes, it was a major hit in London’s West End and the producers decided to recreate the production here on Broadway. We had an excellent cast of actors, which included Broadway veterans and screen stars: Ali Macgraw, Julianna Margulies, Larry Brygmann, Jeremy Sisto... it was a stellar company. The subject matter was pretty dark and American audiences were split in their response to the play. All in all, I’d have to say it was one of the highlights of my artistic life. I loved our company and our director. I was sad to see it end.
RRTC: But this spring you’ll be back on Broadway in Peter Morgan’s Frost/Nixon, another British import, right?
SK: Yes, thank the heavens for the British. I’m thrilled to be a part of Frost/Nixon. I think it is one of the most exciting plays to come along in years.
RRTC: What’s it about?
SK: Many will remember the David Frost interview with Richard Nixon that became the only real captured testimony of Nixon’s shame and culpability in the Watergate scandal. For those who don’t, David Frost is a major English journalist who in attempting to bolster his own career contacted Richard Nixon to do a set of interviews about his presidency. Nixon, desirous to clear his name felt David Frost a less than formidable foe and agreed to go toe to toe. Frost/Nixon is about those interviews and all the backstory that lead up to them. It’s an incredibly smart script written by Peter Morgan, who also wrote two huge movies this year: “The Queen” (with Helen Mirren) and “The Last King of Scotland” (with Forrest Whittaker). He’s having quite a year.
RRTC: Who is in the cast?
SK: The London production starred Frank Langella as Richard Nixon and Michael Sheen as David Frost. Most American audiences will know Michael Sheen as Prime Minister Tony Blair from this years Oscar contender “The Queen,” which as I said earlier was also penned by Peter Morgan. The rest of the actors in the play make up the world surrounding Frost and Nixon. Frank and Michael are both remounting their roles on Broadway. The rest of the company has been recast with American actors.
RRTC: Who do you play?
SK: I have a great role. I play Jim Reston, Jr. — a noted anti Nixon scholar and a member of the team David Frost put together to prepare for the interviews. Reston not only appears as a character in the world of Frost and Nixon but functions as the narrator for the show. It’s going to be thrilling, challenging, and I hope a total blast. It’s a great honor to be entrusted with such a large, meaty role.
RRTC: Did you audition in New York or in London?
SK: I actually auditioned on both sides of the Atlantic. Originally I auditioned in NYC and after much deliberation it was decided that to seal the deal I would have to cross “the pond” and work with the director one more time in London. What an experience! It was one of the most whirlwind trips of my life.
RRTC: How do you mean?
SK: Well, I was in rehearsal for another show at the time and literally had 36 hours to get to London, audition, and make it back to NYC for rehearsal. I had no luggage, just a script, and a huge case of jetlag. I wandered around London in a daze and then made it into the rehearsal hall. It was surreal. The director Michael Grandage and I had an amazing session. We went through all of the character’s monologues in the show. We worked his scenes from a variety of angles. It was thrilling. I was at Heathrow waiting to go through security when I got a call from the director with the good news. Every fiber of my soul wanted to scream out but I didn’t think airport security would have understood. Luckily, good news was my traveling companion on the flight home. It made the lack of sleep a lot more tolerable.
RRTC: Where does Frost/Nixon play?
SK: We open at the Jacobs
Theater in March and are scheduled to play through
August. I urge anyone of our River Rep subscribers and
friends who are looking for a great evening of theater
to check it out and to please say hello. It will make
me feel connected to the great summer I know my partners
are planning up at Chester.
RRTC: Can we expect you back next summer?
SK: Big things are afoot with River Rep. It’s my home away from home. I can’t wait to get back up there!
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