Sacrificing His Fries for a Starring Role【皇太后陛下正式出櫃】
Samuel Barnett Discusses His Female Roles in Shakespeare’s ‘Twelfth Night’ and ‘Richard III’
By JACOB BERNSTEINFEB. 12, 2014
Samuel Barnett ordered a salad. It wasn’t exactly what he wanted at Cafe Luxembourg, especially with its noted French fries on the menu, but as he noted wryly, “I have to get into a corset.”
That he does.
Five times a week, Mr. Barnett stars on Broadway in the much-lauded new production of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” in which he plays the female lead, Viola.
Three other times a week, the company performs “Richard III,” and Mr. Barnett plays Queen Elizabeth, donning an enormous gown that takes 40 minutes just to pin him into. (Both productions will close Sunday after a near-sold-out run.)
Mr. Barnett discovered Cafe Luxembourg in 2006, when he came to New York from London to do the Broadway production of “The History Boys,” which was written by Alan Bennett and won the Tony for best play.
Mr. Bennett happens to be a part owner in the restaurant, and he gave the actor a card that entitled him to a “massive discount.”
At first, Mr. Barnett didn’t go there very much. He was staying in Midtown, near where the show was playing, and that was more or less that: too far.
But then, the neighborhood noise began to get to him, and he requested a move.
“I just knew that Midtown would make me want to throw myself off a building, so I asked if I could find my own and they said yes,” said Mr. Barnett, who soon found a “a walk-up in a gorgeous old brownstone” off Central Park West.
It was perfect for a country boy from Yorkshire seeking out a little peace and quiet.
He loved Central Park and the fact that the No. 1 train took him to the theater in less than 10 minutes. And he adored Cafe Luxembourg, on West 70th Street, with its “very European” décor and its perfect burger and fries.
And so, when he returned to New York this fall for his sophomore Broadway run, this was the neighborhood he chose.
Overwhelmingly, he has loved being in New York and has relished the opportunity to meet people here, particularly the celebrities who have come backstage and done meet-and-greets.
“It’s been really great,” he said of interactions with people like Bono, Denzel Washington, Cameron Diaz, Stella McCartney, Steven Spielberg, Mike Nichols and “what’s his name from ‘The West Wing’? Bradley Whitford.”
“They’re all kind and gracious and happy to have their picture taken with you,” he said. “They’re not fazed. They know they’re famous and that we’re going to love them, and they’ve been so complimentary about the show as well.”
Steve Martin came to the show and even invited him and his co-star Stephen Fry “round” for dinner.
Of late, Mr. Barnett has also been enjoying another perk that comes with good notices in a hit show: free clothes. “There’s always a little bit of me that feels a little guilty about it, but not guilty enough to say no,” said Mr. Barnett, who was wearing a simple pair of pants (“I can’t remember where I got them”) with a Thom Grey blazer, a shirt and cardigan by Rag & Bone, a scarf by Paul Smith and shoes from Fiorentini & Baker.
Mr. Barnett has been somewhat less giddy about some of his interactions with journalists.
“I did an interview either for Broadway.com or Playbill.com a few weeks ago,” he said. “And the reporter said to me, ‘You’ve never talked about your private life.’ And I was like, ‘I haven’t?’ And she went: ‘No. You talk about your work. You never talk about your private life.’ And I was like, ‘Well, no one’s ever asked.’ She said, ‘Do you want to make a statement?’ I said, ‘No, I don’t want to make a statement.’ ”
And, yes, he is gay. His boyfriend is the theater director Adam Penford, who is heading up the revival of “A Small Family Business” at the National Theater in London.
Mr. Barnett’s sexuality is not a topic of conversation he seems eager to pursue. He worries a bit that being open about it will hinder his acting career in the United States, where there are more and more gay actors who have come out, but still no real gay movie stars and a mere handful of gay men on the major networks playing heterosexual leads.
“When you say there’s more work for openly gay actors,” Mr. Barnett said, “what you’re really saying is that there are more gay roles that those gay actors could get. I don’t go into an audition back home thinking, ‘This is a straight role, so I might not get it.’ Here I do. And that’s just a truth for me.”
Still, he said, he does not feel like a victim.
When Mr. Barnett was doing “The History Boys,” a friend told him that that kind of stroke of luck generally strikes an actor only once every 10 years. “And I feel like with ‘Twelfth Night,’ I’ve now had two of those jobs,” he said. “I feel like I’ve gotten more than a lot of people will ever get. I feel very fortunate.”
Mr. Barnett is not sure what he’s going to do next.
Over the last few weeks, he has been auditioning for pilots, but nothing has come of it yet.
Right now, Mr. Barnett’s plan is to return to London when the show wraps up its run this weekend. And he said that he was looking forward to going home to his boyfriend but that he would miss New York considerably.
“The people are much friendlier here,” Mr. Barnett said. “There’s more of an anonymity in London. Everyone’s just getting on with their own thing. Here, people want to connect.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/13/fashion/Samuel-Barnett-Theater-Shakespeare-Twelfth-Night-Richard-III-.html?_r=0
By JACOB BERNSTEINFEB. 12, 2014
Samuel Barnett ordered a salad. It wasn’t exactly what he wanted at Cafe Luxembourg, especially with its noted French fries on the menu, but as he noted wryly, “I have to get into a corset.”
That he does.
Five times a week, Mr. Barnett stars on Broadway in the much-lauded new production of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” in which he plays the female lead, Viola.
Three other times a week, the company performs “Richard III,” and Mr. Barnett plays Queen Elizabeth, donning an enormous gown that takes 40 minutes just to pin him into. (Both productions will close Sunday after a near-sold-out run.)
Mr. Barnett discovered Cafe Luxembourg in 2006, when he came to New York from London to do the Broadway production of “The History Boys,” which was written by Alan Bennett and won the Tony for best play.
Mr. Bennett happens to be a part owner in the restaurant, and he gave the actor a card that entitled him to a “massive discount.”
At first, Mr. Barnett didn’t go there very much. He was staying in Midtown, near where the show was playing, and that was more or less that: too far.
But then, the neighborhood noise began to get to him, and he requested a move.
“I just knew that Midtown would make me want to throw myself off a building, so I asked if I could find my own and they said yes,” said Mr. Barnett, who soon found a “a walk-up in a gorgeous old brownstone” off Central Park West.
It was perfect for a country boy from Yorkshire seeking out a little peace and quiet.
He loved Central Park and the fact that the No. 1 train took him to the theater in less than 10 minutes. And he adored Cafe Luxembourg, on West 70th Street, with its “very European” décor and its perfect burger and fries.
And so, when he returned to New York this fall for his sophomore Broadway run, this was the neighborhood he chose.
Overwhelmingly, he has loved being in New York and has relished the opportunity to meet people here, particularly the celebrities who have come backstage and done meet-and-greets.
“It’s been really great,” he said of interactions with people like Bono, Denzel Washington, Cameron Diaz, Stella McCartney, Steven Spielberg, Mike Nichols and “what’s his name from ‘The West Wing’? Bradley Whitford.”
“They’re all kind and gracious and happy to have their picture taken with you,” he said. “They’re not fazed. They know they’re famous and that we’re going to love them, and they’ve been so complimentary about the show as well.”
Steve Martin came to the show and even invited him and his co-star Stephen Fry “round” for dinner.
Of late, Mr. Barnett has also been enjoying another perk that comes with good notices in a hit show: free clothes. “There’s always a little bit of me that feels a little guilty about it, but not guilty enough to say no,” said Mr. Barnett, who was wearing a simple pair of pants (“I can’t remember where I got them”) with a Thom Grey blazer, a shirt and cardigan by Rag & Bone, a scarf by Paul Smith and shoes from Fiorentini & Baker.
Mr. Barnett has been somewhat less giddy about some of his interactions with journalists.
“I did an interview either for Broadway.com or Playbill.com a few weeks ago,” he said. “And the reporter said to me, ‘You’ve never talked about your private life.’ And I was like, ‘I haven’t?’ And she went: ‘No. You talk about your work. You never talk about your private life.’ And I was like, ‘Well, no one’s ever asked.’ She said, ‘Do you want to make a statement?’ I said, ‘No, I don’t want to make a statement.’ ”
And, yes, he is gay. His boyfriend is the theater director Adam Penford, who is heading up the revival of “A Small Family Business” at the National Theater in London.
Mr. Barnett’s sexuality is not a topic of conversation he seems eager to pursue. He worries a bit that being open about it will hinder his acting career in the United States, where there are more and more gay actors who have come out, but still no real gay movie stars and a mere handful of gay men on the major networks playing heterosexual leads.
“When you say there’s more work for openly gay actors,” Mr. Barnett said, “what you’re really saying is that there are more gay roles that those gay actors could get. I don’t go into an audition back home thinking, ‘This is a straight role, so I might not get it.’ Here I do. And that’s just a truth for me.”
Still, he said, he does not feel like a victim.
When Mr. Barnett was doing “The History Boys,” a friend told him that that kind of stroke of luck generally strikes an actor only once every 10 years. “And I feel like with ‘Twelfth Night,’ I’ve now had two of those jobs,” he said. “I feel like I’ve gotten more than a lot of people will ever get. I feel very fortunate.”
Mr. Barnett is not sure what he’s going to do next.
Over the last few weeks, he has been auditioning for pilots, but nothing has come of it yet.
Right now, Mr. Barnett’s plan is to return to London when the show wraps up its run this weekend. And he said that he was looking forward to going home to his boyfriend but that he would miss New York considerably.
“The people are much friendlier here,” Mr. Barnett said. “There’s more of an anonymity in London. Everyone’s just getting on with their own thing. Here, people want to connect.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/13/fashion/Samuel-Barnett-Theater-Shakespeare-Twelfth-Night-Richard-III-.html?_r=0
