Cryptic Rock – That seems to be a good key to life. That in mind, success is different for everyone.
Sean Young – Yes, and I’ve been very lucky in all kinds of ways. From the beginning of my career, with all the money I got to make, to the Lifetime movies, to the stage, where I was able to do theater in Northport in 2014. That experience in Northport was my first-time doing theater, and now I get to do it for a second time professionally. I definitely feel like the first play helped inform me on this play. I was much more nervous on the first play, because I hadn’t really done it before. I have a little sense of what to expect now. It’s not as overwhelming as it was the first time.
Cryptic Rock – That is a good thing and it is exciting to see you take on a theater role. As mentioned, you have had a good deal of success in film. You have been diverse; working in Comedy, Drama, and Sci-Fi, among others. Do you have a favorite genre you enjoy working in?
Sean Young – One of my favorite films that I got to do was with Carl Reiner and it was called Fatal Instinct (1993). It didn’t get the exposure that it deserved, because it is hilarious! Some films don’t get the push that they deserve. You would think, maybe there are some flaws in this film, but Fatal Instinct was not a very flawed film, and it was fun. I love that film.
Truthfully, I really enjoy and thrive doing Comedy; I just find it a lot more fun. I was really funny in Fatal Instinct one too! (Laughs) So, it’s one of my favorites.
Cryptic Rock – Interesting to hear. And you had a chance to work with Carl Reiner! You have been very active in recent years. Working in Lifetime films, other feature films, and now starring in theater. Many actors/actresses strive to work in theater at some point along their journey. What is it like for you to work in theater at this stage in your life?
Sean Young – Well it was fun walking in and meeting the cast. No one in the cast is obviously really famous, and they were excited… but I was feeling the same way too about getting to meet them. The experience is one of what I call the microcosmic egg where we all became familiar with each other; learning to rely and trust each other. You have to know all these lines… you have to hustle and get it done.
It’s a nice experience, it really is. It is similar to dancing, except, and I don’t say it in a critical way, but with dancers, you can’t fake the steps. With dance, you’re doing an entire step, or you’re not. In acting, the process is not necessarily as easy to know when you are getting it right. Except, when you do get it right, somehow you know it. It’s a different process. It’s very cool and the longer I do the quicker I get there. The longer I do it the easier it is for me to do and deliver what is expected of me. It’s nice to be a veteran frankly. (Laughs)
Cryptic Rock – And one can imagine there is a different dynamic performing on stage in front of a live audience opposed to in front of a camera.
Sean Young – Of course, absolutely. Because with a camera, you have as many takes as you want. On stage you can’t do that. There is a little more excitement and/or trepidation.
Cryptic Rock – Yes, and that sounds like it can be a new challenge. In the arena of Comedy, which you said you love, one can imagine it is more fun to do live. When you do it live you get the immediate reaction of the audience, so you know if you are hitting the right notes.
Sean Young – I guess so, but I don’t know if I agree with that completely. It is actually really hard to do Comedy on film because you don’t get the response. So, you are actually kind of working in the blind. You have to really know what the hell you are doing to get it right when you are not getting that response back.
If you go onto my YouTube there are behind the scenes of Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994). That was a funny movie. Although, there was no clapping afterwards. You had the cast and crew, but it is not like there was a formal audience. You throw it out there and it is kind of like fly fishing or something… you don’t know if you are necessarily going to hit it. Later on, I remember watching the screening of Ace Ventura, and the audience was in stitches within 3 or 4 minutes of the beginning, and it did not stop pretty much the whole time.
Do you have another film which is like that? Stripes (1981). That film was hilarious! From the very get-go Bill Murray just rocked it. It is a very different process though. So yes, they (film and theater) are different types of mediums.
Cryptic Rock – Yes. So, now you are a part of this new off-Broadway production called Ode to the Wasp Woman. It sounds like quite an interesting story which features stories of four well-known actors/actresses who all died tragically. What brought you to be a part of this?
Sean Young – Well, Rider McDowell wanted me, that was key. (Laughs) Then when I read it I thought, this is kind of challenging. Then I called him, and that is when I made my decision. He gave me a lot of confidence and the feeling I was right for the part. I knew I could be right for the part; you are not right for every part. I knew I would at least be appropriate to be casted for this character and I could do a really good job with it.
That’s the challenge – to be able to get jobs you know can do a really great job with. You want to be reliable for people.
Cryptic Rock – Right, confidence in yourself is essential. Now that you are fully enthralled in this, what are your thoughts about this story?
Sean Young – Well, I think it’s going to have a lot more humor than one is expecting. It’s not going to be a dirge; it’s not going to be a march to the cemetery. Yes, there is tragedy within it as well. The writers put an awful lot of insight into people though. One of the things I thought though was… what drew people to do the Hollywood thing? Even Marilyn Monroe, who had a mom, but she would go into the psych ward so to speak, would have a foster mother. Susan Cabot was also raised in foster homes. The kind of wobbly unsteady with people coming looking for that approval. It is kind of an age-old reality of the movie business from the very beginning.
You have all types who succeed in Hollywood, but there are an awful lot of people who succeed and then fail. Ode to the Wasp Woman is the different points of view of people who have gone through that machinery.
Cryptic Rock – Very interesting. To your point, you have to take the ups with the downs. Many people live by their careers. Whether it be acting, or anything else, and when the downs come, they take someone down badly.
Sean Young – Yes, they can. It doesn’t do it to all actors or only really famous actors. There is a wide spectrum of these types of circumstances. There certainly is a need to manage the attention and career in an as non-toxic way as possible. You don’t want to lose touch with reality. Yet, you want to do the best job in the portrayals that you do.
When you think about it, isn’t it kind of weird that we live in a culture where almost 90% of the population actually watches a screen. I think that’s bizarre! It’s only been 200 years too; this was not here 200 years ago. That blows my mind sometimes. When you think about what the purpose of theater or entertainment was… the possibilities in my imagination are just endless.
Cryptic Rock – That is a very compelling point that you bring up how we live gazing into screens.
Sean Young – Yes, we are population deficient in vitamin D because we are indoor people now. We don’t spend our days outside; we’re not under the sun as much as we were in ancient times. It’s kind of appalling really.
Cryptic Rock – Most certainly. To that point, live theater is a different medium than looking into a screen. It is real, in front of you, and live.
Sean Young – I think that is its blessing in a way. I think that is what is really nice about theater. There is something compelling for people to sit and watch other people act things out.
I read somewhere that in ancient times, lawyers, which wouldn’t be called that then, but you would call them a chief of a tribe, lets say. Anyway, you would have the chief of a tribe and you would have two people representing whoever had done something wrong in their tribe. With this, it would be decided by the chief. That said, what they would do was act out what allegedly happened. That is sort of in the beginning of theater. I just thought, that totally makes sense. It’s a funny subject really.
Cryptic Rock – It really is. It is really a look into the evolution of humanity and how we think. Behind Ode to the Wasp Woman, which you will be a part from now into the new year, what else do you have coming up?
Sean Young – Well I have a play setup in a theater in Phoenix, AZ. It is a 900-seat theater and I want to do the play Fireflies. I love the play and I’m trying to find the person who will do it. You need all the elements to do a show like that, because there are only 4 characters. Beyond that, who knows, it’s show business.
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