Atw - Downstage Center

Tony Award-winning actor Richard Easton talks about his role in David Ives' play "New Jerusalem" and why he didn't spend much time trying to parse Spinoza's philosophy in preparation for the show (and why audiences needn't either); recalls how an off-hand contest entry as a schoolboy set him off on a theatrical career; describes the very first season of Canada's famed Stratford Festival; chronicles his peripatetic journey from Canada to New York to San Diego to London and all points in between; remembers his unsatisfying years with the Royal Shakespeare Company, which nevertheless brought about his friendship with Kenneth Branagh; considers his appearances in Tom Stoppard's "The Invention of Love", "The Coast of Utopia" and "Every Good Boy Deserves Favour"; reflects on the health challenges that befell him over the past year; and offers some practical advice for actors just starting out on the stage. Original air date - February 1, 2008.