Cherry Jones, Part Two

DA: Do you ever worry about being openly gay - that it might affect getting work?
CJ: Absolutely not. Never.
DA: Even in films?
CJ: If I were always looking for the next big Hollywood break, then I'm sure it would give me some pause. But since I'm not concerned with that, it's never been a problem. I do wish, of course, that everyone who is gay could be "out", because then it would be an ideal world.
DA: When people who are out gain notority - like you --I think it moves us all along. It chips away at that big wall of ignorance and prejudice.
CJ: Oh, tremendously. And of course being out has never been a problem with theatre roles. I don't think it's an issue - even if I were always playing the heterosexual leading ladies in comtemporary pieces.
DA: Any interest in that?
CJ: Oh, sure! I love and adore men. And you know -- I am an actress. I have played a few heterosexuals in my time!
DA: Do you ever have a bad case of nerves onstage?
CJ: I had one terrible night during The Heiress. One of the actors "went up" for a few seconds. Now, he came right back and found himself quickly, but for some reason it shook me. I was so panicked trying to think how I was going to help him that when he finally threw the right line at me I almost didn't come in!
DA: I asked Julie Harris how she deals with stage fright and she said she just thinks of how wonderful it is to share the playwright's words with an audience.
CJ: Right. You're telling a story.
DA: How do you elicit emotions that you need in a scene when they just don't come?
CJ: As I've gotten older it's much easier. I found what worked with The Heiress - where I had several tearful moments - was the the thought of the loss of (her then lover) Mary.
DA: That worked 371 times?
CJ: I could have used her every night. Some nights when I needed a break from killing Mary off, I'd use my family. I just need a springboard to get me to a heightened emotional state.
DA: What else makes you cry? I'm not trying to play Barbara Walters --
CJ: I can't cry over the past because I haven't had a difficult past. What I could cry over is the future. It's unknown. Old age and the future, to me, is something to conquer. The loss of loved ones. I can't imagine living without them. I'm a puppy! I want to be able to run and ride my bike and just play heroines forever. And I know at eighty I probably won't be able to do all that.DA: Finally, Miss Jones, what is unique about you.
What do you think you bring to the Party?
CJ: I do know that I have a presence. And I know that I have a kind of dignity that people respond to. I'm not a quick, brilliant person - so I guess it's a softer, slower, slightly quirky "take" that I bring to my work. And I do know that when I play my women, they exist. I'm not saying that in a mystical way, but for those two hours every night, they're absolutely real to me. And it's such a privilege and such a joy to be able to bring these great, beautiful words and thoughts to life every night. For me, it's just heaven on earth.

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