Arian Moayed (‘A Doll’s House’) on discovering ‘deep truths’ through unconventional staging [Exclusive Video Interview]
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“We’re going after so many deep truths,” reveals Arian Moayed of the current revival of “A Doll’s House.” Director Jamie Lloyd has staged Amy Herzog’s new adaptation on a mostly bare stage, with an ever rotating turntable. Moayed has discovered that the format leads to new surprises, and audience reactions, at every performance. Watch the exclusive video interview above.
“It’s both completely new and completely difficult,” notes Moayed of the play’s stylized presentation. He portrays Torvald in the revival, the controlling husband to Nora (played by Oscar winner Jessica Chastain). Unlike a traditional staging where space is clearly defined, the actor cannot designate areas of the playing space for certain activities to give himself anchor points. “I am completely exposed to you,” he explains, “It really puts a lot of focus on us, making sure that we are connected just by our words.”
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Moayed considers himself “lucky” to have Chastain as a scene partner, describing their relationship as “simpatico.” But, Lloyd’s decision to keep Nora seated in a chair for almost the entire duration of the play presented a “tricky” challenge for him. When he finally gave in to the chair as a metaphor of Nora being stuck, he says the scene “actually amplified and opened it up in a way.” The actor was able to play into the control that Torvald exerts over Nora even more. He references a scene where Torvald tells his wife that he would do anything for her in order to placate her, only to then switch to an infantilizing tone as he proceeds to instruct her to practice a dance. It’s as if telling a child to go entertain themselves and not bother the adults, only here, the adult is in charge of all the movement in the scene. “The chair actually helped me with that because we were so intimate,” he admits.
The actor actually joins Chastain for an extended period, sitting alongside her. Moayed reveals that up until tech rehearsals, he was up on his feet, stomping across the stage for much of the volcanic act three. Then Lloyd told him to try the whole thing sitting down. He was hesitant to remain stationary, “but the moment I sat it totally made it more tense, more difficult, more of a challenge,” he explains, “it just put us into this war.” The actor is pleasantly surprised by the intensity he and Chastain have found in this moment through limited use of physicality.
Moayed also comments on the final season of “Succession” and leaving behind his character Stewy. “Truthfully, it’s just really sad,” he admits, “we’re all like siblings in a way. That’s not just the cast, it’s the crew as well.” Still he respects creator Jesse Armstrong’s decision to conclude the series on a high note (and is crossing his fingers that Stewy is featured in a spin-off). “My gut is that Jesse knows that he’s more than making art,” explains Moayed, “he’s making a statement about our society and capitalism. And I think you want to leave that pure.”
Moayed previously earned a Tony nomination for “The Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo.” He received an Emmy nomination in the Drama Guest Actor category for playing Stewy on “Succession.”
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