Patrick J. Adams (‘Take Me Out’) on the ‘level of freedom’ he feels after living with his character Kippy for two years [Exclusive Video Interview]
“There’s a level of freedom that has come with the amount of time I’ve gotten to spend with this material,” reveals Patrick J. Adams. The actor is currently starring as Kippy in the Second Stage Theater revival of Richard Greenberg’s “Take Me Out.” The production was set to open in the spring of 2020 before the pandemic forced it into a state of limbo, but the actor is certain that the two year break has added a special element to the production. Watch the exclusive video interview.
“I kept Kippy in there, he was gestating,” explains Adams. Over the course of the pandemic, he would go on long hikes behind his house in California and recite the lines to himself to keep the character alive. Since the baseball drama is full of glorious monologues, it was easy to run lines without a scene partner. Because he had practiced the dialogue in so many settings, he felt like he was prepared for anything once rehearsals started again. “There’s a sense of ownership and a sense of knowing each other that I don’t think you could experience in any other production,” he suggests.
SEE Michael Oberholtzer (‘Take Me Out’) on finding the physical identity of pitcher Shane
Kippy is the best friend of star pitcher Darren (Jesse Williams), who comes out as gay towards the top of the play. As such, Kippy serves as something of a narrator and his monologues are unique in that they address the audience directly. It’s a task that Adams refers to as a “super unique” challenge. “I have to create a relationship with a group of people that I don’t know,” says Adams. The key to success, according to the actor, is to always be present in the moment so that he can “make fast friends” with the anonymous mass of theatergoers.
The original Broadway run of “Take Me Out” made headlines for the amount of male nudity depicted across several shower scenes. Those remain intact in this revival, and as someone with a history of stage fright, Adams admits that “the naked on stage part was so scary.” At the start of the rehearsal process, he put it out of his mind. But as tech rehearsals drew closer, he was surprised that the prospect of disrobing did not grow scarier.
SEE ‘Take Me Out’ reviews: ‘Provocative’ revival poised to hit home run at Tony Awards
“I think it has to do with how beautiful I think that scene is,” he says, referring to his shower scene shortly after Darren comes out. Kippy engages in a surprisingly self aware and honest examination of how this one moment has changed certain team dynamics. “It’s a scene that’s sort of anti-sexual,” suggest the actor. “It’s about laying it bare…how talking about what Darren has done has just affected the way we look at each other. That’s our own biases. It’s just so beautifully written.” Ultimately, the content of the script wins out over any stage fright. “I’m proud of that scene,” states Adams.
PREDICT the 2022 Tony Awards nominees now through May 9
Make your predictions at Gold Derby now. Download our free and easy app for Apple/iPhone devices or Android (Google Play) to compete against legions of other fans plus our experts and editors for best prediction accuracy scores. See our latest prediction champs. Can you top our esteemed leaderboards next? Always remember to keep your predictions updated because they impact our latest racetrack odds, which terrify Hollywood chiefs and stars. Don’t miss the fun. Speak up and share your huffy opinions in our famous forums where 5,000 showbiz leaders lurk every day to track latest awards buzz. Everybody wants to know: What do you think? Who do you predict and why?