August: Osage County-- Meet cast member Elizabeth Keith!

Elizabeth Keith (Karen Weston):

What do you find appealing about your character and this show?  Coincidentally, I had an early opportunity to do a few scenes from August: Osage County as part of an Advanced Acting Class offered at LTA in the spring of 2009 and was assigned the role of Karen.  The instructor, Mark Lee Adams, told me that he thought playing Karen would be playing "against type" for me, and therefore, take me out of my comfort zone and present more of an acting challenge.  He was, of course, correct!  And now, almost ten years later, I'm still discovering new depths with Karen and I'm enjoying every minute that I spend watching this incredible cast bring these characters to life under our amazing director, Susan Devine.

What have you learned about yourself in playing the role of Karen?  That optimism can be a redeeming quality, except when it blinds us to the reality that life presents and causes us to make destructive choices.  I believe Karen is a strong person and someone who has taken charge of her life against many odds - she has earned her happy ending. However, she wants so much to be loved and accepted that, in the end, she makes a rather untenable choice to follow her dream rather than deal with the reality that unfolds in front of her.  She, like many of the women in this play, is also struggling with a loss of her youth and how to deal with the life she has left versus the life she wanted for herself, which presents some validation to her decision.  I consider myself more of a realist, so there are a lot of differences between us, but I can certainly identify with where some of her actions and reactions stem from deep inside.   

What do you want the audience to experience/take away from this show?  One of the greatest compliments I ever received as an actor was when an audience member once came up to me after a show and said she forgot she was in the theater because the relationships on stage seem so real - like she was watching events unfold as an unsuspecting observer.  I hope this will be one of those shows.  I also hope the audience will be as engaged at the end of Act III as they are in the beginning of Act I - this is a long, emotionally charged show! 

How does this show differ from other shows you have worked on?  The subject matter, language, and realism of this show are more intense than any other show I've worked on.  This play is brilliantly written for actors and takes place in 2007, which will be the most currently staged play I've performed in. 

How long have you been acting and what made you get involved in theatre? How did you get involved with LTA?  A girlfriend persuaded me to audition for Annie in elementary school with our local community theater.  Fortunately, we both got cast and after that, I was hooked!  I've met some of the most wonderful and wonderfully talented people through community theatre, and this cast is no exception!  My first show at LTA was Picnic in 2008, and it remains one of my most fond memories of community theatre to date - an incredibly talented cast and crew, plus my first exposure to a raked stage!

What advice would you give others who are interested in working in theatre?  Get involved in what interests you and never give up.  I had auditioned at LTA for several seasons before getting cast in Picnic, but I knew I wanted to work here and I've never been disappointed.  It truly is an honor to work at LTA and I'm so grateful for every show I've been cast in.  LTA provides such an amazing opportunity for actors to learn, grow, and build lasting relationships, and, as Mr. Adams taught, to challenge yourself!