Spamalot - Meet cast member Patrick Graham
What do you find appealing about your character and this show?
I've been a huge fan of
Monty Python since I was very young thanks to my older brother and jumped at
the opportunity to portray some of the silliest characters I've ever
seen. I really wanted to try my hand at the challenge of creating all
these different characters, as the Pythons seemed to do effortlessly. What I
love about the musical is that these characters give such a nostalgic feel to
the movie, yet expand on each character, surprising the audience in new ways!
The anticipation for when people who know the movie, see a familiar character
and react, is such a thrill.
What have you learned
about yourself in playing all of these characters?
I've learned a lot
about creating characters and how important it is to establish certain
physicality’s and other traits for scenes. Some of my characters only appear
for a short scene and I don’t have a lot time to establish anything, so I have
to figure out shortcuts so that the audience knows exactly who I am, even if
they haven’t seen the movie. I find myself saying “Who am I now?” many times
backstage. I should see a doctor about this.
Being a long time Monty
Python Fan, do you have any favorite skits or scenes?
I have a soft spot in my
heart for the “Dead Parrot Skit”; it’s just so iconic and hilarious 50 years
later. I've gone back and realized that throughout the course of the
show, there are an uncountable amount of callbacks and references to the
Flying circus in addition to the movie. We may have added a few in ourselves; I
can’t wait for diehard fans to catch all the references!!
How does this show differ
from other shows you have worked on?
My last production was “Les
Miserables” in Reston, which was an extremely easy transition; they have pretty
much the same tone. Yet coming from such shows and “Avenue Q” and “Dirty Rotten
Scoundrels”, I’m right at home in my comedic style. I've also done
many ensemble shows and it’s quite similar to those. The ensembles in most
shows play multiple roles and have to create different feels for each scene.
Having done this a lot prepped me for playing all these roles.
How
long have you been acting and what made you get involved in theatre? How did
you get involved with LTA?
I've been
acting since I was in elementary school, playing the Emperor in the Emperor’s
New Clothes and have done theatre ever since. When I started doing community
theatre, I saw a few productions at LTA and couldn't wait to get a
chance to work with them. I live/work about an hour away from them, so I wanted
to find the right show to commute for and I've certainly found
it with Spamalot!
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