Audra McDonald has been here before.
And before. And before. And before. And before. And before. And before. And before. And before.
The actress earned her 10th acting Tony Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play on Tuesday for her role as writer Suzanne Alexander in Adrienne Kennedy’s 1991 play “Ohio State Murders,” the 91-year-old Kennedy’s Broadway debut. The achievement ties her with Chita Rivera and Julie Harris as the most nominated individual artists in the awards’ 76-year history.
“It’s an honor,” said McDonald, who has won six Tony Awards, the most of any artist. “But the work is the true joy.”
McDonald, 52, previously won four actress Tonys in the stage and musical categories for her roles in “Carousel” (1994), “Master Class” (1996), “Ragtime” (1998) and “A Raisin in the Sun” (2004 ). She won Tonys for Leading Actress for her performance as the stubborn Bess in the musical “The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess” in 2012 and her turn as famed jazz singer Billie Holiday in the play “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill” in 2014 She is the only person to win in all four acting categories.
In his review of “Ohio State Murders,” which he called a “pungent production,” DailyExpertNews critic Jesse Green praised McDonald’s performance, “ripped from its gallery of poignant women,” noting that it builds to ‘a crushing catharsis’. .”
In an interview during her lunch break from a workshop in Manhattan on Tuesday, McDonald discussed her milestone, why it still feels special to be recognized for this particular production, and what she hopes people took away from her performance. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.
This is your 10th nomination and you’ve already set the record for most winning artist, with six Tonys. Is it still special?
It’s incredibly special. Being a part of Adrienne Kennedy making her Broadway debut and having her work seen by a wider audience was something that was very important to me. Even if I had not received a nomination, I would still be very proud of the work. I was honored that she trusted our vision and what we wanted to do with the piece.
The older and younger versions of Suzanne Alexander are usually played by two different actors, but you played both. Why?
Since Suzanne goes back in time to remember these things, I thought if she could actually step into those memories and feel them in her body, she’d be even more enlightened when she stepped back out into a narrative, reflective place. So I asked Adrienne for permission for that and she said, “Sure, that’s great, let’s see what happens.”
What appealed to you about the show?
How often do we have plays that really focus on the experience of a black woman? This is a chance for the character Suzanne – and it’s semi-autobiographical to some extent, so Adrienne – to be able to tell her experience. It was very appealing to be able to play this incredibly brilliant, wounded and in some ways – at the end of the play – victorious woman, even if it was very, very difficult. And it was a charge to be made in terms of what systemic racism is doing to people and how it is destroying.
In his review, Jesse Green praised your “amazing access to tragic feelings.” Where did you go to find that?
When playing a role, you must be that character’s advocate at all times, even if you’re playing a villain. Part of advocating for Suzanne is trying to find empathy for the pain and the terror and the tragedy and trauma she’s been through. The powerful question in acting is, “What if that happened to me?” What would I think? What would I feel?
How did your performance evolve over the course of the run?
Because the piece is so incredibly compact and the language is so full and poetic, the evolution for me came from becoming more comfortable with Adrienne’s language, which I don’t think I had at the beginning of the run.
Your character’s babies are represented, not with dolls, but as bits of pink cloth. Why?
That was the genius of Kenny Leon, who is an incredible director. We knew that once you put babies on stage, even if they’re puppets – which was a thought at one point – it was going to be really hard to put them aside for moments where the focus isn’t necessarily on them. We wanted to make sure the audience wasn’t distracted by it.
What do you hope people took away from the show?
I hope they had a broader understanding of the destructive power of racism. I also hope that people who are not black can see that we are not a monolith. This is a woman, as a character, who isn’t always represented on stage, and I wanted this very educated, smart and brilliant, but wounded woman to tell her story and center her story and demand that it be heard.
What did Kennedy tell you after he saw it?
She was very touched. I still speak to her. I actually got an email from her a few days ago and I’m going to visit her in a few weeks. She was very glad we did. She had a lot of people play the part and I think she loved all the interpretations of it.
How does it feel to have been able to bring a lesser known work to the stage?
A lot of people have known who Adrienne Kennedy was for years, but there was a younger generation that got to know Adrienne Kennedy through that production, and that makes me happy.