Interview: Aubrey Plaza Has Been Bitten by the Theater Bug

Aubrey Plaza knows she has a lot to learn when it comes to stage acting. And unlike many actors with her level of recognition (whether from Parks and Recreation or The White Lotus or Agatha All Along), she won’t let herself take the easy way out.

In 2023, Plaza made her professional theater debut in John Patrick Shanley’s red-hot romance Danny and the Deep Blue Sea (the iconic image from that production is of her and scene partner Christopher Abbott literally head-to-head in combat). Just about two years later, she’s gracing the stage at the Atlantic Theatre Company, where she’s among the ensemble of Ethan Coen’s latest triptych of one-acts, collectively titled Let’s Love!

It’s lighter fare than Danny, but not necessarily easier. But as she looks for joy in a dark time, she’s found great happiness in the challenge of theater — and she’s still figuring it all out from masters like Patti LuPone (even though they don’t live together anymore).

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

How did this come about for you?
I shot a movie with Ethan, last year, called Honey Don’t! and I think we just liked working with each other. At the end of the shoot, he came to my dressing room and said, “I wrote this play, and I think I wrote it for you, and I didn’t even realize it.” I read it that night and I was laughing so hard I was crying. I mean, there were tears going down my face, because, A, how funny it is, and B, the idea that he wrote that for me. It’s very wicked. It’s a very extreme character.

Did you see yourself when you were reading it?
I mean, yes, but definitely not some of the things she says. There was a moment when we were shooting the movie where I was kind of reprimanding myself in the corner after different takes, because I’m very hard on myself. As I was yelling at myself in the corner, he walked over to me and he said, “You’re reminding me of Judy Davis.” He said when they were shooting [Barton Fink], she would get mad at herself, and she would scream the word “Vulgar” after her takes. She would go “Vulgar! Vulgar!” so I started doing that too. And the character reminds me of Judy Davis’s character in [Woody Allen’s] Husbands and Wives a little bit. So, I thought about that a lot, but there’s a certain version of me that comes out in that way that I do think makes sense.

Between this and Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, you don’t take the easy route, which is cool for someone who isn’t really native to the theater world.
By accident. I never know what I’m getting myself into with these things. And, yes, it’s the second play I’ve done, but this one felt very different because it’s a comedy, it’s lighter. I’m not ripping my heart out and falling into a pile of tears every night, but it’s actually a different challenge. Comedies can be much harder. I guess the other one was a comedy too, but I don’t have a different approach with it, I guess is what I’m saying. They’re all challenging in their own ways.

I was going to say, is stage comedy different from screen comedy in a tangible way for you? Besides having someone there to laugh right away.
Well, that is the big thing. That is a real factor. We had a big conversation about it last night. One of the main issues that I’m having is that there’s so much laughter that I can’t get my lines out. Which is a good problem to have. Ethan loves this problem. Neil Pepe, our director, reminded me yesterday that in theater, there are three people that you’re dealing with: you, whoever you’re in the scene with, and the audience. It’s a conversation with the audience, so you have to factor in their rhythms and energy or else they might not hear the next thing you say. Which is something that I’ve had to learn.

And how do you stand there without looking like a robot weirdo waiting for the laugh to stop before you pick up again.
Exactly. It’s a different skill to have that conversation with the audience. I’m learning a lot about that because I’m not used to that at all. I’m used to everyone being very quiet and not making a sound when I do a scene.

Are you living with Patti LuPone again for this one, or are you on your own this time?
[Laughs] I’ve graduated from the LuPone Estate, but Patti is still my mentor. She came early on and she’s very helpful for me in the process. She comes to the theater, she gives me advice, we talk about it, she watches. I think about her a lot on stage. She’s taught me a lot.

When you were doing Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, what did you learn about yourself as a performer that you’ve brought into this?
It’s interesting. There are things that I do physically that I learned in Danny that can be a crutch; body positions and little things that I have been trying to unlearn to be a better stage actor and have a stronger presence on stage. Every movement tells a story and tells something to the audience, and I think I didn’t realize how important that is. You really have to learn how to control your body.

That is something that I have brought with me to this one, because I learned the hard way with Danny. I’ve always heard about the toll an eight-show week takes on your body, but I didn’t realize how much of a sport theater is. I prepared differently for this one physically because I want to be stronger. With Danny, every week they were hooking me up to an IV. I was totally depleted. I’ve carried that with me, just the knowledge that I need to have my body be strong so I can make choices and have fun, not just be worried about my health.

Are you enjoying yourself here?
I am. The main reason that I did this is that I was hoping that it would bring some laughter and lightness to me right now. I’m grateful that I get to play with these other actors, who are so much more experienced than I am. I’m learning so much from them and Neil Pepe, so I just feel lucky to be able to get to play with these actors and be in Ethan’s world. 

Is theater going to be a habit for you now?
I love it. It’s kind of my favorite thing, because in movies and TV, I love that too, but you only get so many takes. My favorite part of the work is doing it different every time, and you get to do that on stage. It’s like there’s 80, 90 takes. You get to do it all day long, all the time. I hope the theater will have me back.

Do you have dream roles or plays or anything like that?
Not really. Both of these plays came to me. Obviously, I put it out in the universe that I wanted to do theater, but I don’t have training, you know? I didn’t go to Juilliard or anything like that, so I was patiently waiting for it to kind of come to me, but now that I’ve got two under my belt, I might get more proactive about roles that I’d like to play. But to be honest, I don’t know. I don’t have a plan in that way, but I hope that I keep getting opportunities to be on the stage.