Interview: Emmy Winner Jeff Hiller on Artistic Successes and Returning to the Stage in The Exhibitionist

Jeff Hiller had spent years pursuing the kind of acting career that doesn’t necessarily come with awards, recognition, or a steady paycheck.

Now, following his Emmy-winning turn in Somebody Somewhere and his breakout role in Widow’s Bay, he’s experiencing a new level of success, and questioning what it really means to make it as an artist. Fortunately for him, there’s a play for that. Hiller returns to the stage November 9-21 at SoHo Playhouse for a nine-performance engagement of James Hindman’s The Exhibitionist, a solo show about an aspiring artist confronting the question of whether the sacrifices required to pursue a creative life are worth it.

The production gives Hiller an opportunity to explore a question he’s been asking himself: Who gets to decide what makes someone an artist, and who gets to determine what a success is?

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Did James Hindman write this play for you?
He did not. He wrote it for the pandemic, because it is a solo show that takes place in front of a door. He wrote it for a theater in New Jersey that said, “we have this fire escape door with a balcony, can you write a play that takes place there?”

It’s hilarious the way you just said, “he wrote it for the pandemic.”
He wrote it as a love letter to the coronavirus! [Laughs] So that was it. It’s one of those things with this great, ridiculous prompt, and he made this really interesting show. We did it at the Solo Flights at Theatre Aspen and we got to know each other quite well and became friends.

What was it about the play that resonated with you?
The play is about becoming an artist and what that entails, and whether or not it’s worth it. Lately, I’ve had this sort of traditional definition of success, where I won an award and have a fulltime job as an actor. So many people have said, “So it was all worth it, right? Now you can really call yourself an actor.” I have been thinking about that a lot, like, “Wait, I was creating good stuff.” Even though it wasn’t professional or successful, it was still beautiful art that I’m proud of. This show speaks to that. It ends up being a meditation on what sacrifices you’re willing to make. Even if the world keeps telling you you’re not an actor because you have a day job, that’s the world’s opinion. It doesn’t have to be yours.

What is it like to do a solo show, since this isn’t your first.
Well, the best thing about a solo show is you get to keep talking. And you don’t have to listen to anybody. You enter into this relationship with the audience. The audience becomes your scene partner. And it’s very different from night to night, depending on the audience. They’ll find certain things funny and other things not. You’ll find that they’re really willing to go with you down this dramatic beat while the audience [the night] before might want to just stick with the laughs. And it’s not like you change the script at all.

It’s a very different experience than even other theater that has an ensemble. I just did—just, it was, like, two years ago—Urinetown at Encores!, and the fact that you have 20 people with you, you don’t feel alone. But it’s difficult, too, because you have a lot less agency in what’s happening, which is good and bad. But I love them both.

How has the “traditional” definition of success that you’ve been experiencing, especially in the wake of Somebody Somewhere and Widow’s Bay changed your life?
So many more people know who I am now. Somebody Somewhere had a lot of fans, but it was a niche show. [After Widow’s Bay], people shout at me down the street. It’s crazy!

After all the TV stuff you’ve been doing, how does it feel to return to the stage?
It’s great. I got into trying to be on TV so that I could get back on Broadway. I got lucky and got on Broadway with Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson and then I have not been able to get back. I’ve auditioned for big, fancy musicals and done musicals out of town that didn’t come in, or did come in but didn’t take me, so I’m thrilled to get back on stage.

It just feels good to be back in the theater. To have an audience, especially as a comedian, it’s so much more exciting than doing comedy for TV. You hope that when they say cut, that the crew starts laughing, but it’s different when an audience doesn’t have to hold it in. It’s much nicer.