Spotlight On: Susan Smith
Connecticut Theatre Company’s “Spotlight On…” series continues with a look into the cast of Sordid Lives. Get to know Susan Thom who is portraying Latrelle Williamson in our production!
Introduce yourself to our audience.
Hi, I’m Susan and I’m playing Latrelle.
What drew you to your specific character in this “sordid” world?
Honestly, I love all the characters, but I specifically love Latrelle’s character arc.
How are you approaching the balance between playing a cartoonish character and keeping them real/grounded, as the script demands?
Latrelle isn’t too cartoonish. She’s more of the straight character sooooo…N/A? lol
What is the biggest challenge of taking on this role, particularly with the required West Texas accent?
I think the biggest challenge is that my character is a bit of a, shall we say, “anal retentive, Judge Judy,” and I think it’s important for her to still be sympathetic despite her personality “quirks.”
Which line are you most excited to deliver?
“Are you the woman or the man?”
“Sordid Lives” is a massive ensemble piece. How are you collaborating with the cast to create that specific, chaotic family chemistry?
How did you first discover the world of Sordid Lives (the movie, the series, or the play)?
I watched the movie and read the play.
How do you think your character has evolved—or hasn’t—if you were to imagine them years after the play ends?
I think Latrelle is just at the beginning of her personal Age of Enlightenment. When the play begins, Latrelle is very much a black and white/right and wrong kind of thinker. By the end of the play, I think she’s allowed a few (a very few) shades of grey to enter. However, I truly believe 5-10 years down the line, Latrelle has become a full-fledged critical thinker and human right’s advocate.
What do you hope the audience takes away from this specific production of the show?
I hope while watching, they can leave the world behind and just live in the moment while experiencing this highly dysfunctional, but lovable, Texan family and community.
“Sordid Lives” opens on March 13th and runs through March 22nd at Connecticut Theatre Company. Tickets on sale now!
“What I really liked about SORDID LIVES was that, despite all of the ridiculousness, it wasn’t just funny. Don’t get me wrong, it was very funny! But it was also moving.” — KRISTA GARVER of BroadwayWorld.com
“Playwright Del Shores is the master of characters: dude-at-the-bar characters, one-Coors-too-many characters, hell-hath-no-fury-like-a-woman-done-wrong characters, and men-who-adore-Tammy Wynette characters.” — LANA SWEETEN-SCHULTS of Times Record News
“Chain smokin’ and fast talkin’ housewives, crazy and eccentric characters, bizarre situations, a ‘coming out’ story, are loosely based on real life stories, as observed by young Shores who grew up in a small Texan town as “a Southern Baptist preacher’s damaged by religion child,” and lived through his own ‘coming out’ later in life. The authenticity of the characters explains the power and popularity of Sordid Lives with both gay and non-gay audiences. “Not only is it (the play) funny, but people really relate to the characters and feel safe to share it outside the gay community” Shores has said.” — ELIZA ANNA FALK of DC Theater Arts
