Q&A With Actress Kristen Levy of Clague Playhouse's "Last Train To Nibroc"

Kristen Levy plays May in Clague Playhouse's "Last Train To Nibroc" which ends its run today. The play follows May, a religious girl from small town Kentucky, and Raleigh, a former soldier and aspiring writer, as they try to find happiness. She sat down to answer a few questions after a performance.

Westlake Patch: How long have you been acting?

Kristen Levy: I did my first play in elementary school, just like everyone had to, but I didn’t really start getting into acting until right after I finished college. This is my first play here, though. I've been at Huntington Playhouse and Stage Left Theater. I did a couple of musical at Case Western University where I went for undergrad.

Patch: Is this your first two-person play?

Levy: It is. It’s nice because you know that you have control over the whole show but it’s terrifying because you’re in control of the whole show. The space is really intimidating; you can hear every whisper and laugh. There were a lot of laughs in parts we didn’t plan.

My actor’s Achilles heel is keeping a straight face. Especially if I’m in a slapstick show, it’s really hard for me not to break and start laughing and this was really hard because it was so intimate and people are just laughing at things. That's fine if it’s a funny moment with the characters but sometimes you have to be serious you can’t laugh at a line because May is very serious about it.

 Patch: Are there other challenges about doing a play with only two people on stage?

Levy: It’s definitely the most character work I’ve ever had to do. It’s like a marathon. I’ve been in long plays like Shakespeare before and everyone who’s done that knows those plays can be so long. I just came off of a Shakespeare show and you’re on stage the whole time, but you get breaks.

Even in other shows, you can fun in the background or take a break or you’re doing a dance number – something where you’re active, you’re engaged and you’re on the entire show. We learned from rehearsal that you have to be on your toes the whole time. If you mess up one line it’s like a train wreck.

Patch: What drew you to audition for the play?

Levy: The script is definitely great and the concept of the show, just as a two person show was interesting. There was a character in my age range which is something you always look for. I don’t live too far and I’ve never worked here but I’ve heard lots of good things about it.

Patch: What are you doing when you're not on the stage?

Levy: I'm going for my master's degree in public administration. I'm hoping to focus on the arts. I'll probably always stick with theater as much as I can around here. I just go wherever there’s a show I’m interested in or there’s a director I want to work with. I don’t want to get stuck in one place – I like to come back to old places but I like to see what else is out there.