I’ve known about LeBron for as long as he’s been playing the game, but it’s only through working on “King James” that I’ve done a deep dive on him, and all that surrounds him - what it means to be a fan of his. Sports was a big thing in my house growing up, but it wasn’t a big thing in my mind. There’s a real sense of his spirit that I feel like I get and can relate to, but he comes from wildly different circumstances. At the end of the day, there are a lot of things that we share. There was a lot of space between Matt, the character, and me. Something that drew me to the project, in addition to how well it was written, is that I felt like I had a lot to learn. I’d say it’s 50% something that you hone and that each actor finds their own way to get good at, but then it’s also something I feel like anybody could do.ĭid you have any sort of personal connection to LeBron before joining the play? And the beauty of doing a play with just myself and another actor is that if he’s not talking, it’s probably because I’m supposed to be. It seems like the only possible thing that you could say in that moment. And when you are particularly blessed with a good writer like Rajiv Joseph, as I am now, everything that you’re supposed to say just makes sense. Perfetti rang up Variety to discuss the award-winning classroom comedy as well as his starring turn in “King James,” which is running through June 18 at Manhattan Theatre Club.Īs someone who had become familiar with you via “Abbott Elementary,” I couldn’t help but think about how long the monologues are in “King James,” and how different that must be in terms of memorizing lines. In between seasons of “Abbott,” Perfetti is currently starring in an off-Broadway production of “ King James,” Rajiv Joseph’s latest play about two men whose friendship develops over the course of 13 years in tandem with LeBron James’ basketball career. “I’m still getting used to all the nice people saying hello to me on the street in Brooklyn,” Perfetti says of his newfound fame.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |