In Dialogue: Todd d'Amour & Eric Dean White

As the 10th anniversary of Tennessee Williams Festival St. Louis rolls around, actors Todd d’Amour and Eric Dean White–graduates of the Class of 2000–bring deep personal ties and artistic reverence to this season’s production of A Streetcar Named Desire. D’Amour (Stanley), who stars opposite his wife Beth Bartley, shares how the playwright shaped his life and career—from the bayous of Louisiana to Broadway. White (Mitch), a Missouri native who once believed his acting days were behind him, reflects on rediscovering the bug, and finding a theatrical home in St. Louis.

The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Todd, you’re playing Stanley opposite your wife as Blanche.

TODD: We both got into this career because of this playwright. Beth played the part at Interlochen before going to Juilliard, and played the part again in New Orleans after we met doing Orpheus Descending. I had just come back from my first Broadway show, Airline Highway, and decided to stay in New Orleans. My sister’s then husband was working on Southern Rep’s production of Orpheus Descending. Their Val dropped out, and he texted me to set up an audition. I got the part just before Mardi Gras, and started rehearsing “Orpheus” on Ash Wednesday.

What first drew either of you to Williams?

ERIC: I was drawn to his characters early on. I grew up in a small town in Missouri, and the damaged characters and Gothic nature of his work was something that pulled me in. I became obsessed with Tennessee Williams and his writing. There was something damaged and yet poetic about the people he wrote. When I auditioned for The Academy, I performed a Brick monologue.

TODD: By the time I was four, my family had moved to New Orleans. We had this property 45 minutes outside of New Orleans: eight acres on the Bayou, and my grandmother would sit on the porch looking out. It was so Williams. If you’re ever in New Orleans, I insist I take you to this place.

I felt like I had already been searching for what good acting was, before I saw the film version of “Streetcar,” when I was young. When Brando showed up on screen…film acting changed from there. That movie had a profound effect on me.

You’ve known the role, those big shoes, for a long time. Now you get to fill them. Tell me about that experience.

TODD: That movie really did envelop me; I spent way too much time watching it. [Laughs.] We have a really good director, and I was able to tell him that I’m consumed with this fear because of how well I know the movie. He’s helping me give Stanley somewhere to go; you can’t start with the beating, you can’t start with the vocal energy of blowing the roof off the place. Everybody knows Brando too, so you want to steal but can’t. But his instincts were so good.

I’m giving myself the gift of getting off-book early, because 99% of the time I’m the last actor off-book. I got ADD. [Laughs.] I have my head in the script 16 plus hours a day, or I’m watching one of 20 documentaries.

What is the significance of this production of “Streetcar” right now?

ERIC: We’re lucky to have our director, Michael James Reed. He’s an actor first and foremost, who spent time in LA, London, and Seattle. He’s a gentleman and comes at it from an acting standpoint.

I feel very lucky. When I first moved to St. Louis, I had “quit” acting, and I thought I was probably never going to act again. I also assumed St. Louis didn’t have acting companies worth joining. I quickly found out just how wrong I was about that.

Carrie Houk, who founded the Festival, is a good friend of mine. This is the 10th year of it. She’s put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into it; I’ve been lucky to do various things at the festival over the years. Last year was Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. I feel very much a part of this festival, with friends and family around, and glad to be able to do the 10th anniversary with this great piece. I love the role of Mitch and his arc.

TODD: My wife and I are living in the Williams childhood home; we’re living in the house that was the muse for “Menagerie.” When we moved in here it was around midnight, and I made about 30 trips up and down the stairs. The next morning Beth was doing a monologue; I recognized it was Tom from The Glass Menagerie. She got to the fire escape, and I realized I’d walked up and down it last night. My wife won’t admit it, but she’s a Tennessee Williams scholar.

Jon-Michael [Hernandez] was also a huge part of my Williams life; he gave me the opportunity to play One Arm. That role helped me better understand Williams’ writing. The character is a boxer who loses an arm; he’s a survivor. It’s almost like Stanley and Blanche combined.

And studying at The Academy; what would you like to share about your time there?

ERIC: I adored my time at The Academy and the teachers I worked with. I grew up in the southeast of Missouri, and then to go to this place where you’re working with all these artists from all over the world, and working with teachers who’ve worked with Stella Adler and the Group Theatre. The Academy has all that history. I owe a debt of gratitude to that place.

When people ask me what I learned there, the answer is pretty simple: I learned how to act.

TODD: I spent four years at college before going to The Academy. I got out of Syracuse debt free, and then went to acting school to go into a bunch of debt. [Laughs.] I was working my first job after Syracuse, managing a bar, and reading Marlon Brando’s Songs My Mother Taught Me. I was seeing a therapist at the time, and remember telling him, “You know, I think I’m gonna do this.” 

When I was at Syracuse I did a year abroad in Zimbabwe and met this guy who grew up in the Chelsea projects. He said that if I ever came to New York, I had to let him know. I went for my audition to The Academy around my birthday in October. I get to Penn Station and give him a call; “Hey, remember what you said if I visit New York?”

I couldn’t believe I actually got in to the school. I had no money at the time, and slept on the floor of his place for six, eight weeks eating rice and beans, and never had better dinners in my life – except mom’s cooking.

I wish I knew then what I know now, I know that’s everyone’s wish, but I did some crazy things then. But living in New York City and attending The Academy forced me to grow up. You learn how to act, how to grow, and how to become a better person. 

ERIC: We were all in the same boat there. You immediately become friends with people. Most people weren’t from New York, so there was a need to rely on each other.

What do you want audiences to be left with after seeing this production of “Streetcar”?

TODD: I want to give audiences a production of “Streetcar” they’ve never seen before, and make them reconsider what his writing is. This play is really about Blanche; the audience needs to have a deep empathy for her. My wife can create empathy in an audience; I want to hear those sighs and pains coming from the house.

ERIC: I’m with you Todd. I want to see the audience react to this. I think Brando’s original performance was so overwhelming, that a lot of people think this is Stanley’s story, but it’s really about Blanche. Anytime I do a play, I always look for what my role is in telling the story. I try to keep things simple. We have a great cast and a great director. I’m hoping we tell the story that Tennessee Williams wanted to tell. 

That’s what actors do.

For tickets, and more information on the Tennessee Williams Festival of St. Louis, go here.