25 Nov 2014 4:04 PM PT
By
Jim Parsons took to Broadway in 2012 in the Roundabout Theatre Company’s production of Harvey, and now he’s taking on another role for the company: He’ll play the title role in a benefit reading of George S. Kaufman and Marc Connelly’s Merton of the Movies Dec. 1 at Studio 54.
The 1922 play follows a small-town man who moves to Hollywood to pursue his acting dreams. Those dreams become a reality, but with a catch: Merton gets his break in comedies, which he doesn’t realize are such. Parsons, whose deadpan is weekly on display in the Big Bang Theory, will be joined in the reading, directed by his Harvey director Scott Ellis, by the likes of Jane Krakowski, Tracee Chimo, John Cullum, Katie Finneran, and Peter Scolari.
EW talked to Parsons about choosing Merton how it relates to his experiences as an actor.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: You picked Merton of the Movies. Why did choose it?
It was literally on a list that was presented to me, so I didn’t pull it out of a hat. In fact, I’d never even heard of it before I saw it on the list. I just find it extremely appealing, and part of it is personal identification reasons. It’s a young person starting out, who has dreams of making it as an actor. This is obviously a little more outlandish than my own visions as a young man, but at the same time there’s a real commonality there. I think that unless you grow up with showbiz parents or relatives or something that would show you the true nature of the workings you’d definitely go into it, even if you’re well meaning, quite delusional in a literal sense. You don’t know how things are created. I found that very charming. I thought it was very sweet the way he stumbles into his great success—which again, while outlandish because it’s a piece of fiction and done to heighten for the stage—is also a very common thing with any type of performer. You aim at something, but quite often, the point of aiming is so that you will hit something else which will satisfy you. It’s very hard, especially in a career like this, to predict where your ultimate meal ticket will come from, assuming you are able to get one at all. I just found it very charming.
It’s a complete truism in my opinion the best comedy comes from the people who take it deadly seriously. There’s not an ounce of quote-I’m joking about this, it’s all done with the highest of stakes, and I think that’s what makes for the best comedy.
Were all of the plays presented earlier works?
They were all of the earlier nature, which I kind of liked. The Roundabout takes real joy in doing some of the older pieces and they do them very well. My particular relationship with Roundabout started with Harvey, which is a very, very old piece too. It felt like a good match if nothing else.