Interview: Mark Cuddy on Playing the Lead Role in 59E59's HEARTLAND

59E59 Theaters (Val Day, Artistic Director; Brian Beirne, Managing Director) to present Heartland, a new play written by Gabriel Jason Dean, in collaboration with Geva Theatre Center. Directed by Pirronne Yousefzadeh, Heartland plays now through April 10, 2022.

Dr. Harold Banks, a retired professor of Comparative Literature and Afghan Studies, is waiting for his adopted daughter to return from teaching in Afghanistan, her native country. When Nazrullah, an Afghan refugee, suddenly arrives on his Nebraska doorstep armed only with his daughter's copies of The Diary of Anne Frank and The Old Man and the Sea, the two men become unlikely roommates. Set in both Maidan Shar, Afghanistan and Omaha, Nebraska, Heartland is the story of a father, his determined daughter, and a journey towards mercy.

The cast of Heartland will include Owais Ahmed (Guards at the Taj), Mark Cuddy (Waiting for Godot), and Mari Vial-Golden (LOVE).

Heartland will feature scenic design by Meredith Reis (House Plant), costume design by Dina El-Aziz (Selling Kabul), lighting design by Seth Reiser (Somebody's Daughter), and sound design by Kate Marvin (Wives). Jenni Werner (Airness) serves as dramaturg, with Humaira Ghilzai (A Thousand Splendid Suns) as cultural consultant, Rocío Mendez (Merry Wives of Windsor) as intimacy director, Veronica Aglow (The Lightning Thief) as Production Stage Manager, and Gulshan Mia (Fires in the Mirror) as associate director.

The performance schedule for Heartland is as follows: Tuesday - Saturday at 7:15pm, Saturday - Sunday at 2:15pm. Tickets to Heartland begin at $25 and are on sale now at 59e59.org/shows/show detail/heartland.

Mark Cuddy, the actor who plays Dr. Harold Banks, made his Off-Broadway acting debut 40 years ago, co-starring in the American premiere of Brian Friel's Volunteers with John Goodman. This is his second Off-Broadway production. He has been the Artistic Director of Geva Theatre Center since 1995, concluding his tenure this coming July. Prior regional roles include Georges in La Cage Aux Folles, Vladimir in Waiting for Godot, Edward in Someone Who'll Watch Over Me, Charlie Fox in Speed-the-Plow, Parolles in All's Well that Ends Well, and Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew - where he met his beautiful wife, Christina Selian.

BroadwayWorld discussed the timely production of Heartland with Mark Cuddy.

Describe your character for us in your own words.

Dr. Harold Banks is a bit of a paradox. He has so many conflicting emotions trying to balance his love for his adopted daughter with his convictions that Russia was/is essentially evil, and Russia's invasion of Afghanistan in the 1980s tore that country apart. He lives and works in the "heartland" of Omaha, Nebraska yet is culturally literate being a scholar and teacher of Afghanistan and its official languages, Dari and Pashto. He's a fiscal conservative with an appreciation of global cultures. He's also facing two personal challenges: the dwindling of professional standing as he retires from the University of Nebraska, and the dwindling mental capabilities he is experiencing from the onset of a glioblastoma.

How has Heartland changed since its world premiere in 2018?

As wonderful as we thought the play was when it opened four years ago in Rochester, there has been a noticeable sharpening of the political values in the characters and in the story, as well as cultural and religious adjustments to language around Muslim prayer and Afghan culture. Our Cultural Advisor and Script Consultant, Humaira Ghilzai, had worked with Gabriel Jason Dean on the original script but came on this year's creative team in a more impactful way. Also, the current crisis in Afghanistan after the US pulled out in August and the Taliban came back to power is devastating any educational and liberal advances. Oh, and the comparison of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and that of Afghanistan resonates in the audience. So, we have changed.

In your own interpretation, what do the two books, The Old Man and the Sea and The Diary of Anne Frank, that are present in the play represent?

I think both books have an interior voice that speaks to the searching and the grief of Harold and Nazrullah. One is fiction and one is a diary, yet their central characters (Santiago and Anne) see the glimmer of hope, the potential of what the future brings, against the odds they face. Nazrullah is a math teacher but describes himself as a poet. Harold is a professor of comparative literature. Books are important to both.

How has your experience as the artistic director helped deepen and strengthen your acting and connection to roles?

When we premiered the play in 2018, I hadn't acted since 2000. I've directed over 100 productions and been an artistic director for 44 years - 27 at Geva Theatre Center - so I guess I'd say that I've been the fortunate recipient of a thousand actors' creativity, intelligence and craft. And I bet I've absorbed (stolen?) bits and pieces of their work over the years without even knowing it. When I was building my directing career, I always thought that I could reenter the acting profession when I got "older", that time and life experience would only help me understand humanity more. I guess this is the time to see if that's true.

In what ways would you say that this piece is important for the world today?

The cultural specificity found in Heartland, in the character of Nazrullah and in the normalcy of Afghan everyday life, can hopefully widen our understanding of these countries in which America has intervened. Our foreign policy continues to be short-sighted and our role in the ongoing Cold War cannot be denied. It's a very, very complicated world - yet Gabe Dean's family story brings global issues into a classroom and a living room with great love and honesty.

59E59's Theater B stages HEARTLAND now through April 10th! Purchase tickets for this timely piece here.

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