Interview: Joel Grey at The Ridgefield Playhouse

Joel Grey needs no introduction. He has been on the stage and screen since 1951, yet everyone, even teenagers, knows who he is. Or so people think they do. There is a lot more to Joel Grey than being a legend. For someone of his stature, he is low-keyed and full of surprises.

The son of the renowned performer Mickey Katz, he learned first-hand what it takes to survive in a brutally competitive business and remain a likeable person. His training began as a child actor at the Cleveland Playhouse, but watching his father perform taught him "that the audience always deserves your very best," he says. Anyone who has seen him perform - especially live - knows that.

Grey's roles have been diversified, in the theatre, in movies and on television. He is, of course, best known for his work in musical theatre (Chicago, Wicked, George M!, Pal Joey, Stop The World I Want to Get Off, Half a Sixpence, Anything Goes, Goodtime Charley and The Grand Tour), for which he won numerous awards and nominations, including the Tony Award for Cabaret). He has also done drama including Marco Polo Sings a Solo, Platonov, and Give Me Your Answer, Do! He even ventured into the New York City Opera's production of Silverlake, directed by Hal Prince. (The NYCO occasionally produced exceptional Broadway musicals, not just operas and operettas.) Movie goers have seen him The Seven Percent Solution, Man on A Swing, Kafka, Dancer in the Dark, and Choke, and as an elderly Korean martial arts master in Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins. Grey is one of only nine actors to have won both the Tony and the Oscar for the same role (in Cabaret). He has done enough acclaimed television shows to be honored by The Paley Center for Media in New York City and Los Angeles. He appeared on "Brooklyn Bridge" (for which he was nominated for an Emmy), "House," "OZ," "Nurse Jackie," "Law and Order: CI," and "CSI." The most fun role he had on television was in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Another thing you might not know about Grey is that he was a panelist on the thinking person's game show, "What's My Line?" and was later the show's first mystery guest.

His most challenging role was Ned in The Normal Heart, which he also co-directed with George C. Wolfe. Has he done any directing since? "Yes, I directed On Borrowed Time, my first acting role when I was nine, two years ago at the Two River Theatre in Red Bank, New Jersey," he says.

In addition to his prolific performances, Grey is also an excellent photographer and author. He has taken photographs as long as he can remember, but they are not snapshots. They are carefully composed photos that give an edge to the ordinary. The Museum of the City of New York held an exhibition which examined the relationship between his artistry and the Big Apple. He has published four books of photographs: Pictures I Had TO Take, Looking Hard at Unexamined Things, Images from My Phone, and The Billboard Papers. His memoir, Master of Ceremonies, will be published in February 2016.

What else can he do? He has always loved to cook, and his son, James Katz, is a chef in Los Angeles. His daughter, Jennifer Grey, has a successful career in film and television relying on her own talent. He is funny, too, even when not performing. When asked what he would like the public to know about him, he says, "That I love my dog, Miguelito, more than I like to admit."

Grey is also gracious and generous. After he saw Benjamin Scheuer in his theatrical memoir, The Lion, he complimented him and advised him to continue to act. Scheuer insisted that he is a songwriter and performer, not an actor. "You're an actor," Grey told him. If Joel Grey tells someone that, it would behoove him to take that advice.

On Friday, February 19, The Ridgefield Playhouse will present "An Evening with Joel Grey." This is an exclusive engagement and will be take the form of an interview in the style of "Inside the Actor's Studio." Grey will sing some songs from the shows he made famous. After that, there will be a Q&A and Grey will sign copies of his newest book, Master of Ceremonies. Tickets are $90.00 ($60.00 for students). "An Evening with Joel Grey" is part of The Ridgefield Playhouse's Broadway & Cabaret Series that includes shows such as Mario Cantone (February 26), Donny Osmond (March 11), and "An Evening with Stephen Schwartz (April 2). With the playhouse's seating capacity of 500, you will get a good seat anywhere you sit. The Ridgefield Playhouse is located at 80 East Ridge in Ridgefield. For tickets call 203-438-5795 or visit www.ridgefieldplayhouse.org. Also surf to www.joelgreyphotographer.com. You will see another surprising side of Joel Grey.

Photo credit: Getty Images

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