Interview: COCK's Sean Hemeon Working Out Smarter With A Full Plate Ahead

Clearglass Productions premiere show Mike Bartlett's C@ck opens June 11, 2022, at the Los Angeles LGBT Center's Davidson/Valentini Theatre as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (with a preview June 6th). Clearglass' co-founder Taubert Nadalini directs the cast of Annika Chavez, Dennis Delsing, Mathew Dunlop and Clearglass' co-founder Sean Hemeon.

Sean took some time to share some behind-the-scenes of C@ck and Clearglass.

Thank you for taking the time for this interview, Sean!

What led to Clearglass Productions choosing C@ck for its Hollywood Fringe Festival entry?

Cock is the essence of clear storytelling. There are no sets or props, just four humans on stage, using dialogue to transport the audience to another world. It's theater in its purest form. Because of that, C@ck is a dream show to work on in any production capacity, but it lends itself especially well to a Fringe festival, where minimalism and efficiency are king.

Personally, I've always connected deeply with this piece, albeit for different reasons, and we've always wanted to dig into this play's discussion of sexual complexity, societal labeling, and sex-founded shame. This seemed like the right time to make it happen.

What was the process of securing C@ck for a Clearglass production?

We were nervous that with its current run on the West End, we wouldn't be able to get the license. We certainly had to jump through a few extra hoops but were thrilled to finally get Mr. Bartlett's blessing. I think for those who've seen the current revival in London, they'll be glad to know our version copies it in no way beyond what's in the script.

As one of the co-founders of Clearglass, did you get first dibs on being cast as M in Cock?

In this case, we have a bit of chicken/egg situation - the casting decision actually came before Clearglass was founded! Taubert and I have discussed producing this play for a while now. Originally it was just going to be a small, private reading among friends. There was an understanding that I'd play M in that iteration because I love and connect with the character. Then a series of fortunate events happened this winter, which allowed us to be able to think about producing it for a larger audience. As we started working on pre-production and thinking about fleshing out the rest of the cast, I was still always going to play M, and we started to realize that this show was the perfect opportunity for us to enact a larger goal we've been working toward - the foundation of Clearglass. So Taubert and I had less moral qualms about self-casting than we normally would given the odd and fortunate timeline of this specific production. I'm grateful I'm able to play a dream role among a cast bursting with talent, and I'm grateful to be able to invest in this inaugural showcase of a production company that's been a long time in the making.

Besides your Clearglass co-founder Taubert Nadalini who's directing, have you worked with any of the C@ck cast or creatives before?

Annika Chavez, who's playing "F," is a brilliant film director and I've worked with her creatively on some of her projects.

Had you seen a production of C@ck before?

I actually haven't. And I am grateful too because I want our show to be what it's meant to be without preconceived influence.

Are you familiar with playwright Mike Bartlett's other works?

We'll actually be starting work soon on another favorite play of his, An Intervention.

What was the impetus for you and Taubert creating Clearglass?

Time and passion convened to allow us to start Clearglass. We've been wanting to "take the reins" a bit in our artistic careers. Taubert is an established actor who's starting to build a directing career and I'm an established actor building a writing career. We have upcoming projects we're producing, some of which are original, both for stage and for screen, and having the infrastructure of a production company will help facilitate those more efficiently.

When you were shooting CW's Husbands, you were featured in a number of shirtless scenes. Would you say you are in better shape today than when you were in Husbands? Or are you less rigid with your workout routines?

I was an athlete in high school and maintained that as best as I could. When Husbands came around, they definitely weren't looking for someone who looks good shirtless, just someone who looks like they could be a baseball player on the Dodgers. However, as we filmed, we all agreed that being shirtless was just who "Brady" was and that's how we ended up there.

I didn't do anything special with my workouts for Husbands, I was just maintaining what was there, but as I've become older, I think I've become smarter about my workouts. Mentally I am in better shape today, I perform workouts with a stronger mind-body connection and focus on longevity so I can hike with my future children well into my 80s. When I was filming Husbands, it was just about what workout I could do to get a six-pack popping. I injured myself a lot more then. So I might've been in better shape then but I am smarter now and on my way to being in the best shape of my life.

What's the most important fitness tip someone ever gave you that effectively improved your results?

We are what we eat, right? I'm not a believer in "diet culture," and I don't support "banning" unhealthy foods from my life, but I do appreciate that filling your stomach with as much whole, high-nutrient food as possible can make a big difference in both your mental and physical fitness. It's all about balance. Fall in love with fruits and veggies.

If financial compensation were not a factor, what medium would you most like to exercise your creative talents in - film, television, or stage?

The actor in me says stage because that's where the best audience will be. The writer in me says TV because we get to spend so much time with the best characters. So why not both?

What's up in the near future for Sean Hemeon?

So many exciting new projects. Clearglass is in pre-production for a short that I've written. We have two stage plays we want to produce later this year and in 2023, and we've recently acquired the rights to adapt A Mind Unraveled, a memoir from New York Times bestselling author, Kurt Eichenwald, who also wrote the book that Steven Soderbergh's film The Informant was based on.

Thank you again, Sean! I look forward to seeing your M.

For tickets to the live performances of C@ck through June 25, 2022; log onto www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/7408

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