Interview: Margaux Susi is Excited to Be One of THE VERY BEST PEOPLE

Up next for IAMA, John Lavelle’s The Very Best People opening October 5, 2024, at Atwater Village (with previews September 29th through October 4th). Melissa Coleman-Reed directs the cast of Adrián González, Andria Kozica, Bryan Langlitz, Joseph Russo and Margaux Susi. Margaux, also IAMA’s associate artistic director, made time to talk to me before going to rehearsal.

Good morning, Margaux! Thank you for taking time for this interview. How’s rehearsal going?

Rehearsals have been incredible. You know, it's only been two days, but I feel like we've already created such a beautiful ensemble and work environment. It's just really exciting to jump in.  

What sparked your interest in acting in The Very Best People?

Well, this play was first actually born out of our writers group in IAMA. John Lavelle, the brilliant playwright, brought in a few pages. I was not in the group at the time, but it was really born out of this. And to have something from IAMA start in a lab, and then grow to a mainstage production is really exciting! We've had several readings of it and different iterations, and I've just been obsessed with it from the beginning. John is such a brilliant and prolific writer, and I think he's tried to tackle a challenging and heated thing in such a brilliant comedic way. So it was kind of a no brainer for me. John said, ‘Will you do this?’ And I was like, ‘Just say when.’

What would your three-line pitch for this show be?

It’s a frightening fly on the wall look at how we got here as a country and a reminder of how easily we can go backward. Darkly comedic, it’s an exploration of what we think masculinity means in America. 

If you were to submit Lara Amanda for a dating site, what qualities of hers would you list?

Opinionated, loyal. I think she would put very intelligent.

What character flaws would you definitely omit?

Maybe how opinionated I am? The severity of it, I would omit. I mean, honestly, she doesn't hide anything. She knows exactly who she is, and she's unapologetic for it. I don't think that she would hide anything from her profile. She's a very strong woman.

Have you been involved in any situation similar to that in People?

I think that we're living in a really divisive time in our lives. So I think just being a human walking through everyday life, you are challenged with many different points of views. This play does not shy away from that. If anything, this play looks into the beast of the belly. it's just human. I've disagreed with many people in my life who I love and care for and we have different political views, and it's really about learning what happens when we actually listen to each other, and what happens when we don't.

As IAMA’s associate artistic director, do you get first dibs on acting roles or directing gigs?

I definitely do not. I'm really proud to say that! We are an ensemble-based company, so one of the ways that we serve that is we try to always cast and hire creatively from within the ensemble first before we go outside. But just like every other ensemble member, I have to audition for part. And if I want to direct something, I have to have a meeting with the artist, which I really respect. I'm happy that I was able to do this one.

You’ve done five acting roles for IAMA and numerous others for other theatre companies. What made you want to take on the director’s mantle?

I actually had to give credit to our artistic director, Stefanie Black, for that years ago. We are a company that mainly does new works, and really tries to cultivate new voices of this generation. A lot of new play development involves just that. It's development. It's conversation and crafting with a playwright. And I was already in that role as associate artistic director, and she kind of looked at me one day and she said, ‘I think you might really like directing, like your thoughts are really insightful, you know how to talk to playwrights.’ And I thought she was kookoo bananas!  You know what? Let me try this. And I did. I directed a reading for us many, many years ago, and I just really loved it. I surprised myself by it, and I just found, oh, this is another way for me to tell stories. And at the end of the day, that's what I love to do. I love telling stories.

If you had to choose just one career, which would you pick acting or directing?

Sophie's Choice! I can't. I can't. For the past few years, my lane has been mostly directing. We had to pivot during COVID, theater was obviously shut down for a period of time. So I started to focus more on film and TV, but IAMA is always my theatrical home. So be able to come back and actually be in this position as an actor is really exciting.

If financial compensation were not an issue, which field of entertainment would you prefer to focus your talents in – television, film, theatre?

Maybe because I'm a wild artist, I would say all of it. I think the financial aspect often limits us to when we have to say no to certain things. I really love these three different mediums for three very different reasons. So if money wasn't an issue, I'd say yes to everything I could, if I could launch a project.

Where do you envision IAMA to be in ten years?

Oh, my gosh! Well, I hope for IAMA to be one of the premiere L.A. theater companies. I think there's a really big misconception that L.A. doesn't have strong theater, and this town is vibrant and full of incredible artists who want to tell stories, and we want to be to L.A. what Steppenwolf is to Chicago.  I’m just hopeful in 10 years, we're continuing to tell daring stories and cultivating a new audience and really giving a place for artists to try things and fail and try things and succeed.

And where do you picture Margaux Susi to be in ten years?

Still a storyteller. I think the past 10 years of my career have taken me in so many different ways that I wasn't expecting, like directing, that I think I'm taking everything on the table. Hopefully I'm just telling stories that people care about and that change people. You know, I always said that I would stop being an artist if I became uninterested in people. I just think people are fascinating, and thankfully, I'm still interested

What’s in the near future for you?

Well, this play is definitely going to be taking up the next two months of my life. I'm also in post-production for a film that I made, so hopefully sharing that with the world.

Thank you again, Margaux! I look forward to meeting your Lara Amanda. And have a great rehearsal.

Thank you so much, Gil. Talk to you soon.

For tickets to The Very Best People through October27, 2024; click on the button below:

 

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