Back To One

Kevin Corrigan will always have a special spot in the Back To One pantheon, not just because he was the very first guest, but because he set the stage for the discussions on the craft of acting that were to come—personal, steeped in the work, confessional at times, often inspirational, always educational. In this hour, he shares some more inspiring personal experiences from a life in acting, and a...

While he might be best known for his Oscar nominated performance as Mark Zuckerberg in "The Social Network," Jesse Eisenberg's preternatural ability for making unique characterization choices has won him roles in wildly original films, both indie and studio, such as "The End of the Tour," "Adventureland," "Holy Rollers," "American Ultra," "Zombieland," and two of my favorites, "The Squid and the W...

I first was introduced to the incredible talents of Emmy Harrington on the set of Caveh Zahedi's "The Show About The Show" where she plays "Slut Machine," and witnessed, first hand, her ability to adapt to all types of run-and-gun shooting environments and unorthodox directing styles and deliver a great performance take after take. You can also see her work in shows like "High Maintenance" and "Je...

David Zayas has so many television, film, and theater credits that it's hard to believe he was also a New York City police officer for 15 years. He's played a lot of fictional cops too, so many he's lost count, but he says his career highlight was portraying Angel Batista for 8 seasons on Showtime's hit series "Dexter." Before that he dabbled on the other side of the law, playing Enrique Moralez o...

Jacki Weaver's "big break" story is unique because she was finally embraced by Hollywood at age 63, landing an Oscar nomination for her incredible performance in the Australian film "Animal Kingdom," after being a staple in the Australian theater and film world for 30 years. She went on to great roles in such films as "Widows," "The Disaster Artist," and "Magic in The Moonlight," plus the acclaime...

Through six seasons on "House of Cards" and multiple Emmy nominations, Michael Kelly has brilliantly embodied the character of Doug Stamper, navigating him through the highs and lows of loyalty, devotion, and dark-heartedness, culminating with a new layer of antagonism in the final season. It was a tour de force performance. In this episode he sits down to talk about the nuts and bolts of his craf...

In this first Back To One live podcast event from the Made In NY Media Center, Christopher Abbott tells us some hilarious stories about his naive beginnings as a pavement-pounding young actor in New York, then he takes us into the nuts and bolts of the craft he's developed both on the stage and in indie films over the past decade. And we find out what he makes of George Clooney's claim that he's g...

Lindsay Burdge is one of the bravest and best actors working in indie film this decade. Her breakout role in Hannah Fidell's "A Teacher" brought her raves for her intense performance of destructive obsession. Bold choices continued in movies like Nathan Silver's "Thirst Street," Karyn Kusama's "The Invitation," and Joe Swanberg's Netflix show "Easy." Now she's taken on the role of Mandy in the lon...

He's got "authority" down. But the great actor Lance Reddick can do it all. Perhaps best known for playing Daniels on "The Wire" and Broyles on "Fringe," Reddick has now brought his quintessential warrior servant Charon to the 3rd chapter of "John Wick." In this episode he talks about the triumphs and frustrations of the work, dealing with "bad" directors, learning from great ones, and how survivi...

Asia Kate Dillon is a true trailblazer. They* are the first non-binary (gender non-conforming) actor to play a non-binary character on a television show (Taylor on Showtime's "Billions"). That itself is noteworthy, but Dillon also happens to be an amazing actor who brings such depth and life to characters, making representation even more powerful. Now, In "John Wick: Chapter 3", Dillon calmly comm...

Paul Calderon is New York acting royalty. A list of his collaborators and co-stars, in numerous plays, films and television, reads like a who's who of legends: Pacino, De Niro, Scorsese, Lumet, Burstyn, Tarantino, to name a few. Not to mention Abel Ferrara, whose many films he's graced (he also co-wrote Bad Lieutenant). He was made a member of the Actors Studio in 1984, and eight years later was o...

Dominic West is best known for playing Jimmy McNulty on "The Wire," Noah Solloway on "The Affair," and gay activist Jonathan Blake in the film "Pride." Now he's taken on the classic role of Jean Valjean in the new 6-episode BBC version of "Les Misèrables," currently on PBS. He also happens to be British, which seems to continually surprise people, probably because he's mastered his American accent...

She's wonderful in comedies like "Man Up" and dramas like "No Escape," but Lake Bell shines brightest in material she writes and directs herself, like her indie hit "In A World." Now the mega-talented multi-hyphenate has joined forces with Liz Meriwether ("New Girl") on the ABC sit-com "Bless This Mess." We talk about the benefits and challenges of writing, directing and starring in a network show...

For one year now on this podcast, I have talked to dozens and dozens of actors about their approach to the craft of acting. There are few living non-actor directors whose thoughts on this subject I feel would be worthy for this archive. Mike Leigh is on the top of that list. Listening to actors talk about their working experiences has made me think of an analogy. They are like fish people, showing...

He brought to life one of the most iconic TV characters this century, Omar little on the acclaimed series "The Wire." Then Michael K Williams went on to work with some of the great directors of our day (Steve McQueen, Paul Thomas Anderson,  Ava DuVernay,  Todd Solondz) and turned in powerful work in series like "Boardwalk Empire" (where he played Chalky White) and "The Night of," to name a few. He...

I first took note of Caitlin FitzGerald in one of the great showcases of incredible acting in recent indie film—Sophia Takal's "Always Shine." You might know her from "Masters of Sex" where she played Libby Masters, or the third season of the cult hit series "Unreal." Her latest film, just released on DVD and Blu Ray, is "The Man Who Killed Hitler and then The Bigfoot." In this half hour she gener...

She's perhaps best known for playing one of modern television's baddest villains, "Vee" on "Orange Is The New Black." Now with NBC's "The Village" premiering last week, and both "Fast Color" and the new season of "Into The Badlands" premiering this week, plus Julie Taymor's "The Glorias" wrapping this month, all featuring the incredible Lorraine Toussaint, we might as well call this period "The Lo...

Michael Mando is best known for his captivating portrayal of Nacho Varga on the hit AMC series "Better Call Saul." You might also know him from "Orphan Black," "Spider-man: Homecoming," or "Far Cry 3." In his latest film, "The Hummingbird Project," he plays the chief engineer of a massive high frequency trading operation opposite Jesse Eisenberg and Alexander Skarsgård. In this half hour he talks...

I've wanted to sit down with Thomas Sadoski since the inception of Back To One. I had a "who is that guy?" experience while seeing him in Neil Labute's play "Reasons to Be Pretty" and was positively delighted by his portrayal of the quick-witted Don Keefer in "The Newsroom." He's now part of an incredible ensemble of actors in "Life In Pieces," one of the few network comedies worthy of your time....

H is portrayal of Lola, the drag queen in "Kinky Boots," put Chiwetel Ejiofor on the map, then his astonishing performance in "12 Years A Slave" made him a household name. Roles in " The Martian ," " Doctor Strange," and the under-appreciated "Z for Zachariah" followed. Now he has written, directed and stars in "The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind," which is in select theaters and on Netflix. He talks...

Shea Whigham could easily be in the running for the hardest working actor in show business. In just this past year, he was in "First Man," "Beirut," "Vice," and brilliantly played Thomas Carrasco, the Department of Defense bureaucrat tasked to investigate Julia Roberts' character, in the series "Homecoming." He's worked with Martin Scorsese, Werner Herzog, David O. Russell, Terrence Malick, and is...

I first took note of Ariel Kavoussi's singular comedic talent in Onur Tukel's "Applesauce" and then "Catfight," where she hilariously played Ann Heche's assistant and stole every scene she was in. She performed a similar theft this past year on the Netflix series "Maniac," opposite Emma Stone. She also writes and directs her own work. Her new short film "The Poet and The Professor" was called a "t...

If I ever need to cry on cue, I can just picture the expression on Josh Hamilton's face, in "Eighth Grade," when Elsie Fisher hugs him. It's a beautiful, wordless culmination of his incredible performance, which landed him a Spirit Award nomination this year. We discuss that scene, and he shares some of what he's learned from jumping from the New York stage to the big & small screens and back agai...

Mads Mikkelsen is perhaps best known for playing villains in "Casino Royale," "Doctor Strange," and the television series "Hannibal," but he's also been called the "face of the resurgent Danish cinema," culminating with his Best Actor win at Cannes for his work in Thomas Vinterberg's "The Hunt." In this half hour, he talks about performing some physically and emotionally wrenching scenes in two ne...

Noomi Rapace became an international sensation playing Lisbeth Salander in the original, Swedish version of "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" and its sequels. Hollywood beckoned and leading roles in such films as Ridley Scott's "Prometheus" and Brian DePalma's "Passion" followed. Now she stars in Vicky Jewson's Netflix nail-biter "Close," in a role based on real-life female bodyguard Jacquie Davis...