Interview: Adam Langdon of THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME at The Bushnell

It is rare when a show like THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME goes on the road. While audiences across the U.S. may be used to seeing the latest Broadway musicals in their local theaters, they don't always have the chance to catch Tony winning plays unless they take a trip to New York. So when THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME rolls into Hartford, audiences at the Bushnell will have the unique opportunity to meet Christopher Boone, a beautifully complex 15 year-old English boy who sets out on a journey to solve a mystery, and discovers that where one mystery exists, others are just around the corner. Taking the stage as Christopher is recent Julliard graduate, Adam Langdon. I had the pleasure of speaking with Adam and learning about his experience playing this "exceptionally intelligent boy" and his unique connection to the role.

BWW: Thanks so much for taking the time to talk with me today. We are really looking forward to CURIOUS INCIDENT in Hartford!

Adam Langdon: Yes! We are too!

Can you start by telling us a little bit about how you got started in the theatre?

I grew up in Brooklyn, NY for the majority of my childhood and had no interest in being an actor, really. My Mother was an actress and my Father is an acting teacher. I was around the business quite a bit, but it wasn't really on my radar. Then I moved to Vermont when I was around 12, and there wasn't really anything that I wanted to do there, so I started doing acting in bits and pieces at school. When I got into high school, I started doing the big musicals, went and studied at the New York Film Academy for one summer, and eventually I went to RADA for two summers. At RADA I studied Shakespeare and musical theatre and contemporary texts, and I really fell in love with it and fell in love with the kind of people I got to work with. When I was a kid I was always fascinated with the idea in TV and movies that someone's specific story got to be told, and some lucky people get the chance to tell that story. That is something that has always attracted me to acting. Then I applied to drama school and got into a few. I studied at Julliard for four years and now I am here!

For those unfamiliar with the story of CURIOUS INCIDENT, how would you describe the show?

Christopher Boone is a 15 year-old boy living in England who finds out that his neighbor's dog has been murdered and takes it upon himself to find out who murdered the dog. In that mystery and on that journey he finds several other mysteries that need to be solved.

And it is really a rare thing, touring with a play such as this. Usually you only see the big musicals on tour. What do you think makes this show something that needs to be seen by a broader audience?

It is so amazing that we get to bring this show across America. I don't think there is another play like it. It is almost like a combination of Hamlet and Cirque du Soleil. It is like a musical in that things are a little larger than life, but still based in reality. That is something musicals have always done while plays have been more like "We are going to do real life." This play manages to do what musicals do without ever singing a song, and still basing things within the realms of normalcy.

The source material for CURIOUS INCIDENT is the bestselling novel by Mark Haddon and successful productions in London and Broadway. Were you familiar with the book before being cast or had you seen the London or Broadway productions?

Yes, I read the book when it first came out, when I was 11 or 12 or so, and I am sure I missed a whole lot of the ins and outs of the book, but totally enjoyed it. I then heard about the production in England. When it came to America, my friend Alex Sharp booked Christopher and won the Tony Award. We were at school together, he was my "buddy" in the year above me. We were thrown together and then became friends. I auditioned to replace him, and gave a pretty bad audition, but luckily they remembered me and brought me back for the tour and it worked out for me!

It must be exciting to have a close friend take on the role and to then follow in his footsteps. Did, Alex give you any advice when taking on the role?

One of the first things he said to me was "If you want to talk about Christopher, you can call me anytime and we can discuss anything. This is a play that goes on for a long time and you are on stage for a long time. Sometimes it's not going to feel great, and when that happens you can totally call me because I know what you are going through. And if you really don't want to talk with me about the part, don't." I do call him and we chat a lot about performances. I saw him do it a couple years back, but our Christophers are very different.

Christopher is described as an "exceptionally intelligent boy who is ill-equipped to interpret everyday life." There is no overt label of diagnosis mentioned. Is that intentional and what do you think it says about Christopher and our society?

Christopher is a human being just like every one of us - he just has a particular way of thinking and seeing the world. It's a really wonderful and unique way. He's this incredible mathematician, but he also likes certain things a certain way. And if other people don't necessarily think the way he thinks, that confuses him. He may even think they're stupid. It also puts the play in a really specific place for the parents. His relationship with his father is very complicated and full of emotion. When that gets out it creates some really wonderfully human moments for us to explore. He's a really well written character. I think he is almost like a Hamlet of this generation.

Many of us, myself included, have a "Christopher" or someone similar in our lives. What do you think audience members who do have a personal experience like this can take away from seeing your show?

The response has been overwhelmingly positive. I've had many people come up to me, or other cast members like Gene Gillette who plays my father or FeliciTy Jones who plays my mother. It is hard to explain, the feeling you get when someone says "I could connect to this play because of this, and it broke and filled my heart all at the same time." It makes every drop of blood, sweat, and tears that we have spilled just so worth it. And it reminds you why sharing this story across America, and bringing it to cities who can't make it to a Broadway show in New York City is so amazing and important.

Speaking of Christopher, what has been the most challenging and rewarding part of playing such a beautifully complex role?

I think in the beginning and throughout rehearsal it was tackling the physical stuff. I am this lanky guy who does comedy and never saw myself doing something so physical. So tackling all of the wall flips and even the simple stuff, like drawing a smiley face on the floor with chalk. it took me weeks. Having the mindset was also difficult. The thing that really helped me was thinking about how brave Christopher is throughout the play and so that requires bravery from me as an actor.

Let's shift gears talk a moment about the rats. It's not often you see rats on stage in a Broadway production (unless, of course, someone forgot to pay the exterminator), what's it like working with the rats?

Zeus and Jinkies are awesome! Zeus is a total ham, he loves going on for the most part. Sometimes he is sleepy and literally rolls himself in his blanket and is done. They are super intelligent creatures. They are both fancy rats and they take care of themselves and even eat only organic food. Our wrangler loves them and is totally going to take them with her when the tour is done. They are her guys.

The sets and technical aspects of the show have garnered a lot of buzz for CURIOUS INCIDENT. What can audiences expect and what role do you think it plays in the production?

I had someone come up to me after the show and she was an actress who was doing a lot of stage management who said she saw the set and was disappointed at first, because it just looked like a giant black box. But it can literally do anything. Like when Christopher wants to be an astronaut the whole box can become space. Everything you can imagine will come up on the set. It is an incredible piece with all sorts of secrets!

What do you look forward to the most before you step out on stage each night?

It is hard to say. The play drops us in the deep end and we swim to shore for two and a half hours. But there are a lot of moments between the mom and the dad that are a little quieter. Christopher is so exhausted in those scenes that it's a time when Adam stops thinking and I feel like it is really just Christopher, I have gotten whatever Adam is thinking out of my head and I can focus on these little, wonderful moments. There is nothing going on but me and these two people and even if the scene is only 45 seconds, this is just what it needs to be.

What would you say are the best and most difficult parts about touring with a show like this?

I really like jumping from city to city. I get to see new places. I have done more TV commercials than plays since I graduated. It is a lot of one or two day things and this kind of has that same feel. A week and we are done and then it is new. So there is something about it that I can connect with and it makes the travel a lot easier for me. It's just great to be in a new place, in a new theater, with a new audience.

So thinking toward the future, do you have a dream role that you would one day like to play?

I think this is a dream role, so I feel very lucky. The last thing I got to do at school is a play called THE GOAT, OR WHO IS SYLVIA? And I got to play my dream role then. I think I still look young enough to play the son in that play, so I would really love to play that role again.

Do you have any advice for young performers looking to make it into professional theatre?

I think there is a combination of being honest and driven in what you want as an actor. You have to be clear and flexible, but also strive for that goal. At the same time you have to be humble. It is hard to take bows after this show, it is sometimes hard to take praise and you do have to take praise when it comes to you, but you also have to be humble about it.

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME runs at the Bushnell Theatre in Hartford, CT December 27 - January 1. Performances are Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30 p.m.; Friday at 8:00 p.m.; Saturday at 1:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.; and Sunday at 1:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Tickets are available online at www.bushnell.org, by phone at 860-987-5900 , or at The Bushnell box office, 166 Capitol Avenue, Hartford.

Top Photo: - Adam Langdon

Middle Photo - Adam Langdon as Christopher Boone and the touring production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Photo: Joan Marcus.

Bottom Photo - Maria Elena Ramirez as Siobhan, Gene Gillette as Ed and Adam Langdon as Christopher Boone in the touring production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Photo: Joan Marcus.