Interview: Obie Winner Michael Chernus Returns to the New York Stage in WELL, I’LL LET YOU GO

Obie Award winner Michael Chernus might be known to television audiences for breakout roles in hit series like Severance and Orange Is the New Black, as well as blockbuster films including Spider-Man: Homecoming and The Bourne Legacy, but this season, this veteran stage actor returns to his roots in the acclaimed new drama, Well, I'll Let You Go by Bubba Weiler. 

The production, directed by Drama Desk and Obie winner Jack Serio marks Chernus' first New York stage appearance in over a decade, and its sold-out run at The Space at Irondale has just been extended through September 12, 2025, following overwhelming demand.

Set in a small Midwestern town rocked by economic decline and personal loss, Well, I’ll Let You Go paints a portrait of a woman and a community in crisis. Alternating between past and present, the play explores themes of love, family, and resilience against the backdrop of an American Dream that has crumbled.

The cast also features Tony nominee Quincy Tyler Bernstine (through August 29), along with Cricket Brown, Will Dagger, Emily Davis, Danny McCarthy, Constance Shulman, and Amelia Workman.

In our conversation, Chernus reflects on what drew him to Bubba Weiler’s writing, the challenges of playing a narrator who both frames and haunts the story, and how returning to the stage after 11 years has reshaped him as an actor.

Photo Credit: Emilio Madrid

BWW: What first drew you to this piece, and why did you want to work on it?

Michael: Yeah, it’s a very exciting new work. I was drawn in initially by the writing. I was blown away and truthfully brought to tears when I read the play for the first time. I was struck by the wisdom and depth it contains, especially coming from a relatively young, first-time playwright, Bubba Weiler. I wasn’t actively looking for a play, but this one kind of fell into my lap when the fantastic casting director, Taylor Williams, sent it my way.

I was immediately struck by how Bubba locates the play in a very specific time and place in the Midwest- what he calls a “get-by” kind of town- a small city of about 30,000 people, set in the present day with a newly opened Amazon fulfillment center. It’s very current, yet it also has this timeless quality. It feels like it could be anywhere in America, speaking to universal themes of life, death, love, marriage, family, and community. That ability to be both specific and broadly universal really drew me in.

On top of that, one of my dearest friends, Quincy Tyler Bernstine, was already attached. I’m such a fan of her work. She’s essentially a theatrical legend. The idea of getting to play together was very exciting. I didn’t know Jack Serio, our director, personally, but I’d heard great things from friends like Marin Ireland and Paul Sparks, who had worked with him. So, it was really a whole combination of factors that made me want to be part of this.

Tell me about your character.

I play a character who operates, for the most part, outside the action of the play. In the beginning, I’m very much a narrator, a slight nod to the Stage Manager character in Our Town. In this play, my character is ever-present, almost ghostlike, sometimes even stalking the other characters, but they don’t see me or interact with me.

Bubba has been open about being inspired by Thornton Wilder, and while the play is very different, there are little nods to Our Town. There’s that same kind of big-picture look at life in small-town America. The hard-luck folks doing their best to get by, finding moments of joy, grace, and even transcendence amid hardship.

Is this your first time playing a character who isn’t directly in on the action, but frames the story from the fringes?

Absolutely. I underestimated how different it would feel. Most of my role is direct address to the audience, which is such an intimate experience, looking audience members in the eye and speaking directly to them. It’s sort of my worst fear as an audience member, but as the performer, I have to make them feel comfortable and at ease.

I’ve never done stand-up, that’s one of my biggest fears. But I have hosted a few galas and done some public speaking. Still, that’s different. Here, the writing is intricate and specific, and I want to honor every word. Real contact with an audience member can be so intense it almost makes you forget your lines.

In rehearsal, all the other actors had scene partners. My scene partner is the audience, which meant I was mostly looking at our director, playwright, and stage manager; people who’d heard me say these lines a thousand times. So the shock of dress rehearsal, stepping out in front of a hundred strangers, was huge. I had to learn quickly how to play with the audience.

As the run has gone on, have you gotten more comfortable with that?

Definitely. I’ve settled into it and grown to love the fact that it’s different every night. In a traditional role, the challenge is keeping it fresh. Here, it’s fresh automatically because my “scene partners” change nightly. I’ve learned to scan the room when I first come out, find a couple of friendly faces, and land my first thoughts with them. The worst is picking someone who turns away or looks down. It’s intense for them too, even though I never ask anyone to participate, because they’re suddenly part of the exchange.

Our set is a runway with the audience on both sides, looking at each other across the stage. It creates this sense of community gathering to witness the play. Everyone is on display, and it’s communal in a way that makes people lean in.

That’s one of the powerful things about theatre. You can’t look away.

Exactly. And I think Bubba has crafted something that challenges assumptions. Early in the play, it’s easy to decide who the characters are and what might have happened. But those assumptions get upended. The play deals with issues like gun violence and abortion, but never in a “capital P” political way. It’s woven into the lives of these people.

This is your first New York stage appearance in quite a while. How has it felt to be back?

The last time I was on stage in New York was Lips Together, Teeth Apart at Second Stage in 2014. So it’s been 11 years. Theater is my first love; it’s how I got into acting. I did plays all through high school, in community theaters, then studied at Juilliard, and came out doing mostly new plays. The idea that a decade could pass without me doing one would’ve seemed absurd in my twenties.

Coming back now, I realize there’s a generation of young theater artists who only know me from TV and film. I’ve had to reprove myself. Returning was somewhere between riding a bike and shaking off rust. Theatre is never easy, even for people who do it constantly. There’s a monastic quality to it: every meal, every bit of sleep, every ounce of energy is geared toward that night’s performance.

How do you think the new skills you've acquired playing this part will inform your process going forward?

It’s absolutely changed me, on stage and on camera. Speaking directly to an audience forces authenticity and presence. You can’t hide; you have to be hyper-available to the moment. I think it was a big risk to return in a role so unlike anything I’ve done, but that’s what life as an artist is: challenging yourself, facing fears, being willing to fail.

This play doesn’t allow for a lot of acting, if that makes sense. It’s easy to do too much or too little. It’s taught me to breathe, listen, and be present. And watching an audience watch a play has been fascinating. I’ve learned that audiences are really on your side, they want it to be great. That’s been incredibly encouraging.