Interview: LOVE & Life Not AMONG THE RUINS for Peter Strauss

Next up at Laguna Playhouse, Love Among the Ruins world premieres October 30, 2022 (with previews starting October 26th). Michael Arabian directs the stellar cast of JoBeth Williams and Peter Strauss in this adaptation of the 1975 ABC Theatre Presentation that starred Katherine Hepburn and Laurence Olivier. Peter graciously found some time between rehearsals and his orange farm to answer a few of my queries.

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

What crazy celestial forces brought you and JoBeth together for Love Among The Ruins? Who asked whom to join them?

Actually, a friend of a friend. The producers were searching for an actor for the role of Sir Arthur... and they happily recommend me... and voilà!

What would be your three-line pitch of Love Among The Ruins?

A celebration of love that is ageless - pun intended. A woman desperate to save her finances and reputation seeks the aid of a distinguished barrister in London whom she must deceive into taking her case. Anything beyond that information would reveal the surprise of the story!

If you were to submit their character Sir Arthur Granville-Jones to a seniors' dating site, what qualities of his would you include?

LOL! Erudite, distinguished legal scholar does NOT seek a partner as he remains devoted to the ideal of a previous love.

What flaws would you definitely omit?

He can be moody, humorless, driven and narrow minded. And work obsessed.

In an alternate universe, what circumstances and what venue would you find the characters you've played (Divine Rivalry's Leonardo da Vinci, Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers' Ben Bradlee, Sabina's Sigmund Freud, Love Among The Ruins' Sir Arthur Granville-Jones " interacting? In line for the DMV? Socializing at a neighborhood happy hour? Attending a science convention? Geez! What an interesting question! These are all dynamic, work obsessed, driven characters. All highly competitive... so let's place them at a bar! Da VInci will be admiring the mechanics of the juke box, Freud will be chatting up the bartender who is recounting endless stories of patrons in varying state of depression. Bradlee will be savoring a fine scotch while raging at the overhead TV about the state of contemporary broadcast news and their unethical stances and their loss of journalistic neutrality. And Sir Arthur? He might not be there... too much social interaction for him!

You have been focused on theatre work for the last few years. What brought you back to the boards after all these years of film and television projects?

It is the essential performance challenge to arrive naked at a theater, script in hand, and then slowly, carefully, meticulously, frustratingly and joyfully create a human being and place him on a stage before us... who can inspire us, entertain us, challenge us and educate us... and then be part of that special and unique energy that only occurs in live performance.

If financial compensation were not a factor, which medium of entertainment (film, television, stage) would you concentrate your talents in?

LOL! I doubt there is any actor who would consider theater to achieve financial security! I have been very fortunate in my career, and it has enabled me to do theater. At this point in my career... it is a luxury.

What is the one piece of advice that your mentor Phil Havens, former director of admissions at Hackley, gave you in your college years that you try to apply to this day?

The Hackley School in Tarrytown, NY was the beginning of my understanding and practicing of the word... discipline. And that emphasis carried through my education at Northwestern University... the discipline that is and must be core, the center of any and every artist.

What is the primary lesson you teach your Ojai high school students in public speaking?

Three essentials: know your subject, believe in your subject, and practice... practice... practice. Knowing your subject is the key to your confidence, believing in your subject takes care of your physicality... and practice... is all.

You founded Workshop 14 while at Hackley. What prompted you to take on the directing reins, along with acting?

I began at 15 years old apprenticing at Pocono Playhouse in Pennsylvania and Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine. When I arrived at Hackley there was no theater department so I formed one with 14 student actors. We did "Julius Caesar" in the round in modern dress and one acts of O'Neill. I miss that great energy of a Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland innocence of "Let's put on a show!"

What do you remember of your 1981 opening night in your Broadway debut in Tom Griffin's "Einstein and the Polar Bear?"

That... is a sad story. We had had two weeks of previews to great success and enthusiasm... that carried through opening night. Many theater glitterati had congratulated producer Manny Azenberg throughout those previews. Then... Opening Night! Party at Sardi's!!!! Festive atmosphere. Joy! But suddenly ... like a harsh editor's cut... the room emptied. Soooo quickly. And I saw the producers gathered around the NY Times. And Mr. Frank Rich had decided he didn't like the play. And that, much to my naive surprise, spelt the death of the play. The pace of that room emptying has remained a painful and sobering memory for me... and a truth of showbiz. I needn't say more!

Are you still producing 400+ tons of citrus a year in Ojai?

Yes. I have a farm there. And extensive gardens. BUT... drought conditions are real... and worry me enormously. My trees are getting reduced irrigation allocations of water and their future is... worrisome.

What is in the near future for Peter Strauss?

It's been a few years since I decided to stop being lazy and get back on stage. It took only one two-hour reading of "Love Among the Ruins" to remind me of the thrill and absolute terror of performing. But along with that comes the feeling of being 'home.' The roar of the greasepaint; the smell of the crowd. It's what it's all about, isn't it?

Thank you again, Peter! I wish you a bountiful crop of citrus and theatre projects.

For tickets to the live performances of Love Among The Ruins through November 13, 2022; click on the button below: