By Christopher Wallenberg
09 Jun 2010

	Jesse Tyler Ferguson
	photo by Bob D'Amico/©ABC

Modern Family Man

Jesse Tyler Ferguson may be a rising star on ABC's critically lauded, breakout hit of the season, "Modern Family," but just a few short years ago, after the back-to-back failures of two sitcoms in which he appeared, "The Class" in 2006 and "Do Not Disturb" in 2008, the red-headed funnyman from Albuquerque, NM, thought his chance at TV and film stardom might have passed him by.

"It felt like that was my shot to make it, and it just didn't work out, and I was fine with that," says Ferguson. "I had just finished a show ["Do Not Disturb"] that was only on air for a handful of episodes and had been falling apart from the very beginning. So I was just totally at peace and fully prepared to leave L.A., come back to New York and pursue theatre again."

But Ferguson didn't even make it out the door. Before he knew it, he received a call to audition for a new single-camera sitcom about a diverse family, including a patriarch who's recently remarried to a younger Latina woman with a ten-year-old son and a pair of gay dads who have adopted a Vietnamese baby. Filmed documentary-style with a cast headlined by "Married…With Children"'s Ed O'Neill, the series sought to turn the the old archetypes and tropes of the half-hour family sitcom on its head. "Modern Family" premiered last fall to major ratings success (it averaged about 10 million viewers per week) and rave reviews from critics, who hailed its deft mix of gentle satire and more biting humor. The show, sweet without being sappy, was applauded for helping to rejuvenate a genre that had been going stale for years.

For Ferguson, landing in the spotlight, being beamed into living rooms all across America, has been a surreal experience so far.

"We've all live in the bubble of the show for most of the year, so it's hard to sort of step back and see the reality of it," Ferguson says. "But just being here in New York, which I consider my hometown, it's kind of crazy, because I have people staring at me on the street, and at first I'm thinking, 'Do I have toilet paper hanging off my shoe?' I still don't realize that I'm recognizable now and my anonymity is kind of gone. So that's the part that jolts me out of that bubble. But it's been a wild experience, and it happened very quickly, so I don't think any of us were prepared for it."

Ferguson, who plays the cautiously reserved gay dad Mitchell on the series, had initially been brought in by the producers to read for Cameron, Mitchell's more free-spirited and flamboyant partner (a role that eventually went to Eric Stonestreet). But Ferguson was most interested in playing Mitchell, a vision that the producers eventually agreed with.

"Cameron was really funny on page, but I felt like I had already played that part before. It was the more obvious choice for me," says Ferguson. "So I was more thrilled by the idea of playing the straight-man comedic type and finding the humor in someone who is just way too serious. I find people who take themselves that seriously to be really hilarious, but it is a challenge to find humor and lightness within such a tightly wound character. I had never done a role like that, so I was really looking forward to the challenge."

Which begs the questions: What aspects of the actor's own personality bleed over into Mitchell? And is Ferguson more like the neurotic Mitchell or the easygoing Cameron in real life?

"I'm thankfully a happy mix of both. I'm certainly not as serious as Mitchell. But my dad was also very cautious and uptight at times, and I think that's a gene that has been passed down to me. I think I would be a similar father as Mitchell. I think we have a lot of the same values," says Ferguson. "I certainly have more of a sense of humor than he does. But I think he's learning. Cameron's kind of bringing him out of his shell."

As an openly gay actor, Ferguson admits he feels a particular responsibility to honor his and Stonestreet's characters by presenting them in a respectful, honest, and nonjudgmental way, especially since they're one of the few prominent gay male couples depicted on network television at the moment.

"We certainly noticed the social ramifications that these characters hold," acknowledges Ferguson. "I will say very bluntly that it is a lot of pressure, because I think the gay community is very excited that we're on TV. In fact, I know that they are, because people come up to me personally and tell me that. So you feel like you hold a certain responsibility — you're almost like a spokesman for a movement. It can be a little daunting at times. But nothing makes me happier than when I meet gay parents who approach me and say, 'Thank you so much for being on TV. You know, we really relate to your character and your family.'"

Still, even Ferguson admits the writers try not to fetishize the characters or the landmark status of having a gay male couple as adoptive parents on a network TV series.

"We do try and deal with them first as just a couple, and then the gay part is hopefully just part of the facts and details of who they are. I think the writers done a really good job of staying away from sort of broad, obvious comedy with them. They just live within the world of the show, and I think it really is a testament to the writing."

Surprisingly, there has been little outrage, uproar or drumbeating from conservative activists regarding Mitchell and Cameron, something that Ferguson admits he assumed that he'd be facing.

"I was actually kind of bracing myself for more of a backlash with some conservative groups. don't know why that hasn't happened. And I haven't been feeling that. Middle America is watching the show, so I try not to question it. I'm just happy that we're not getting many complaints or angry letters. And we are in a lot of living rooms every week, so it's pretty great, actually."

Still, the show has engendered some complaints from a perhaps unlikely faction of viewers — those angry that the writers haven't gone far enough in depicting any kind of intimacy between Mitchell and Cameron. There's been lots of tweets and blog entries questioning why viewers haven't seen Mitchell and Cam kiss even once on screen, let alone lie in bed together. The most we've seen them do is hug, which is strange considering that Mitchell's sister and brother-in-law have been shown lip-locking all season.

"I get that a lot, actually. And I certainly appreciate the criticism, and I think the writers do as well," Ferguson replies. "I think the audience is really looking and pushing for more intimacy between Cameron and Mitchell, and I just hope people know that I'm fully in support of that. I think viewers' reaction really comes from a place of love. They want to make sure that these characters are handled with respect, and I completely agree with them."

As a self-professed musical-loving gay boy (his favorite show was Falsettos) growing up in suburban Albuquerque, Ferguson couldn't wait to make his way to the big city and the bright lights of Broadway. He toiled for several years trying to gain a toehold in the New York theatre scene. In 1998, he landed his Broadway debut in the revival of On the Town with Lea DeLaria, Chandra Wilson, and Mary Testa. But it was his role as hippy kid Leaf Coneybear in the underdog Broadway musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee that launched his career in 2005. (Spelling Bee's composer, William Finn, also wrote Falsettos.)

	Jesse Tyler Ferguson in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.
	photo by Joan Marcus

"As much as I had been working in New York before, Spelling Bee definitely put me on a different level and gave me a lot more opportunities than any other job I had done before," he says. "Plus, it really was the most collaborative and fulfilling artistic endeavor I've probably ever been a part of."

And to think, it almost didn't happen thanks to "the embarrassment of riches" that Ferguson found himself choosing between.

"I had the opportunity to be a part of Spamalot or Spelling Bee that season," he recalls. "I actually had to make a phone call that no actor thinks they're ever going to have to make and say 'no' to [Spamalot director and Hollywood legend] Mike Nichols."

Still, it ended up being a smart choice, considering that the producers of the TV series "The Class" (including 'Friends' alum David Crane) came to see Spelling Bee, spotted Ferguson in the cast, and thought that he'd be perfect for the sitcom they were developing.

"That show completely fell into my lap. I always had a desire [to pursue TV work], but it never went anywhere. I auditioned for lots of TV shows and never even got a call-back for anything," says Ferguson. "So this was the first thing I got, and it happened very quickly. I barely had time to breath."

When he came up for air, he found himself living amidst the toned and tanned throngs of L.A. At least the palm trees and sunshine were a welcome respite from the concrete jungle of Manhattan.

"It was a very jolting experience," he says. "The transition of moving there was actually kind of tough. I felt like I was kind of ripped from New York. It took me about a year to really adjust, and now I actually love it. I think it's a dirty little secret that a lot of New Yorkers have — they have to hate L.A., even though they love it."

Although he's a West Coast convert now (not to mention a bonafide TV star), theatre will always be the actor's first love (as will New York). That means Ferguson fans can expect to see him returning to the stage whenever he can carve out the time in his busy TV schedule.

"With TV, it all happens so fast. So just being able to rehearse a play for a month and really get behind the characters and have that interaction with the audience," says the actor. "There's just something so special about sharing that experience with an audience, especially at the Delacorte, with 2,000 people there every night. There's such a rush to it. I love the immediate response you get. And I love the danger of it, that anything can happen — like actors can go off of their lines or improvise. I think being back on stage reminds me why I wanted to be an actor in the first place. It's so exciting, and I'm just really grateful to have a chance to do it."

Christopher Wallenberg is a freelance journalist specializing in arts and entertainment. He writes regularly for the Boston Globe, Playbill, American Theatre magazine and the Christian Science Monitor.