STAGE TO SCREENS: A Chat with Jesse L. Martin
By Michael Buckley
03 Aug 2003
"The next time I saw Jonathan was at the auditions for Rent. It was several months later, and at first we couldn't figure out how we knew each other." Martin was cast as Tom Collins, a character who's HIV positive. It's well known that, following the invited dress rehearsal of Rent, Larson died of an aortic aneurysm.
It was decided to not have an opening night, but to do a sit-down
sing-through, without make-up or costumes, for family and friends. "It was the hardest thing I think I've ever done," recounts Martin. "I remember singing and having what felt like an Oreo stuck in my throat. That lasted about four weeks. The cast and the crew felt that we really owed it to Jonathan to tell the story the best way we could. We were aware that we weren't done; it was supposed to be a workshop. It turned out really well because it had to. We stuck together, we galvanized, we became very tight with Jonathan's parents."
In the whirlwind during which the show received the Pulitzer Prize,
transferred to Broadway, and won a Tony Award as Best Musical, Martin
recalls, "We always said, 'Six years from now, I'm gonna be able to sit down and say, "Wow, that was amazing!"' But at the time, it was hard to do that. First of all, it was a lot of work. Secondly, you were so wrapped up in what you needed to do, in order to propel this story into the universe. We didn't have a chance to enjoy it while we were doing it. We were on a mission. It wasn't until many years later that I could actually appreciate what it was that we did." Martin has remained friendly "with almost everyone" in the cast.
He and Rent's Adam Pascal were two of the four producers of the
Off-Broadway success Fully Committed. In "The Restaurant," a 1998 feature about waiters in an upscale Hoboken establishment, one of Martin's co-stars was Adrien Brody. "He was always getting something big. You knew that, at some point, Adrien was going to bust a move. I had no idea that it was going to be something as amazing as 'The Pianist.' He totally deserved the Oscar."
From playing Tom Collins in Rent, Martin went to playing AIDS
counselor Antonio Collins in the 1997 TV series "413 Hope Street." Of the two Collins characters, he comments, "How weird is that? I think they did that on purpose. I had a ball doing that show. It didn't last long. I'll
never forget when that show was canceled. It was Halloween. They said there was no need to finish shooting the scene we were doing.
"I walked out of the studio, which was in Canoga Park, and the hills were on
fire. I thought, 'This is probably a good time to get out of Los Angeles.' I
came back [to New York] the next day." He enjoyed working on a 1998
TV-movie, "Deep in My Heart," co-starring Gloria Reuben and Anne Bancroft. "Gloria was amazing, and Anne Bancroft is an absolute dream to just be around—let alone work with. She's extremely funny, almost as funny as her husband [a man named Brooks]. I couldn't believe that I was lucky enough to be in the same space with her."
For ten episodes of "Ally McBeal," Martin played Dr. Greg Butters, one of
Calista Flockhart's boyfriends. "Apparently, [the relationship] was
controversial. I still don't know why," he claims. "Probably because she's
so thin," I suggest. Martin laughs. "People made a big deal about it being
an interracial couple. Hadn't they seen Lucy and Desi? I thought we were
over that, but apparently we weren't." The part brought Martin a lot of
recognition. "That put me out there as a face that you might know."
It led to an episode of "X-Files," written and directed by series star David
Duchovny. In "The Unnatural" (4/25/99), Martin portrayed a baseball playing extraterrestrial. "It was one of the best television experiences I've ever had. David is a talent to be reckoned with; he can do almost anything. He's extremely smart, and I've never seen anybody so relaxed."
Other TV work includes "Rocky Horror 25: Anniversary Special," a 2000 show that Martin insists he "got talked into doing," and hosting a six-part 2003 cable series, "Art Crimes and Mysteries," on which he worked during
weekends. He was announced for a feature, "Chance Encounter," which was never made, and has a role in a not-yet-released film, "Season of Youth," which he hasn't seen.
Martin's dream role is to play Marvin Gaye in a biography of the singer
(1939-84). "I've been working on it for eight years. There have been several screenplays. The hardest part is securing the rights to the music, and you can't do the story without the music. It's a phenomenal story. Hopefully, one day, if I keep plugging away, I'll get to do it."
I ask him to name three highlights in his career, thus far. "First would
definitely be the first time I was ever onstage, way back in the fourth
grade. The second would be the moment I figured out that I could make a
living doing it, which is when I was in the Acting Company.
"My biggest break wasn't Rent, it was the first job that ever paid
me. I couldn't believe that they were paying me all that money to go around the country and do Shakespeare. I would have done it for free. So far, the third would have to be Rent. As far as theatrical experiences go, it doesn't get better than that. I don't think it can ever be topped!" After relaxing "in my mom's pool," Jesse L. Martin reports back to "Law & Order" duty at the beginning of August.
***
Be sure to catch Martin's "Law & Order" partner, Jerry Orbach, on the PBS Pledge special, "Broadway's Lost Treasures." Seen with the ensemble from the original 42nd Street, Orbach does a superb "Lullaby of Broadway," and he's also one of the show's co-hosts. Check local listings for the date and time; in the Metropolitan area, the show's on Aug. 10 at 8 PM ET.
***
END QUIZ: Which "Law & Order" partner is Jesse L. Martin's Det. Green for Jerry Orbach's Det. Briscoe: a) second; b) third; c) fourth? (Answer: Next column, August 31)
The July 6 question was: Which of the following two-time Tony winners
appeared with Harriet Harris in "The Five Mrs. Buchanans": a) Swoosie Kurtz; b) Judith Ivey; c) Christine Baranski? The answer is b).
—Michael Buckley also writes for TheaterMania.com and The Sondheim
Review.
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Jesse L. Martin (L) with a bearded Sam Waterston.
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