The FMC Spotlight: Katy Sullivan

‘Cheated of feature by dissembling nature / Deformed, unfinish’d, sent before my time / Into this breathing world, scarce half made up.’ These select lines taken from the opening monologue of Shakespeare’s Richard III, as well as many of the others that come both before and after, key the audience into the fact that the historical and, in this case, titular figure, had a physical disability. While The Bard’s original productions were not necessarily known for their inclusive casting, a handful of recent versions of the tale have made sure the main character has been portrayed by actors who have lived experience with the concept. Edward Hall’s production at Chicago Shakespeare Theater has taken the notion one step further, casting Tony-nominated Katy Sullivan as Richard III, making her the first woman with a disability to take on the role in a major U.S. production.

Katy is no stranger to opening doors such as this one. Last year, the actress who was born without the lower half of her legs became the first female amputee to ever perform on Broadway when she originated the role of Ani in the Pulitzer Prize Winning play Cost Of Living. Her portrayal earned her a Tony nomination, which subsequently made her the first amputee to be recognized by the voting committee. Prior to this, she took on numerous television roles, the most recent of which was Esther in Dexter: New Blood. She has also compiled an impressive resume of stage credits, such as Lady Windermere’s Fan and The Long Red Road, started her own production company and represented The United States in the 2012 Paralympic Games.

On a well-deserved day off from her packed performance schedule, Katy Sullivan spoke with The FMC about portraying the narcissistic king, her 2023 Tony nomination, the importance of authentic casting, and more. 

You’ve just started previews for Richard III at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. You are the first woman with a disability to take on the role in a major US production. How do you think your lived experience with a disability informs your portrayal?

I think the trap that a lot of able-bodied people fall into when they approach this character or think about this character is that they think about all of the things that Richard can't do. They focus so much on the limitations he has because of his body and what they have to do with their body to put on a disability and what that looks like. Since I live my life with a different body, since that is my normal every single day, I approach this character in such a different way. I'm not googling ‘scoliosis.’ I'm not googling ‘what does it feel like to live your life with a disability.’ Ed[ward Hall] has directed this play before and has said in a number of interviews that it feels like a new piece of work because we're approaching it so differently. He’s said that I bring things out in this character that he’s never noticed. I think all of that comes from the fact that I have the lived experience that an able-bodied person doesn't.

You’re able to have a whole new take on the character, which is why authentic casting is important.

Exactly. There's been a big controversy in your neck of the woods about The Globe’s Richard III. The artistic director is an able-bodied actress, and she is playing the role. She’s stated that they’re not focusing on his disability and are leaning into the play’s themes of toxic masculinity and narcissism. That's not what this play is. It may touch on narcissism. Richard is narcissistic, for sure. But he also is disabled. It's interesting.

Are they going to remove his disability in its entirety?

The most recent thing that I heard is that she is not playing him disabled.

So, he won’t be historically accurate?

No. I’m also curious about what they are going to do with the play itself. Are they cutting all of the lines about his body? In the opening soliloquy, which is super famous, he says, “I was rudely stamped by dissembling nature came into this world scarce half made up.” He talks about how that is his lot in life. That is what he was handed. He was made to feel other and different, but then he’s essentially like, “Here, hold my beer.” [laughter]

Hmm. Interesting.

It will be interesting to see how it all pans out.

In a previous interview, you talked about how Richard’s ambition was the first foothold you used to relate to the character. As you spent more time with the role, did any of your first perceptions of him change?

I think my perceptions of him have evolved. When you're playing a character that's so different from who you are, you do have to find those little things, those little pieces that are like, “Okay, what do we have in common?” I do understand ambition. I've put myself into positions over and over and over again in my life where I'm pushing myself to achieve things as a person who has perceived limitations. But I think now this character has become a study of why people end up the way that they do. How do someone’s upbringing and interactions with society make them who they are, especially when they turn out to be evil people?

It's interesting how, historically, in the media, disability has always been a sign of the villain in many ways. Richard III is a history, so it is not entirely the case here, but I think it does play in some way.

Now that we've had a couple of audiences and people have started to come to see the show, what's really fun is that people are saying that I’m so likable it’s messing with them. I think it's complicated for people because they want it to be black and white. They want to see Richard as the bad guy. Period. End of story. They want it to be a cautionary tale. Plain and simple. It is that, but it's not so cut and dry. People are walking confused because they like him, which I think is hard to accept about a character that we often perceive as strictly evil.

Being that you spent so much of the beginning of your career in Chicago and have a history with the city, how does it feel to be leading a production on the iconic Navy Pier now?

It's so cool to be back here. It's funny. There's an actor in the show named Sean Fortunato. He plays my mom and another character named Lord Rivers. We were in Lady Windermere's Fan together when I was 23 or 24 years old. It was my first equity production.

That’s so lovely.

The work that is done in this town is so phenomenal. There’s this real community of people that just want to do good work. It’s less about who's going to come to see that show, if you are going to get an agent, if you will be able to move to New York and be on Broadway, and more about making art. But it is still cool to be told I'm on buses and billboards and that kind of thing. [laughter] Which does come with some added pressure, I will say. Knowing people are going to come to see you because of an ad that they saw on their commute or whatever.

Plus, you’ve got that Tony Nominated title before your name now.

It’s on everything. Part of me is like, “Just let people come. Don’t throw that expectation in there.” [laughter] But, all in all, it is good to be back.

This also isn’t the first time you have worked with Edward Hall. He also directed Cost of Living’s London run. Has anything that you learned during that production carried over into this one?

He’s taught me that kindness can take you really far. You don't have to be bossy. You don't have to be a tyrant or a taskmaster. You can show up and create a kind work environment where people are happy, want to be there and support each other emotionally and creatively. Ed is a cheerleader for you, and it makes his productions so worthwhile.

Speaking of Cost of Living, that show was part of your life for seven years on and off. How did that affect your various portrayals of Ani?

When you step away from a character for a few months or a year, and then you come back to it, especially multiple times, it is such an interesting experience. It's such a gift that not everybody gets, but it's also a challenge because, at the end of the day, it's a limited number of scenes, and you don't want to replicate something you want to kind of create something fresh every time. I really think I benefited from having different Eddies across the country and the world. I liked to joke that I was working on my full Elizabeth Taylor. I've had five husbands in that play so far. [laughter] At some point, you do have to step away from a character and say namaste and thank you so much, but the last I heard, there were still plans for a potential film, so I would love to have the opportunity to play her one more time.

We did touch on this very briefly, but your portrayal earned you a Tony nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play. If you could go back and tell a college-age version of yourself that that would happen, how do you think she would react? What advice would you give her?

If I told her that we were going to be on Broadway and get a Tony nomination for originating a character, I think she would be like, “Oh, my God!” She would freak out. But I think that she might be a little surprised to hear what our age would be when this happens. [laughter] I would tell her to have patience and go on the ride. I would tell her to let go of any perceived timeline of when things should happen or are going to happen or what's going to happen. It's really hard to do that. But there were so many things that happened in my life before I did Cost Of Living that if I hadn't had those lived experiences, I don't know if I would have played Ani the way that I did. It’s the same with Richard III. I'm playing Richard as this warrior who fights on blades. If I hadn't gone down the road of the Paralympics and running and all of that stuff, would I be “putting on armor” in this play? No. All of these things are lived experiences that carry you and a character closer to each other.

Those preconceived timelines are very hard to let go of.

It's very hard. If you told me at 22 that I would get nominated for a Tony, and I would be on Broadway, and I'd be the first actress who's an amputee to ever be on Broadway, but that it wouldn’t happen for 20 years, I would probably be like “20 years?!?!” You know?

I absolutely understand that sentiment. [laughter] You first got the script for the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama in 2016. How do you think the industry has evolved regarding disabled stories since then?

I think there is a lot more desire for authenticity. I think there's a lot more outrage when there isn't authenticity. I think we're just past the point where people like Eddie Redmayne can play Stephen Hawking. That didn't even happen that long ago, but I feel like we're progressing past that point. If you look at any marginalized group in history in the entertainment industry, at some point, people start saying, “Can you take that yellow paint off your face and let us tell our own stories?” Now, there are more things being written for performers with disabilities. Stories, in general, are more inclusive. It's exciting.

I think it's really cool. In what ways do you hope it continues to change in the future?

I would really love to see more people with disabilities playing “able-bodied” roles. For instance, the character I played on Dexter's disability was never talked about. It was never discussed. It was not a plot point. She was just a person who lived her life with a disability and had a job. I'm hoping the industry is heading more in that direction. I want to play more characters where my disability is not a big factor in why I'm getting the job.

I agree. I don't see why you couldn't audition for any character that's able-bodied, and then if you get the role, the character would just happen to have a disability.

Exactly.

I think a lot of time in media, especially older media such as Richard III, having a disability or deformity or abnormality -however you want to label it- is often seen as a negative, but for me personally, as someone with a disability, I don’t see it as such, so I was wondering how do you think growing up with a disability, living a life with a disability impacted you and who you are positively?

Living my life from this perspective has made me a much more compassionate person. I have a lot more patience for people. It is frustrating at times. Sometimes it sucks. But, there are aspects about it that are tremendous gifts. It sounds cheesy, but what a tremendous gift it is to be a person who is opening doors for other people. You know what I mean? Like that in itself is rewarding. I went to the Paralympics, traveled the world, and represented the United States. I also wouldn't have originated the role of Ani in Cost Of Living; I wouldn't be playing Richard III right now if I did not have my disability. Who knows what my life would have been if I'd been born differently, but all you do is take the hand you've been dealt and try to bluff your way through. [laughter]

Lastly, and as always, if you are familiar with this website, which Female Main Character archetype do you relate to most?

The Warrior speaks the most to me. Whenever I fall down, I figure out how to get back up, dust myself off and keep going. I feel like I've had to battle my way to where I am my entire life, and when you have these victories, they are the sweet reward for a well-fought battle.