Interview: Marisa Tomei Explores Gender Equality and Punk Rock in Off-Broadway’s Babe

Marisa Tomei has fond memories of working with the New Group after an exceptional turn in Marie and Bruce in 2011. “We grew up together,” she says of the theater company. So it was a no brainer to return to work with them for their 30^th anniversary season in Jessica Goldberg’s Babe, which is now running at the Pershing Square Signature Center.

The play, which also marks a reunion with director Scott Elliott, was a must for the Oscar-winning film and stage star (My Cousin Vinny and The Rose Tattoo). Babe sees Tomei playing record producer Abby, who has a long-standing but infamous working relationship with Gus (Arliss Howard). When a new A&R hire (Gracie McGraw) forces Abby to consider the compromises she has made in her work, Abby must reconsider her choices and their trickle-down effects in her industry.

Tomei spoke with TheaterMania about how Babe resonated with her in a tumultuous year, what her return to the New Group has been like, and how she would love to see My Cousin Vinny adapted for the stage.

The conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Babe speaks to several issues that are imperative to discuss right now. What specifically made you want to do the play?
I loved that it had a rock-’n’-roll, wild, punk-rock energy, and that it was about what happens to women over time in many environments, how women lose their voice, and how they can gain it back. It was also very practical. Like many people, I had anxiety around the election, and I just wanted to be in one place that I know I’m going to every day. I was really looking for a lot of structure. I love the New Group, so things started coming together in an easy way.

Your career has seen so much since you worked on Marie and Bruce. What have you learned about yourself as an actor since then?
Hopefully, I’ve learned a lot. The last play I did was four years ago and there would have been more except for what was going on with Covid. I’ve certainly learned that I have to manage my energy better. It’s always an athletic task being in a show. I really have to warm up and warm down with a lot more care. I continue to love working with Scott Elliott because he’s a very curious person and wants to know about what artists are interested in, as well as what’s going on in society. His devotion to theater is so real and specific.

Abby is torn in many ways, and most women can relate to what she’s going through to some degree. In which ways did her experience correlate with your own career?
It’s relatable within family, schooling, the entertainment business — everywhere. The play is so much about relationships, people that inspire you, and passion for art. Abigail has grown up with a mentor who she really adores and knows where he loses control and what’s hard for him. She has a lot of compassion for him, but that compassion overtook her own sense of worth and voice on every level. Financially, she gets paid a lot less. She doesn’t get credit or have her name known. Her fire to fight the system and stand up for herself through music has been chipped away over the years, and she just gave up. I wouldn’t do the play if I didn’t feel it was relatable to me and want to have some kind of public conversation about it. It’s pervasive.

How does theater speak to you in a way that is different from film?
Theater is truly where I always want to be. It’s such a beautiful life. It’s always so stimulating and there’s so much I learn every time. I enjoy the time to go into the depths of these characters together as a little family [with the cast and creative] through the months, and I always feel like a beginner. I love that feeling. I’ve been taking the bus to work lately because it evokes this feeling of starting all over again. It’s the same feeling I have when I walk into a rehearsal room and there’s nothing in there but that space. It’s very thrilling to me. I love being off-Broadway especially because of the community. I love language and playwrights. All of it!

There are so many films being adapted for the stage. How would you feel about a stage adaptation of My Cousin Vinny?
I think it should be a musical. That would be hilarious. I would entertain the idea of working on it. It has the potential for such raunchy, hilarious lyrics. I think it would be a real hoot.