Rebekah Ward-Hayes: Conquering Zombies and 5th of July Blues With Chicago’s Greatest Living Actress. By Brian Kirst
In the summer of 2007, the wonderful, beautiful Rebekah Ward-Hayes helped cure the world from the Zombies From Beyond with her magnificent theatre company BackStage Theatre. Now currently knocking ’em dead as Gwen in the Oak Park Festival Theatre’s wonderful production of 5th of July, Ward-Hayes has definitely confirmed that she is among Chicago’s finest performers. Having recently filmed the thrilling Helix with Alexa Vega (Repo, Spy Kids), Ward-Hayes recently took a moment to answer some enlightening, vaguely limb-strewn questions for Horror Society.
Brian: Who were your first performing influences? Dolly Parton telling all to come on back now – John Stamos’ skills as a single uncle – A semi-blind, tapping dancing aunt?
Rebekah: Probably Mikhail Baryshnikov and this red-headed actress at the local university who played Antigone when my parents took me to see it as a little girl…I still can’t do 12 pirouettes in a row, though. And my dad is a pretty amazing storyteller – it’s our West Virginia blood.
Brian: Cool! What is the first thing that you think before stepping on stage every night? Yahoo, let’s go! – Oh, shit! What am I doing? —
Rebekah: Thank you, Universe, for letting me do what I love. Please don’t let me fuck it up! (can I say that?!) And… what’s my first line?
Brian: How do the skills you display on stage reflect in your daily life? (Playing nice to a mean cashier? A feeling of balance and oneness with the world?)
Rebekah: I can be very tuned in to all the emotions around me. It can get overwhelming, but you learn to surf it, if you will. I think that happens by staying open, not just listening, but ready to receive. And I have a terrible habit of “projecting” on phone calls – my husband thinks I talk ridiculously loud. So that’s a less rewarding transfer of skills, I guess.
Brian: Well, I’m sure he’d feel much less informed if you stopped! Now, is there anything worse than a Zombie from Beyond? (A dog with bad breath? A giant porcupine that stutters?)
Rebekah: People who don’t realize this is the only planet we’ve got and we need to TAKE CARE OF IT!
Brian: True. – What is the greatest lesson you have learned thus far from the characters (one or many) that you have portrayed?
Rebekah: I’m thinking back on Sabina, from “The Skin of Our Teeth”, and Edna from “Waiting for Lefty” – you have to fight for what you love. And that means fighting with all you’ve got and every fiber of your being. Nobody wants to see half-assing it onstage, and it sure doesn’t get you anywhere in life. And it definitely doesn’t get you anywhere with zombies.
Brian: I know. You’ve just got to give it your all if you wanna impress those cannabalistic f**Kers! so, what is the best thing and what is the worse thing about playing outside for your current show ‘5th of July”?
Rebekah: Best Thing – Looking out over the park while Sally Tally talks about the countryside. There is a beautiful weeping willow and the sunsets are gorgeous. Not too shabby a setting and all that good nature energy is there…
Worst Thing – Well, Mother Nature can turn on you and rain you out. And the mosquitos take no prisoners. It’s brutal.
Brian: They are definitely worse than zombies, after all! Lastly, any words of advice (IE: Never offer a Quaalude to a child) or any future projects that you’d like to tell us about? And thanks- this has been better than a whiskey dripped country song any day of the week!
Rebekah: As for words of advice – I’m not sure I’m anywhere qualified or near sage status, but I believe in having ADVENTURES – lots and lots and lots of them…
My next show will be with my company BackStage Theatre. We’re doing Wallace Shawn’s “Aunt Dan and Lemon” (playing Lemon) in November at the Chopin Studio. It’s our 10th Anniversary Season and I can’t wait!!!
www.backstagetheatrecompany.org
