Tom Pecinka is a 2024 Tony Award nominee for his efficiency in “Stereophonic,” now enjoying in New York. by the use of Related Press
Because the ruthlessly formidable Peter in Broadway’s “Stereophonic,” Tom Pecinka will get to are living out a Nineteen Seventies rock famous person myth — replete with the intercourse, medicine and unfashionable model — onstage.
Regardless that the actor describes his Tony-nominated efficiency as a full-throttle, emotional purge, he’s thankful to go away that have in the back of after curtain name.
“There are issues I am getting to do as Peter that I don’t get to do in my existence,” Pecinka, who’s making his Broadway debut, instructed HuffPost. “Peter lets in himself to explode, and I’d be mendacity if I mentioned attending to scream at somebody wasn’t cathartic. However I love to stay him on the theater. I do a ritual each and every evening the place I take off the necklace I put on and say good-bye to him, as a result of he’s no longer probably the most a laugh particular person to are living with.”
Now enjoying at New York’s Golden Theatre, “Stereophonic” has been nominated for 13 Tony Awards — probably the most ever for a Broadway play. On Tuesday, the display’s run used to be prolonged via Jan. 5 after initially being slated to near subsequent month.
Written by way of David Adjmi and directed by way of Daniel Aukin, the drama follows a Laurel Canyon-era rock band within the throes of recording an album. Peter is the band’s hot-headed guitarist and is all in favour of a tempestuous, on-and-off dating with singer-songwriter Diana (Sarah Pidgeon).
Tom Pecinka, Will Brill and Sarah Pidgeon in “Stereophonic.” Julieta Cervantes
Peter and Diana’s bandmates are 3 Brits: bassist Reg (Will Brill) and keyboardist Holly (Juliana Canfield), who’re a married couple, and drummer Simon (Chris Stack). They’re joined of their Sausalito, California, studio by way of a couple of hapless engineers, Grover (Eli Gelb) and Charlie (Andrew R. Butler).
The band’s recording periods are, in fact, a fiery conflict of egos. Over the direction of 3 hours, the characters divulge their interior turmoil in between laying down song, which incorporates appearing unique songs by way of musician Will Butler, previously of the band Arcade Hearth.
“Artists come to the display, they usually move: ‘Oh, I do know the ache and the enjoyment of that procedure,’” Pecinka mentioned. “However any individual who’s completed a gaggle challenge in fundamental college the place they had been paired with somebody they hate, or perhaps they needed to do the entire paintings as a result of nobody else did … too can relate.”
Watch the video for “Masquerade” from Broadway’s “Stereophonic” solid recording beneath.
A lot of the excitement on “Stereophonic” has emphasised the fictitious band’s many parallels to Fleetwood Mac, whose masterpiece 1977 album “Rumours” used to be recorded as individuals Christine McVie and John McVie had been getting ready to divorce, whilst Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks had also referred to as it quits on their dating.
Pecinka spent months in guitar courses in preparation for his position, sending movies to the display’s ingenious crew to stay them abreast of his weekly development. Regardless that he appeared to Buckingham early on, his interpretation of Peter additionally winks at Mick Jagger, Robert Plant and James Taylor, amongst different ’70s song icons.
“I by no means felt find it irresistible used to be the Fleetwood Mac tale, as a result of those characters are so fleshed out, they felt like their very own folks,” he mentioned. Vocally, he added, “my touchstone used to be Nineteen Seventies Billy Joel, as a result of that used to be the song I grew up with from that duration. So it used to be already form of in me.”
A Wantagh, New York, local, Pecinka auditioned for “Stereophonic” in 2020, mere days sooner than COVID-19 shuttered theaters national. The play won its premiere off-Broadway staging in fall of 2023, and the actor mentioned the risk to paintings with a modern author used to be well worth the wait.
“Till then, my occupation had most commonly been Shakespeare and Chekhov and Ibsen — useless folks,” he quipped.
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“I by no means felt find it irresistible used to be the Fleetwood Mac tale, as a result of those characters are so absolutely fleshed out, they felt like their very own folks,” mentioned Pecinka (on left, with Pidgeon). Julieta Cervantes
Regardless that “Stereophonic” is billed as a “play with song” moderately than a musical, Pecinka and his solid associates had been ready to record the display’s songs for posterity on a brand new solid album.
It’s an success the actor, who used to be instructed by way of casting brokers that his rock tilt used to be ill-suited for normal musical theater, is particularly pleased with: “It all the time brought about me disgrace and unhappiness that I wasn’t ready to do the ones issues, however now I’m making a song in the best way I wish to sing on Broadway.”
Maximum of Pecinka’s off-stage time in this day and age is spent getting ready for the June 16 Tony Awards, the place he’s nominated for Easiest Efficiency by way of a Featured Actor in a Play along Brill and Gelb.
Having a look past “Stereophonic,” he’s desperate to parlay his newfound acclaim into tv and picture paintings in addition to theater. As for long run roles, he believes they’ll haven’t begun to be written.
“I was extra like Peter when I used to be more youthful ― an individual who’s chasing luck and dealing actually exhausting,” he mentioned. ”[But] the article Peter has taught me is that my dream position won’t even exist but. I don’t really feel like I’ve been pigeonholed. If I will handle that, I’ll be a more than pleased clam.”
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“I love enjoying somebody who could be very difficult, and there are issues I am getting to do as Peter that I don’t get to do in my existence,” Pecinka mentioned. Valerie Terranova by the use of Getty Pictures
