“Stephanie Kurtzuba, The Irishman’s Wife” —Sound and Soul Online

“You’re playing a character named Tammy. Tell me a little bit about your process in bringing her to life.

Well, first and foremost, so much of what I needed was already on the page. Because Chris is such a talented writer. He created such a specific world. It was kind of amazing to walk into location today and be like, “This is exactly what I was imagining!” I think that’s a testament to him and the atmosphere that he was able to put onto the page. But for my own process, you know, I always like to approach characters from a heroic point of view.

I think it’s really easy to judge people– and therefore, also to judge characters even on a page or in a book or in a film. As an actor, that’s not your job. In fact, your job is the opposite, which is to withhold judgment, and to find the humanity. So I just sort of looked at… What is she doing in this little story that we’re telling and what does she need? What’s the most important thing to her in this moment as it relates to the story? And then I just tried to lean into that, and I extrapolated some ideas about what her life might be. I think she’s probably a really good person who was left with limited choices and made the best that she could based on her own knowledge of the world and how it operates. And you know, she’s aspirational. For Tammy, she’s aspirational.”