Sadie Sink on Her First Tony Nomination, Shaking Off ‘Stranger Things' Expectations

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3 days ago

While Sadie Sink rose to fame in Netflix's Stranger Things, her roots are in the theater.
The 23-year-old actress appeared in a revival of Annie in 2013 and starred as young Queen Elizabeth in The Audience in 2015 before going on to play Max in Stranger Things, and taking on roles in films including The Whale. And now, Sink has returned to Broadway in John Proctor is the Villain, where she has received her first Tony nomination for her role as high schooler Shelby Holcomb.
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Sink was nervous about returning to Broadway, especially with the fandom and expectations of Stranger Things surrounding her. But she was drawn back by Kimberly Bellflower's play, in which a group of high school girls dissect The Crucible for English class, while also seeing parallels with their own lives. While the play is an ensemble piece, Sink's character comes in like a wrecking ball who takes aim at the moral authority ascribed to the character of John Proctor in The Crucible as well as the systems set up to protect men around her.
The play touches on feminism, varied responses among women to bad behavior by men and the complicated friendships among teenage girls, including Sink's character who starts out at odds with her friend Raelynn over a boy. This approach to the text, as well as the play's needle drops of songs by Taylor Swift and Lorde, makes these topics accessible to younger generations grappling with the current political climate, Sink said.
'I think it's the most important thing I've ever been a part of, in that sense,' Sink said.
John Proctor is the Villain is also nominated for best play, as part of seven overall Tony nominations.
The best actress nominee spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about shaking off nerves and moving past her Stranger Things character for Broadway, as well as what she hopes audiences take away from the play.
Had returning to Broadway been on your radar?
I was thinking about coming back, but honestly, I wasn't too eager to do it until I read Kimberly's play, because the idea of doing theater again was a little bit scary. I didn't know how it would be for me as an adult, or if I even had the stamina or the chops to do it, and if things had changed from being very comfortable on a TV show for 10 years. But when I read this, I was like, 'OK it's fantastic. It's an incredible ensemble piece.' So it's not like I'd be biting off more than I could chew. You feel so supported, and everyone in this cast is so stellar.
So once I read this, it was like, if it can get to Broadway…because I also didn't know. It's kind of a big swing to do a new play, even though it had kind of gained some recognition and had gotten its flowers on a regional, collegiate level, you still just don't know with a play about teenage girls if producers and theater owners are going to believe in it and that the traditional Broadway audience would want to go.
What did it feel like when you first came back?
I was definitely nervous about what my nerve level would be, and how I was going to handle being on stage, because it's so exposing, and you're so vulnerable. A big thing I had to get over just in the first week of previews was letting go of any expectations I had on myself, but also that the audience would place on me in any way. That was something that was eating me up a bit. It is an ensemble piece, and yeah, sure, my name's on the marquee and everything, but if you go into the show, you realize that it's really not about that.
But I think it added this extra layer of pressure in the beginning of, 'Oh, are people coming in expecting more out of me? Or are they seeing Shelby, or are they seeing Max from Stranger Things? You just never know. [Director] Danya [Taymor] actually had a really good conversation with me about that to help me let that go a bit. And once I did everything felt very free. That's kind of the point of previews too. You're in front of an audience for the first time. It's trial and error and embarrassing, because you are in front of an audience every single night as you're testing out all of these new things and situating yourself. It was quite the journey. There's definitely some points where you're like, 'Oh my God, can I do this? Am I just embarrassing myself?'
What advice did Danya give you that helped you let go of that pressure?
I think she could see that there was this wall that went up as soon as I was in front of an audience, because I haven't had to do this since gaining recognition through Stranger Things. I haven't had to be on stage in front of the audience right there. So I think I felt like I just put this wall up that maybe wasn't there in rehearsals. And Danya told me 'That's always going to be there, that you want to protect yourself from the audience. But if you use the character, if you're just a vessel for Shelby, then any choice that you make, she is your protection, because you're not yourself up there, so you can't feel judged, or feel like there's any expectations on you, because they're not. When you're on stage, you're Shelby.'
Kimberly's agent had sent it to me, and I couldn't put it down. I just like tore through it. And the initial reaction, other than the fact that it's just a brilliant story, was just how real every character is held. And I think that's so rare when, like, you know, telling a story about teenage girls, I find it's like, super hard to get it right in a way that's like, really meeting them where they're at. And I just felt like Kimberly really encapsulated the feeling of being that age. And then it was kind of just gut instinct that this is obviously fantastic, and I think we should do a reading of it or something, and we did.
How did you feel about having music featured so heavily in the play with both Taylor Swift and Lorde?
I loved all the pop culture references. I think if you shy away from them, then you're not honoring the experience of being a teenage girl, because pop culture is so prevalent in most of our lives now, but especially at that age, it's like your language. And I thought everything was super clever, the way that Kimberly tied it in there, and with the use of Lorde's song 'Green Light' at the end, it's just the perfect cherry on top. At first, it's funny, because, of course, they joke about being very gifted, very beautiful interpretive dancers. And of course, they're going to start dancing to a Lorde song, but then it kind of shifts and they're able to use it as this kind of weapon or armor as they reclaim their voices and their bodies and exercise some demons through it. So it becomes this anthem towards the end. And I also just love that. I feel like a lot of the projects I've done have featured a song. There's always one song you can tie into it.
What are you hoping people take away from this play?
A lot of people have different reactions. Someone will come up to me and be like, 'I'm so pissed off right now,' and then other people will just be sobbing and crying. There's a mix of reactions, but I think the one thing I hope people take away from it is like, to me, I think it's just a story about friendship, like Raelynn and Shelby's friendship, and how they're able to forgive each other and come together and like that final moment, it's just all about them being connected and being able to have this exorcism, give this monologue in front of their entire class, and they couldn't do it without each other. So I think it's a love letter to that bond when you're a teenage girl and you're best friends.
It must feel more charged doing this play in this political climate.
Yeah, and obviously, the timing of it was not planned at all. We were always set to come to the Booth Theatre in the spring, and then with the results of the election, I think, coming into rehearsals and being with an all-female creative team, and mostly female cast, young cast, and having that to go to every day and working on something that really mattered and feeling like I think we could actually really reach people, especially young people, at this time of scariness and uncertainty and all kinds of disgusting things happening. I think it's the most important thing I've ever been a part of, in that sense. But of course, we're not trying to make any comments on it. It's just not lost on us. Everything is presented the same way. But you can't ignore the fact that it's even more poignant at this time.
Do you want to do more live theater after this?
I would love to. I think that's the dream. I learned more about acting in these last few months than I have in a very long time. And it's such a marathon. So I think we'll take a little break after this, but I want to come back for sure, because I think doing theater is also how you maintain your passion for acting, at least for me. It's really returning to your craft, in a very special way that film and TV sometimes just can't offer you. And I started out in theater, so of course, I always will have a love for it, and definitely want to return.
And you're still so close to with the Broadway show playing across from your theater.
I know. Isn't that insane timing? I saw it in London awhile ago, and then I also saw it when it came here. But yeah, it's insane, right across the street. I mean, they follow me everywhere. It's crazy.
What does this Tony nomination mean to you?
I grew up watching the Tonys every year and studying Tony performances. To me, the ultimate honor is to get a nomination or win a Tony award. The Tonys, New York theater, Broadway, I just think it's the pinnacle of what acting is, and performing is, and you're surrounded by some of the greatest actors ever. And so to have this recognition from the community that raised me, it has mattered the most. And also I've been doing this for 15 years, basically my whole life. And something like this has never happened to me. And so, for it to be a Tony nomination, it's just so serendipitous, and it just means so much.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
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