Jessie Fischer (right) with her costar Matt Kahler in Frankenstein
Jessie Fisher plays the charming pink, doll-like fanstasy of Dr. Frankenstein’s monster in The Hypocrites’ production of Frankenstein, a mash-up of Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel of the same name. that draws inspiration from Greek myth to Marlowe’s The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus, currently performing at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art. I talked with Fisher post-show about her experience as a performer with the Hypocrites, and to get a performer’s perspective of the action-filled audience-interactive show.
Q: So how long have you been with the Hypocrites as a group?
A: I am not a Hypocrite, I am just in this show. We started rehearsing in August, so that’s how long I’ve been with them. The theater group has been together for 13 seasons [years].
Q: How did you find out about the Hypocrites or how did you get involved?
A: They are one of my favorite theater companies in the city.
Q: Why is that?
A: Because of the work they do like this. I feel like they’re always taking older works and giving them a really fresh, amazing spin. It’s always amazing to see a play with them. You’re not just watching something . . . you have an experience when you see a Hypocrites show.
Q: Do you feel like as a performer this is more challenging for you and it’s pushing you further than other kinds of theater?
A: Definitely. It’s a different muscle to exercise. It’s incredibly exciting and it’s definitely more fun than you know, just standing and [saying] the words like you’d normally do.
Q: So how much planning went into this production, considering you started rehearsing in August? Where you guys thinking about set from beginning? It was mentioned earlier that your rehearsal space was really small, a quarter of the size of the performance space.
A: We prepared the set stuff as much we could, and then we came to this space [to rehearse] on Monday, and it [the performance] changed a lot-drastically.
Q: Was it more intimidating with a larger crowd tonight, or would you say it was easier than your dress rehearsal (which involved a crowd of ten people)?
A: It was actually easier than I thought it would be. I think that everyone [the performers and the audience] is feeding off of each other’s energy. It’s nice to make eye contact with a bunch of people instead of pretending like you’re going to, in the future, make eye contact with people, which is what rehearsal is like.
Q: You were nearly nude for a majority of the performance. Did you feel less vulnerable tonight with more of an audience?
A: Yeah, definitely. There’s something about having a big crowd, it’s just one mass rather than a few individuals.
Q: So you were getting beat up quite a bit during the show, do have bruises and bumps from the rehearsal?
A: Not as many, I have more cuts from costume pieces than being beat up. The only one that ever got injured was Matt, and he got hit with a plug once . . . but that was it! We’ve been very safe.
Q: You kind of know how to handle all of the blows?
A: Yeah, we have an awesome fight choreographer. Each step is like a dance. It is so carefully planned out.
Q: Is there more than one choreographer?
A: We just have one fight choreographer, Matt Hawkins. He’s really very good. Sean Grainey choreographs everything else as the director.
Q: So where did you study and get your start?
A: I went to school in Boulder, Colorado.
Q: Is that where you’re originally from?
A: No I’m originally from Chicago. I went there [to Colorado] to be a Chemistry major, but then I switched and studied Theater.
Q: What made you want to switch?
A: I’d been in theater before and was lying when I said, “I can do something different.” Since then, I’ve been in Chicago for five years.
Q: Well thank you so much for taking the time to speak with me, you must be exhausted, but I have a feeling you might be used to that.
A: We’ve been rehearsing from 7 to 11 p.m. since Monday and previous to that, we rehearsed for 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day, so I’m used to not sleeping-
