Leslie Hendrix

Leslie Hendrix starred Off-Broadway in the comedy The Body Politic, which played at 59E59's Theater B from 10 Feb 2011 - 6 Mar 2011.

Birthday
June 5th.

Place of birth?
San Francisco, CA.

You now live in?
NYC.

Did you go to training school, if so which one?
National Theatre Conservatory.

As an actor, do you have a preference for stage, tv or film?
I'm a theatre rat at heart, so that's really my first love. But I've grown to love working for the camera, too, because I've done a lot of that over the years.

Your first stage performance was?
"The Belles of Horsefly Gulch" in my junior high school drama class. I knew as soon as I got my first laugh that I HAD to be an actor.

Career highlight to date?
Making my Broadway debut as Blanche DuBois when I went on for Jessica Lange in Streetcar. My favorite role of all time, and it still knocks me out that the first time I went onstage in front of a Broadway audience, it was as her. Dream come true, that.

What roles would you most like to play?
The only one that comes to mind at the moment (brain freeze!) is Albee's Martha--I'd love a crack at her.

What is the best advice you have ever received?
If you can't do anything about it...let go of it. Don't drive yourself nuts.

What has been your most embarrassing moment on stage?
I got the uncontrollable giggles one night in The Music Man, and had to speak/sing to Rebecca Luker as we both stood pretty much down center in a spotlight. I could NOT get the words out---just heavy breaths. Poor Rebecca looked at me like I'd lost my mind.

What is the most annoying part about your job?
Crazy schedule juggling.

Briefly tell us how you become involved with The Body Politic
I auditioned!

Briefly tell us about the character you play in The Body Politic
A campaign consultant to the Republican presidential candidate.

If you had not become a performer, what might you have done instead?
I never much wanted to do anything else, quite honestly.

Who are your favorite actors/actresses?
Lots of actors who aren't "famous" but should be. Also Duvall, Streep, Oldman, Catherine O'Hara, Madeleine Kahn.

If you could meet anyone in the world dead or alive who would it be and what would you say to them?
Just one? Then I gotta say...Bill Hicks. And I would probably just blather incoherently about how much I adore him and how grateful I am for the gut laughs he's given me.

Favorite after-show haunts?
My kitchen and my couch.

What was the last Broadway show you saw?
Closing night of "Brief Encounter." Wonderful

What was the last book you read, and name some of your favorite authors?
"Spook" by Mary Roach. Mary Karr, Tobias Wolff, JD Salinger, Augusten Burroughs.

What was the last film you saw, and name some of your favorite movies?
"Another Year" by Mike Leigh. LOVED it. Sid & Nancy, Harold & Maude, Withnail & I, The Hours, just too many to list, really.

Favorite TV programs?
The Walking Dead, Dexter, Frontline, Ghost Hunters. I'm serious, I love that crazy show. I'd love to do an investigation with Jason and Grant.

Favorite holiday destinations?
In my dreams: a beach in the Caribbean.

Do you have any hobbies?
I'm a voracious reader, I love to garden, I like riding steel rollercoasters.

Do you have any superstitions?
None that I take seriously.

If you were stranded on a desert island, what three items would you take with you?
My computer, my blackberry, and a toothbrush. Maybe sunblock.

What are your future plans?
Doing what I do until I can't do it anymore. Watching my boy grow to be the wonderful man I know he'll be.

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