'Daisies' goes for theatrics
By Bruce R. Miller Journal staff writer | Posted: Sunday, October 07, 2007
LOS ANGELES -- There are more stage-trained actors in "Pushing Daisies" than most Broadway shows.
The reason? "There's no drama," says two-time Tony winner Swoosie Kurtz. "With theater people, it's all about the work. You don't go in and make conflict."
Also, says Executive Producer Dan Jinks, "There's something a little bit theatrical about our show. It takes place in the real world, but a very special version of the real world."
Shot in vivid, almost blinding colors, "Pushing Daisies" tells the story of a piemaker (Lee Pace) who has an ability to bring the dead back to life just by touching them. The skill helps a friend solve crimes, but it also reunites the pieman with a childhood crush (Anna Friel) who quickly becomes his soulmate. Unfortunately, if he touches her a second time, she dies.
Odd? "We're going to go a long way in doing everything we can to get them to touch each other that's not flesh to flesh," says creator Bryan Fuller. "We're going to have a lot of fun with prophylactics, Saran Wrap kisses. We're going to see them dancing in beekeeper suits. If the show ends, it will probably end with a kiss."
Meanwhile, there's plenty of chaos in the restaurant. "Wicked" star Kristin Chenoweth plays a waitress; Kurtz and "Little Shop of Horrors" star Ellen Greene are Friel's odd, grieving aunts. They get wrapped up in the crime story of the week and play out their own unique dramas.
Initially, Chenoweth didn't think there was a place for her. The story, after all, hinges on the relationship between Pace and Friel. "I had to decide between doing this and 'Young Frankenstein' on Broadway," she says. "It seemed pretty obvious which one I should pick and then they told me what they were going to do with this character and I said yes."
Kurtz, too, wondered if a supporting role afforded much screen time. Then she got the character description -- she's a former synchronized swimmer who wears an eyepatch -- and decided it was too juicy to ignore. "I'm always looking for good material and this was rich," she says. Then, too, "when you're not the star of the show you have time for other things."
Both actresses say they'll continue to do theater while they're in the series. Additionally, Chenoweth has a laundry list of movies she wants to make.
A supporting role in "RV," she says, introduced her to "Daisies" producer Barry Sonnenfeld. She knew the care he lavishes on his projects (among them: "Men in Black") and assumed he'd do the same with the series.
Then, too, since she and Greene have musical backgrounds, she was convinced it wouldn't be long before the series would include a song or two. "This show lends itself to that," she says. "We in musical theater believe that we sing because we can't speak anymore."
Even Chi McBride (who plays the show's crime solver) says he's game to sing.
Adding to the inevitability: Jim Dale narrates the show.
"In the original script, it was described as 'Imagine Patrick Stewart reading you a bedtime story," Fuller says. "And Dan Jinks actually said, 'I'm a big fan of the Harry Potter books, so we should get Jim Dale' and he was game.
The Broadway connection? He, too, won a Tony Award -- for his starring role in the musical "Barnum."
Producers say the first musical episode isn't far off.
"Pushing Daisies" airs Wednesdays on ABC.
The reason? "There's no drama," says two-time Tony winner Swoosie Kurtz. "With theater people, it's all about the work. You don't go in and make conflict."
Also, says Executive Producer Dan Jinks, "There's something a little bit theatrical about our show. It takes place in the real world, but a very special version of the real world."
Shot in vivid, almost blinding colors, "Pushing Daisies" tells the story of a piemaker (Lee Pace) who has an ability to bring the dead back to life just by touching them. The skill helps a friend solve crimes, but it also reunites the pieman with a childhood crush (Anna Friel) who quickly becomes his soulmate. Unfortunately, if he touches her a second time, she dies.
Odd? "We're going to go a long way in doing everything we can to get them to touch each other that's not flesh to flesh," says creator Bryan Fuller. "We're going to have a lot of fun with prophylactics, Saran Wrap kisses. We're going to see them dancing in beekeeper suits. If the show ends, it will probably end with a kiss."
Meanwhile, there's plenty of chaos in the restaurant. "Wicked" star Kristin Chenoweth plays a waitress; Kurtz and "Little Shop of Horrors" star Ellen Greene are Friel's odd, grieving aunts. They get wrapped up in the crime story of the week and play out their own unique dramas.
Initially, Chenoweth didn't think there was a place for her. The story, after all, hinges on the relationship between Pace and Friel. "I had to decide between doing this and 'Young Frankenstein' on Broadway," she says. "It seemed pretty obvious which one I should pick and then they told me what they were going to do with this character and I said yes."
Kurtz, too, wondered if a supporting role afforded much screen time. Then she got the character description -- she's a former synchronized swimmer who wears an eyepatch -- and decided it was too juicy to ignore. "I'm always looking for good material and this was rich," she says. Then, too, "when you're not the star of the show you have time for other things."
Both actresses say they'll continue to do theater while they're in the series. Additionally, Chenoweth has a laundry list of movies she wants to make.
A supporting role in "RV," she says, introduced her to "Daisies" producer Barry Sonnenfeld. She knew the care he lavishes on his projects (among them: "Men in Black") and assumed he'd do the same with the series.
Then, too, since she and Greene have musical backgrounds, she was convinced it wouldn't be long before the series would include a song or two. "This show lends itself to that," she says. "We in musical theater believe that we sing because we can't speak anymore."
Even Chi McBride (who plays the show's crime solver) says he's game to sing.
Adding to the inevitability: Jim Dale narrates the show.
"In the original script, it was described as 'Imagine Patrick Stewart reading you a bedtime story," Fuller says. "And Dan Jinks actually said, 'I'm a big fan of the Harry Potter books, so we should get Jim Dale' and he was game.
The Broadway connection? He, too, won a Tony Award -- for his starring role in the musical "Barnum."
Producers say the first musical episode isn't far off.
"Pushing Daisies" airs Wednesdays on ABC.
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