“I don’t know how I’m going to get through this!” Ruth Wilson repeats the same scene for 24 CONSECUTIVE hours with 100 men in new play The Second Woman
Ruth Wilson will repeat the same scenes 24 hours straight in her new play, The Second Woman.
The 41-year-old actress will play Virginia on the show, which premieres at London’s Young Vic from May, and perform a seven-minute looping scene with 100 different men playing her partner Marty.
And Ruth will have her work cut out as the scene is repeated 100 times in a row, with the star saying, “I don’t know how I’m going to get through this!”
The play will see each man in turn take on the role of Marty alongside Ruth, many of whom volunteer to make their stage debuts.
To make things even more interesting, the Luther Star doesn’t hit the men beforehand, but hits them for the first time when they step onto the stage.
Challenging: Ruth Wilson will repeat the same scenes 24 hours straight in her new play The Second Woman (pictured in 2021).
Ruth told Deadline about her new role: “It’s a tremendous act of perseverance. I don’t know how to get through this and that’s part of the appeal for me. I’ll lose all sense of accomplishment as the show goes on.
She continued, “I don’t have rehearsals with the men, I don’t meet them beforehand … then they come and it’s the first time I would have met them.”
The excited movie star added that she finds it exciting not knowing how every man will react when he meets her.
She added, “I always thought that initially there was an attempt by me to perform or create a character or entertain the audience or care for these men when they show up.”
Tough: Ruth will have her work cut out as the scene is repeated 100 times in a row, with the star saying, “I don’t know how I’m going to get through this!”
However, that would all go away when her “fatigue and emotions” overwhelm her and find those things “being subverted.”
The play was created by Nat Randall and Anna Breckon and is an adaptation of John Cassavetes’ 1977 film Opening Night.
It will see that the 100 men follow the same script where the character Marty comes into Virginia’s living room to apologize for being “so rude”.
As Virginia seeks emotional validation from her lover, how each man gives her that validation is an exploration of gender roles and power dynamics
Wow: The 41-year-old actress will play Virginia on the show, which hits London’s Young Vic from May, and will perform a seven-minute looping scene with 100 different men playing her partner Marty
Press material says of the project: “The Second Woman is a unique cinematic experience where the stage gives the audience a wide-angle view of the action, while multiple cameras capture and share live close-up footage.”
Ruth went on to tell The Guardian about the play: “I’m curious to put myself in scenarios that I have no idea how to anticipate. It’s an endurance test.
“I don’t know how I’m going to get through this, but it kind of upsets me. It’s like nothing I’ll ever do or have ever done again, it’s an extraordinary once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Speaking of her interest in the role, she added, “As an actress you’re always looking for those spontaneous moments that feel alive and fresh and not rehearsed. So no matter how hard I try to play this character, four, eight, 16 hours will pass in this artistry and it will just be me up there in my rawest and most real form, not knowing if this is one dream or nightmare.’
Last year, Ruth received an MBE for her services to acting, with the award being presented by Princess Anne.
The actress rose to fame after being cast on primetime show The Affair as Alison Bailey alongside actor Dominic West, 52, who played Noah Solloway in 2014, before suddenly leaving in 2019.
Achievement: Last year, Ruth received an MBE for her services to acting, with the award being presented by Princess Anne