You mentioned Baldwin being attached from the start, how did casting Anne Heche for the starlet come about?
WB: I wanted people who had a very contemporary sensibility to go into this period material because I didn’t want it to be a dusty, creeky posturing. And I think what we’re fortunate with in Anne and Alec is that they have lived their private lives to public scrutiny. So, they are not unaware of the responsibility and the difficulty of having a very public personal life just like the characters. I don’t think you can act being a star, I think you have to be a star. I think I have the good fortune of that in Anne and Alec. PBOL: Just as in the show, having a star signed onto a project is somewhat of a necessary evil. Is it a crutch or a blessing? WB: I love working with stars. They bring a kind of excitement to the stage before they even come out. And they walk on and create an excitement. And what that is I don’t know how you quantify it. I think when you’re doing a play like this when someone comes out and says “I just won an Academy Award,” you really want a personality known. A star
