Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

An Interview with 'Orange' star Laverne Cox
by Jerry Nunn, Windy City Times
2013-08-09

This article shared 6633 times since Fri Aug 9, 2013
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


Laverne Cox really proves you can do it all. The actress plays transgender inmate Sophia Burset on the new Netflix series Orange Is the New Black.

She became the first African American trans woman to produce and star in her own series with VH1's TRANSForm Me. That show was nominated for a GLAAD media award and the first to star three trans women. VH1's I Wanna Work for Diddy was another first that Cox starred in as the first African American transgender woman in a reality show.

Cox starred in the independent film Musical Chairs playing a paraplegic transgender woman looking for love. Other film credits include Carla, The Exhibitionist, and 36 Saints.

She moved on to television with guest roles on NBC's Law & Order, HBO's Bored to Death and Law & Order: SVU.

The awards keep coming with Out Magazine's Out 100 in 2010 and was named one of the most influential trans people in America in the Inaugural Edition of Trans 100 this year.

Contributing to the Huffington Post, Cox is keeping her voice heard on a regular basis now as a writer.

Windy City Times chatted with Cox about Jodie Foster, brother M. Lamar, and life on the set of Orange Is the New Black.

Windy City Times: Hi, Laverne. How are you?

Laverne Cox: I'm wonderful.

WCT: Great. Can you talk about you auditioned for the role in the first place and how much was written for you?

LC: When I auditioned, I auditioned with the scene from episode one and then we did the bathroom scene from episode three. So those scenes didn't really change much at all from the audition process to shooting. It does seem that the writers start to write for our voices. I was talking to another actor on set and he was saying that learning his lines got easier over time and I think part of the muscle of working all the time.

I think the writers are also writing based on our voices and knowing how the cadence of how we speak, so I think it's a combination.

WCT: How was it working with Jodie Foster as a director on a few episodes?

LC: Jodie was incredible. Jodie is such an actor's director for obvious reasons. She's a brilliant actor herself and she was really generous. It was really like a master class working with her. She was incredible and it was a dream come true to get to work with someone of that caliber. It made me raise my game. I hope I did.

WCT: Your brother M. Lamar was also on those same episodes.

LC: Yes, I love my brother so much and he's been my moral compass over the years. I run things by him and we're twins so we've literally known each other our entire lives.

There's a wonderful bond that we share and there's a tremendous amount of respect that we have for each other as artists and as human beings. So I'm really grateful that I got to share a little bit of this show and this moment with him.

WCT: In what ways are you similar to your character Sophia?

LC: As an actor, the shell of the character might be different than my own. She might talk differently or walk differently, but who I am and her emotional life is very much my own.

I relate to Sophia's feelings of guilt around her sacrificing everything, her family, her freedom to be true to who she is, and to live in her authentic self.

She's paid an awful price for that in terms of her family, there's some guilt around that, and she hasn't been able to resolve fully, particularly her relationship with her son Michael. She hasn't been able to resolve the guilt around that yet.

I can certainly relate to the conflict between being true to myself and that potentially being difficult for the people in my life around me.

The discrimination that she experiences in prison being taken off her hormones is something that I unfortunately I've had the same moments in my adult life, where I've been denied some health care because I'm trans and that was really difficult for me. I was able to advocate for myself, but that's definitely something that I very much relate to. Sophia advocates for herself as well in prison.

WCT: Are we approaching a watershed moment for transgender people in acting?

LC: I would like to say I hope so, but it was funny because about six years, Candis Cayne had, for me, was a watershed moment on Dirty, Sexy, Money which she became the first trans woman to have a recurring role in a primetime series and that moment was such a huge inspiration for me. I really believe I wouldn't be here if it weren't for her and for that show just deciding to cast a trans woman to play that part.

That moment inspired me to get an agent. I had been trying to have a substantial career as an actor for a long time and began to believe it was possible six years ago because of Candis Cayne.

WCT: Do you ever feel alienated being the one transgender person on the set and what helps you in that moment?

LC: I've often been the only trans person in a room and on the job. I'm just myself. For me the way I handle it is I try to be as authentically myself as possible. I also try to set boundaries in terms of what it can be talked about and not talked about.

I like to be open, but I also try to set a tone where inappropriate questions are not allowed to be asked. I'll put someone in their place if they overstep a boundary but in a loving way.

I'm just another person who's there to do their job and get along with everyone.

WCT: What constraints do you feel as a trans actress?

LC: The constraints really come from the outside, you know? As an artist I think it's really important not to put any kind of limitations or constraints on myself. I think they come from an industry that has in their mind that trans women can't play just gender women, that people aren't going to connect to trans characters or that shows aren't going to have good ratings if there's a trans character on it, things like that.

I think the industry has to change and I think their ideas have to begin to change about who trans people are and what it means to have trans folks playing ourselves and playing characters that are written as trans on television.

I'm hopeful that Orange is the New Black will change the game of it in those terms.

WCT: This role goes hand in hand with your being an activist?

LC: It does in a way. I try to ideally separate them because as an artist I feel like I just have to be true to the work and true to the character. I can't feel encumbered by oh, that's not politically correct or oh, I might piss off people if I take this role or if the character says something like this. The work has to be unencumbered by politics. It has to be unencumbered by agenda in a way.

It has to be about humanity and telling human stories. That's why I love being an artist because I think ultimately telling human stories is what gets us somewhere politically when we can tell different stories and humanize people that actually does advance the politics.

WCT: Where do you see Sophia going forward?

LC: I really do trust and believe in our brilliant writing team. Her relationship with her son, I'm curious about that and her relationship with the other inmates. I don't want to predict or say. I just know that it's going to be fantastic because I know that we have a brilliant writing team and I know it's going to be amazing. I can't wait.

WCT: When are you visiting Chicago?

LC: Actually, I might be we're working on it. We're talking to a university about speaking there later in the fall. So I might be there in the fall, but it's not confirmed yet. So I can't say until it's confirmed.

Look for Lavern in the meantime at lavernecox.com and on movies.netflix.com to stream the entire season online.


This article shared 6633 times since Fri Aug 9, 2013
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

WORLD Uganda items, HIV report, Mandela, Liechtenstein, foreign minister weds 2024-03-21
- It turned out that U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Senior LGBTQI+ Coordinator Jay Gilliam traveled to Uganda on Feb. 19-27, per The Washington Blade. He visited the capital of Kampala and the nearby city of ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Queer musicians, Marvel situation, Elliot Page, Nicole Kidman 2024-03-21
- Queer musician Joy Oladokun released the single "I Wished on the Moon," from Jack Antonoff's official soundtrack for the new Apple TV+ series The New Look, per a press release. The soundtrack, ...


Gay News

RuPaul finds 'Hidden Meanings' in new memoir 2024-03-18
- RuPaul Andre Charles made a rare Chicago appearance for a book tour on March 12 at The Vic Theatre, 3145 N. Sheffield Ave. Presented by National Public Radio station WBEZ 91.5 FM, the talk coincided with ...


Gay News

Oprah, Niecy Nash-Betts honored at GLAAD Media Awards 2024-03-15
- Oprah Winfrey and Niecy Nash-Betts were honored at the 35th Annual GLAAD Media Awards that took place in Los Angeles at The Beverly Hilton on March 14. Winfrey received the Vanguard Award, introduced by iconic Chicago ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Jinkx Monsoon, Xavier Dolan, 'Frida,' Lena Waithe, out singer 2024-03-08
- Two-time RuPaul's Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon is headed back to the New York stage, joining off-Broadway's Little Shop of Horrors as Audrey beginning April 2, according to Playbill. The casting makes Monsoon the first drag ...


Gay News

Queer Eye's Jai Rodriguez is set to slay at The Big Gay Cabaret 2024-03-05
- Out and proud performer Jai Rodriguez is set to play at The Big Gay Cabaret this March for three days. Presented by RuPaul Drag Racer Ginger Minj, this monthly series highlights the wide world of cabaret ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Queer actors, icons duet, Hunter Schafer, Oscars, Elizabeth Taylor 2024-03-01
- Queer actor Kal Penn is set to star in Trust Me, I'm a Doctor—a film that chronicles the final days of actress/model Anna Nicole Smith, whose overdose death in 2007 at age 39 sparked a tabloid ...


Gay News

SAG Awards honor Streisand, few LGBTQ+ actors 2024-02-25
- Queer entertainers made their mark—although not a major one—at the 2024 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, held Feb. 24 in Los Angeles. The event was live-streamed on Netflix for the first time. Indigenous and Two-Spirit actor ...


Gay News

THEATER Dot-Marie Jones talks Goodman production, 'Glee,' 'Bros' 2024-02-12
- Running through Feb. 18 at the the Goodman Theatre, the production Highway Patrol works with a script conceived entirely from Emmy-winning actor Dana Delany's (TV's China Beach) digital archive of hundreds of tweets and direct messages ...


Gay News

GLAAD finds missed chances for LGBTQ+ inclusion in Super Bowl ads 2024-02-12
--From a press release - Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024 — GLAAD is reacting to a lack of LGBTQ storytelling in ads that aired duringSuper Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11 and is reminding brands, corporations and advertising agencies why including the LGBTQ ...


Gay News

SAVOR 'The Bear,' new pizza lounge, Chicago Black Restaurant Week 2024-02-11
- "Bear" necessities: The third season of the Chicago-set series The Bear will debut in June, per Variety. FX chairman John Landgraf made the announcement during the network's presentation at the Television Critics Association's winter 2024 press ...


Gay News

Quantum Leap reboot springs into LGBTQ+ representation 2024-02-09
- Through the magic of television, Quantum Leap is once again jumping into the past to bounce back into the future—and in a recent episode, "The Family Trasure," non-binary artist and performer Wilder Yuri and writer Shakina ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Raven-Symone, women's sports, Wayne Brady, Jinkx Monsoon, British Vogue 2024-02-09
- In celebration of Black History Month, the LA LGBT Center announced that lesbian entertainer Raven-Symone will be presented with the Center's Bayard Rustin Award at its new event, Highly Favored, per a press release. She joins ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ JoJo Siwa, Tom Holland, Bowen Yang, Pet Shop Boys, Mariah Carey 2024-02-02
- In the wake of Nigel Lythgoe exiting So You Think You Can Dance, queer personality JoJo Siwa is returning to the series, per Deadline. Siwa, who was a judge on season 17 of the Fox show, will replace Lythgoe, who left ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Sundance items, Green Day, 'Wednesday,' Queerties, 'The Wiz' 2024-01-26
- At the Sundance Film Festival, Jodie Foster told Variety that the $1.4-billion success of Barbie helps confirm that Hollywood no longer views women directors as too much of a risk. She said, "With a big success ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.