In gay writer/director Ryan Shiraki's Spring Breakdown ( now available on DVD ) , thirtysomething pals Rachel Dratch, Amy Poehler and Parker Posey head south for a belated spring-break adventure—and to keep the college-age daughter ( Amber Tamblyn ) of a rifle-toting, conservative politician ( Jane Lynch ) out of potentially scandalous trouble. Missi Pyle and Seth Myers add to the Another Gay Sequel-esque antics. Following its Sundance Film Fest premiere, indie icon/friend-to-the-gays Posey and I sat down to discuss.
Windy City Times: What's the story behind the genesis of Spring Breakdown?
Parker Posey: Rachel and Ryan got together with this idea [ while they were both working ] at Saturday Night Live that three longtime friends have a chance to do spring break all over again. I think it was a reaction to the MTV spring-break craze and how [ it would be great ] to do an all-female comedy because there seem to be so many of these 'guy's' comedies.
WCT: Did you bond with Amy and Rachel?
PP: Yeah, of course. I love them, I'm such fans of both of them. It was such a treat to be around their creativity. It's very different from my process—when they're on camera they're on stage.
WCT: I heard that downtime in the actors' trailers got pretty wacky. Dish!
PP: Missi Pyle's agent sent her a keg of beer so she had beer in the trailer. We all kept a bottle of pinot grigio. I turned the girls on to [ the classic TV show ] Little House on the Prairie because that was a definite inspiration for [ my character ] . That kind of humor. I thought it was fun to see the precious ways women can be funny. The emotional, the romantic, the sensitive."
WCT: Was there a spring-break vibe to the set, with all the shirtless young guys around?
PP: Yeah, it was really cute. I love when Rachel kisses the [ hot ] boy. I was on set that day. We were all hanging out on the beach and I taught the girls how to needlepoint and we were doing crafts and going over dance routines. All that totally gay fun. Ryan really got into it. We all got into it.
WCT: Have you done the spring-break thing before, or would you now?
PP: No, no. I wouldn't go now. On second thought, hey … maybe I will! I could. I would have to really plan it. Maybe me and Rachel and Amy will really go to spring break and have a reality show follow us. It'll be on YouTube.
WCT: How did you feel being a sitcom star during the brief life of Jezebel James?
PP: I don't think I ever was. I think it premiered a year ago and it never went anywhere. It didn't get picked up. I think if I did TV again I'd like to do cable.
WCT: How genius is Showtime's Weeds?
PP: Mary Jessica Parker is amazing. But it takes too much of your life away. You give up a lot. I've lived so long in New York it keeps me grounded and interested in other things aside from my career. I get to really be spontaneous.
WCT: What's else have you been up to lately?
PP: I read Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan for Books on Tape. It's been great; it made me feel really smart. I can give it to people and they can go, "Oh yeah, she's really smart." I've learned a lot from it and feel like I'm going to college. And Happy Tears, the new Mitchell Lichtenstein film.
WCT: Ryan, Mitchell—you're working with all the gays, aren't you?
PP: I love the gays. Thank God for them. I have a place where I fit in.
See www.springbreakdowndvd.com for more info.
