A Little Life - an interview with Hanya Yanagihara and the play's cast

[@CCRRJJ]

One person playing the bad guys in Jude's life. That is a brilliant choice.

[@kblt0661]

could you elaborate?

[@foaesoae]

@@kblt0661there is an actor who played Caleb, Dr. Traylor, and Brother Luke (bad guys in Jude’s life)

[@theanok]

@@kblt0661i don’t want to speak on this person’s behalf but i agree with the comment so i’ll try to elaborate on my perspective for why i’m sharing the same sentiment. I think giving all the bad guys in Jude’s life the same face gives his trauma a face of its own. Caleb Brother Luke and Dr Traylor were all people that either initiated or continued the cycle of trauma in Jude’s life and so combining them and giving them the same face is in a way like a villain to a children’s tale, something that encompasses all that’s bad personified in once being. Plus they were all the same in one way or another because with both their actions and words they stomped all over him and made him believe the trauma they induced to him was all he is made for, what he is to his core.

[@MAFion]

Agreed. It does help in some way the story being in Jude's perspective. Although the original text is not written in the first person ( which would have been a very challenging thing to both write and read ), through performance we can get a sense of these personas conflating in Jude's psyche.

[@ericamacs3875]

I thought it was because from an actors perspective James Norton has a lot to endure in this play, so to have three different actors abuse him would have been very difficult I think..

[@marce2135]

“Sometimes the reader is the only company in Jude’s life”😭😭😭😭

[@TuKam812]

:(((((((((((((((((((

[@imrum_]

it was a pleasure❤

[@cinssystarlin9776]

the thumbnail resembling “Willem listening to Jude tell a story” 😭 at least how ive always seen them in my head, with the actors flipped

[@Was-u9c]

😢😢😢😢

[@vickeevee5118]

Jude and Willem are exactly how I pictured them in my mind. Wow. I hope this play comes to the US!!

[@ianmatta.]

i NEED this in the US 😭😭😭😭

[@angelheart_]

No

[@IzukuMidoriya-ly8hh]

wdym? jude is supposed to be darker in the book and willem is supposed to be blonde

[@a.8882]

wtf🙄 if you imagined Jude as a white blue-eyed blonde you have reading comprehension problems. in the book it is mentioned several times that Jude is a non-white male with a dark complexion and an ambiguous race.

[@neandertalheroo]

I want this to be a Netflix limited series, it's a need!!

[@DavidSanchez-lb2ub]

The cast really matches what I expected the characters to look like!

[@bananacat4339]

It was casted so well. I could guess who the characters they played before they said.

[@sanssmithy8246]

I thought JB was fat and hated summers 🤔

[@Journalistwoman]

@@DavidSanchez-lb2ub Yet Willem is blond/Scandinavian and Jude is probably part indigenous American. Still think the play was miscast aesthetically, but not in terms of skills and acting, of course

[@AnaMartinez-t3y]

I actually imaginen Willem and Jude the other way around! But they still resemble as I imagined!

[@deborahdelbue2172]

Me too!

[@francesbale1409]

Harold's final words literally wasted me. That to me is the whole point. You just never know what someone has been through, so be kind. Oh jude. 💔 incredible acting, I like how they balanced the past and present. Clever. Moving. Devastating.

[@linhngo4694]

luke looks so good in this interview oh my god

[@michellemahon265]

It's my favourite book so I had to see the play. Travelled from. Dublin went on my own as anyone I know who had read the book couldn't imagine what it would be like adapted on stage and thought it would be darker than the book. It was sad/ beautiful, but definitely try and get tickets if you love the book. 10 days later I am still thinking about it.

[@lizavolkova7921]

Hello! So glad I found this comment. I live in Dublin and would love to see this play. Did you see it in Ireland? Thanks!

[@riccapamelatria3831]

I love this cast. Omgg, I wish I could watch the play too.

[@yueli5935]

Their jumpers look so cosy

[@red-uw5ey]

so he is playing brother luke, traylor and caleb, god damn!

[@betsymaher9489]

I loved the book. Reading the book was my favorite thing to do once I had started it. It's a great, great book.

[@Hope-mp9hv]

I'm reading it now and have not finished yet... I really wish it could be made into a film... or have a privilege to see the play in Seoul, Korea...

[@terminally_zach]

I would love to see "A Little Life" adapted for tv by Molly Smith Metzler, who adapted "Maid" for netflix.

[@fajarsetiawan8665]

Not gonna lie but I think James Norton is more suited to play Willem instead of Jude appearance-wise

[@harryhennah4608]

Agree until you see him play Jude in the play

[@fajarsetiawan8665]

@@harryhennah4608 I did watch. His performance was beyond. But I still stand by my statement because he's exactly like my idea of Willem.

[@TatianaSav]

​@@fajarsetiawan8665 Agree, I would swap the roles of the actors Willem and Jude.

[@tockita]

In my mind Willem physically looks like James and Jude looks like the uruguayan actor Enzo Vogrincic

[@fajarsetiawan8665]

@@tockita for me, Jude should look like either Indigenous American or Mixed Asian

[@annettetoohey8934]

Loved this book. ❤

[@andimjenny]

i’m hoping to go see the play in july! this has really built up my excitement:)

[@vanessaives1892]

me too😅I managed to get one of the on-stage seats - so excited

[@CrazyWatcher670]

Just finished reading this book yesterday and still shaken. I have a feeling that no matter how bad his past was God / Universe gave Jude a lot in return. He gave him all the loving caring people around but Jude failed to recognize that, failed to build new real bridges except Willem, failed to be a good son to Harold and Julia and at the end he end up acting selfish. But I am Asian and that’s my way of viewing life.

[@Journalistwoman]

He didn't know 'how to be a good son', he tries and is kind, polite, caring and sweet and helpful (always baking and cleaning). Yet he mentally battles with the situation from the onset of the adult adoption... fears rejection (the Learys) and Harold discovering his past which is more prevelant and demanding psychologically than the latter 'pseudo' and unfamiliar arena of being 'someone's son'. He wished for it 'all his life' but is too unwell and damaged to cope with what is gained. On the day of the adoption he appears dazed and there is a sense of detachment in his stance as an observer, a looker-on even though he is supposed to be the central focus (and I think this is written purposefully on the author's behalf). Willem actually upstages Jude by way of his pre-planned late arrival, I would argue. Jude is a person who knows nothing of family life or familial security and affection (only punishment). To be part of a family age 30 scares him yet does lend him some happiness, if only momentarily.

[@CrazyWatcher670]

@@Journalistwoman 🥹

[@michaa.971]

great acting and form of communication, I really liked it

[@반짝이트리거]

한국에 와주세요. 제발. 아 이 슬픔과 공허을 어찌해야할지 모르겠네. 주드 ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[@Giblet-y6f]

I wish James Norton could play Patrick Melrose one day.

[@marzipauls]

omg yes!!

[@marissavelez9541]

I want to see it so bad but its not playing in my country. 😭

[@manuuyt5919]

There is a film recording of the play showing in cinemas- try to locate the film recording!

[@1miyanishi]

​@manuuyt5919 literally just watched it on screen today...OUTSTANDING and I was a quiet glorious mess. I read it in 2016 and didn't think it would hit like it did..thank Gawd I bought tissues

[@maeveisherelol]

​@@manuuyt5919where is the film recording? I can't find

[@Enhafun]

can they all come to India pls also is that the bridgerton actor that plays willem omg

[@oldmoneyglory]

yess omg he is

[@manu-mp7rd]

I just finished reading the book a few days ago and here I am looking for interviews of Hanya and I came across this and now I wanted to watch the play. Where can I possibly watch it btw

[@isabelandres3840]

Versátiles, magnificos❤

[@poetrryart]

for my jude actor looks so much with young lupin from harry potter.

[@Diana-wc4yg]

jude and remus lupin are the same person in my head. makes it even more heartbreaking for me 🥺

[@eusaboston]

That guy looks like Luke Thompson

[@spanditanandi8560]

He is! 🤩

[@Mia-xe2jz]

where is andy he seemed like a central character to me

[@Umas1992]

The actor who plays Andy is sitting above Hanya :) Oh dear! I would love to see the play in London but the tickets are expensive! I would love to pay to watch it online!

[@girijaizoulet9047]

@@Umas1992 When is the play programmed in London ?

[@suzannas2725]

Watched this last week when it was released in cinemas. Omg. Amazing heart-rending and harrowing at times. You really feel the characters and feel for them, especially Jude. Ordered the book immediately. Can't praise the production too highly. The actors were superb, James was outstanding as Jude. Totally invested in the story and can't get it out of my mind. First chapters of the book have totally drawn me into their world. Magnificent!

[@17-fizabendamri39]

Pls can any one say where can i see on any online stream

[@amidthechaoss]

Why isn’t JB chubby? I am annoyed

[@majesticlamb9349]

Is he??? I just imagined him with some pudge

[@oldmoneyglory]

i thought he was chubby later on when he developed his addiction

[@oizyssssss]

16:40

[@akshanshsingh3429]

Can anyone tell what's the song Jude is going to sing to Harold in the play?

[@hermionew_1522]

"ich bin der welt abhanden gekommen" by Gustav Mehler. ("I am lost to the world" in English.)

[@princesscarole3100]

I'm I the only one that thinks james looks like wentworth miller

[@Alex-tc6gs]

I wanna know how long the play is 😭

[@sunflowervol.6583]

it’s over 3 hours i think

[@ins4nutty341]

what did james said about the one song he listens like the name of it? didnt get it bc its in english english didnt understand it lmao

[@hermionew_1522]

"rückert-leider: ich bin der welt abhanden gekommen" by Gustav Mehler.

[@ins4nutty341]

thanks!@@hermionew_1522

[@shireennasrin4012]

Can we watch it online from India for free?

[@melfels1247]

No. It's not available online anywhere.

[@lexie8516]

❤

[@pmojica]

When will this be a film? 😮‍💨

[@francesca1687]

The play has been recorded and shown in cinemas!

[@jessicahorvath7714]

Anyone has a bootleg? Pretty please

[@luisai858]

queen hanya, why is jude white im crying

[@OzmaOfOzz]

What ?

[@girijaizoulet9047]

When JB paints his hair he says it’s difficult to get the lighter hue oh his hair so I imagined he had lighter hair and sort of Asian mixed cos Willem says he’s not white when JB says Whites against Blacks. Now that I see the actor I think he can be Jude it doesn’t make any difference. Jude can be any race it doesn’t take away his pain !

[@alexandrasolari1647]

⁠

[@Journalistwoman]

@@girijaizoulet9047 I think Jude is perhaps part Native American, there are some covert references in the novel.

[@alexissierra6217]

I also thought Jude was a black character !?

[@phredeejr]

Just having finished the book yesterday, I have obsessively been trying to formulate the appearances of these brilliant characters in mind… even while reading. And I must say this cast is definitely it. My mind was so accurate in depicting them individually, mainly JB, Malcom, Willem and Jude. This book has forever changed me. Ty Hanya! 🫶🏽 I hope to see this adaptation one day.

[@jacksonrouse9953]

This is one of the worst books i've ever read. I wanted to stop reading at so many points but kept going in spite of my gut instinct. It really is just torture porn and it completely made me relapse into self-harm for a brief period. There really should be a disclaimer or a trigger warning at the start of the book for people who suffer from mental illness, especially self-harm.

[@sem2669]

Awful to hear that it affected you like this. But just out of curiousity: aside from the trigger warning, how does that make it a bad book? Isn’t the point of a good book that it affects you emotionally?

[@coriolis4761]

I mean, I get where you're coming from, but 1) you could have stopped reading, no? And 2) I thought it was pretty obvious that it was going to be a triggering book. I understand the highlighting of trigger warnings, but for something like a book can't you make that decision for yourself, and regulate your own behaviours to avoid the trigger? This is a genuine question as I'm sure there's complex psychological things behind it all, but it just seems a little...idk, irresponsible to me. I also struggled to read the book, it took m nearly a year.

[@fajarsetiawan8665]

well, must be noted that it's a bad book TO YOU. Might not for others tho

[@gabiocampos]

😢😢 sory to hear this, are you better now?

[@PixiePatch]

Womp womp was a great book

[@Alkid_Sunrize]

i hate Hanya Yanagihara

[@nootnoot464]

worst book on earth

[@theknightway]

Agreed

[@Uphere-do9zh]

Cultural appropriation.

[@mj-yo7vt]

Of what

[@shellyrosenberg]

I am eager to contact Hanya Yanagihara. Please send me an email address or another way to contact her. I wish to share an experience that arose from A Little Life and has been life changing for me. Shelly Rosenberg