On The Scene: Andre Royo says his role in 'Drinking In America' will leave a lasting impact on his life

The comedy "Drinking In America" explores the male psyche through some 12 men who are experiencing a form of intoxication.

Mar 15, 2023, 10:26 AM

Updated 558 days ago

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Few genres of performance demand more of an actor than the solo show in which the actor portrays multiple characters. That is the challenge Andre Royo ("The Wire") is now undertaking in "Drinking In America" being staged Off-Broadway at Audible's Minetta Lane Theatre.
The comedy explores the male psyche through some 12 men who are experiencing a form of intoxication.
Written by Eric Bogosian (AMC's "The Interview With The Vampire") who performed "Drinking In America" when it was initially produced in the 1980s, the play was developed, Bogosian said, as he emerged from drug and alcohol addiction.
"In 1984, I stopped drinking. And I had to stop drinking because I was shooting dope....and I had to go completely clean and sober in '84. And then I was sort of like a beached whale," Bogosian said. " I didn’t know what to do with myself. I had written solos before, and then I started working on a solo about intoxication, about appetite, about desire, and sort of in the notion of an American way, 'Drinking in America.'"
Royo says the role is deeply personal for him as well.
“I see myself in all of the characters," he said. "I am right now a recovering alcoholic, a year and six months in. And when I read this piece, I see myself in different stages of my own alcohol abuse.”
Royo says this role will leave a lasting impact on his life.
“I get to say goodbye to my relationship with alcohol in a way that any actor would love to: by putting it into the art. And now I can say goodbye on stage with a bow.”
“Drinking In America“ is a limited run with performances scheduled through April 13. It will be recorded by Audible for a later release.