How Anthony Rapp Has Begun to Heal in His Fight Against Abuse in Hollywood
Currently one of the stars of “Star Trek: Discovery,” Anthony Rapp has recently spent some time looking back and reliving his past. Off Broadway, he’s starring in “Without You,” his autobiographical show about his experiences in the original cast of “Rent” and the deaths of composer Jonathan Larson and his own mother. And in court, the actor — one of the first to come forward with allegations of sexual assault against Kevin Spacey — recently relived his experiences with Spacey during the proceedings for a civil suit brought by Rapp against Spacey.
Listen to this week’s “Stagecraft” podcast below:
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Spacey was found not guilty, but on the latest episode of Stagecraft, Variety‘s theater podcast, Rapp said it was all worth it — not least because it’s been one step in a long process of healing. “On balance? It’s worth it in the sense that my coming forward helped pave the way for others to come forward, and has helped protect people,” he said. “And there’s a part of my 14-year-old self that got to come full-circle in a way that I didn’t know was possible.”
He added that after years of focusing on the abuser, he’s more recently started to turn attention back on himself. “It was only really in the last few years that so many of us started to talk about ourselves and how [these incidents] affected us, and started to really start to try to square that circle and patch wounds that we didn’t even recognize as wounds,” he said.
Meanwhile, in “Without You,” now playing at Off Broadway’s New World Stages, Rapp has been looking back at one of the most exciting, formative times of his life — and finding unexpected gifts there, too. “I didn’t anticipate this, but I’m spending time with my mom,” he revealed. “I’m spending time with Jonathan [Larson]. I’m spending time hearing their words, which have always given me a sense of strength, a sense of love and support. Just being in relationship with them feels activated and present in a way that I don’t necessarily get to feel on a daily basis.”
Also on the new episode of Stagecraft, Rapp discussed his roles in “Rent” and the “Star Trek” franchise — which both “mean so much to so many people” — and explained the unexpected overlap between the two properties.
“They’re both pieces that speak to hope,” he said. “They’re both pieces that are about community. They’re idealistic. They’re anti-cynical. There are dark moments in them, but I think the fandoms are drawn to them because they have so much life and light, and hope, and sense of what’s possible.”
To hear the full conversation, listen at the link above or download and subscribe to “Stagecraft” on podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and the Broadway Podcast Network. New episodes of “Stagecraft” are released every other week.
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