abc.soapsindepth.com gives you a chance to ask questions of your favorite stars!
Dear Eden, Your storyline has been so intense over the past year. Mentally, how do you approach those highly emotional scenes and manage to leave them at the "office" every day?
M. Muldoon
Dear M., Well, the answer to that is that you almost can’t. Fortunately, I don’t have nine-to- five job and it does permeate your life. I find that the themes that I’m playing at work definitely become a part of my regular life, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I’ve found that as an actress, one of the perks of my job is that I’m forced to calm my mind, relax my body and allow myself to feel things really intensely sometimes, and that actually makes the world a much more exciting place. When you’re open to the experiences and open to really allowing yourself to take in the beauty and the horror of the world, sometimes it is overwhelming, but it makes it more interesting and fun to be a human.
Dear Eden, What kind of music do you listen to?
Wymon
Dear Wymon, I listen to music that makes me happy and keeps me relaxed. Here’s some I’m listening to: Rufus Wainwright, James Taylor, Billy Joel, The Dave Brubeck Quartet — which I like to put on sometimes when I’m studying lines — and Ella Fitzgerald. Those are what I’m cycling through right now. I don’t have any music in my dressing room, which is a big mistake. I’m noticing more and more that music puts you in the right mood for things. So I think what I’m definitely going to do is get a stereo system. Michael Jordan (Reggie) and Alexa Havins (Babe) play music from their dressing rooms, and I think they are probably two of the happiest people on set, so they must know the secret!
Dear Eden, Your crying scenes are unbelievable! How do you get yourself to pour on the waterworks like that?
Allison
Dear Allison, Well, I wish there were a faucet! I wish it were that easy. I’ve tried everything, and what works for me is as simple as empathizing with what Bianca is going through. I already said that I love her, and she’s been in some rough situations. If I can relax and use my imagination, what’s happening in the scene is really enough to get me going — and sometimes it’s too much! But I think if you listen to the words and really understand the importance of what you’re saying, it’s impossible not to give into the emotion of it because it’s so full. It’s there already. Tapping into it is all you need to do. For me, playing these scenes is just empathizing with humanity. That’s all it is. There’s no trick, unfortunately. I wish there were.
Dear Eden, Who is your role model professionally and personally?
Sabrina D
Dear Sabrina, My grandfather and my mother are my personal role models. But professionally and personally, [legendary theater actress] Helen Hayes is because she had this incredible career. It wasn’t even a career. It was a life. It was a life in theater and it was a life as an artist. She realized that it wasn’t just about today. It was about a whole career. She had a family, had other experiences, she traveled… she was a whole person, too, and a brilliant actress. I think you have to have both and she taught me that you can have both. You’re not running a race. When I was 9 years old and I met her, she was 90 and still working, and I realized that I didn’t have to rush. I could take a step back and just try to do the best work I could and that there would be lots of time and lots of opportunity for discovery. But I recently heard a quote that I hadn’t heard from her before. She said — and I’m paraphrasing — "In life, there is success and there’s achievement. Achievement is when you do work that you can take pride in for yourself. Success is when you do work that other people admire. You should always strive for achievement and not success." And I think that’s absolutely right, because the minute it becomes about pleasing other people, you’re not doing work that really satisfies and feeds your soul, so you cannot possibly create at your best level. And even if you do, even if I went to work everyday and got accolades and praise from everywhere else but I didn’t feel invested and satisfied by my work, ultimately, I think I would go home and not live a fulfilled life. What’s truly important is whether you’re doing work that you can be proud of. And I think wherever you are, even if you’re a great big movie star making billions of dollars or doing a community production of Annie or a wonderful, off-off-Broadway show, if you’re doing work that you can proud of, then you have achieved.
Dear Eden, Which perfume and makeup do you wear?
Michelle
Dear Michelle, I don’t actually wear perfume. I never found a scent that my love of it would last. So that’s one of my goals: to find the scent that’s truly me. But I haven’t found it yet, so I go au naturel! As for makeup, the only makeup I know about is the kind we use at work. The Stila eyeshadows are incredible. I just love those. The Nars blushes are just wonderful. Paula Dorf has a great line; I think I used that concealer at work. In my bag, I always carry Smith’s Rosebud Salve, which is for the lips. I love that stuff! I also have MAC Blot Powder because it takes away shine and oil but it doesn’t build up. I’ve got Prestige Vinylwear lipgloss in the color Spark. This color looks good on every single person and it looks different on every single person. I’ve found that it’s a great neutral color. I mix it with the Rosebud Salve and it’s a nice tinted gloss and goes with everything I wear.
Dear Eden, Do you have plans to return to Harvard?
Kerry
Dear Kerry, I do eventually, but I don’t know when. I’m definitely finishing because it’s important to me to finish my education.
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