Parker told PEOPLE that she and her children put on plays during the early days of quarantine. She also said that her family would “just be connected in any way” they could.
Broadway is back and Mary-Louise Parker couldn’t be more at home.
The actress was nominated earlier this month for a Tony Award for her performance in How I Learned to Drive: Li’l Bit. She also spoke out about Broadway closings and how she dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I am deliriously happy. “Just to walk through the theatre door at night, it feels like I know where my life is going and I understand it,” Parker, 57, told PEOPLE. She also said that William Atticus (18) and Caroline Aberash (15) played major roles in keeping her positive as the theater world waited for its grand opening.
She says that sometimes it’s performative for children, and she has to be hopeful and creative about staying positive during the shutdown. We put on plays together, my children and I. We also did it with our friends from other places.
Parker expressed gratitude to PEOPLE for being able once again to take the stage.
She recalls some of the more difficult moments during the height of pandemic.
She explains, “I also recall walking through the theater district in the middle of COVID, and all the theatres were dark. I knew they were dark but I was walking through them, just weeping.”
Parker is up for the fifth Tony Award for Best Leading Actress In a Play for her performance on the revival Vogel’s Pulitzer Prize-winning How I Learned to Drive. She couldn’t contain her joy when she spoke about the recognition.
She says that even though she has twice been awarded the highest honor in home theater, she is so grateful! So, so lucky. It’s my dream. I have always wanted to be an actress in the theater. It’s all that I have ever wanted to do.”
