Scene And Heard

LIVING LEGEND Marci Miller (Abigail) was thrilled to get to work with Deidre Hall (Marlena) in recent DAYS scenes. “Oh, my gosh, she’s amazing!” enthuses Miller. “I watched the whole Marlena-being-possessed-by-the-devil storyline and I remember seeing her on my first day in our studio, sitting two makeup chairs down from me, and just having this little fangirl moment. I’ve been looking forward and hoping to have scenes with her since I started. I remember when I first got that script, just being super-excited and a little bit nervous, especially with someone like that who is so legendary! You want her to think well of you as a person, but also as an actor. She’s just so cool to sit across from, just watching her do her thing the way she’s done it for so many years and has done it so well. I found myself, even after having been here for a while, learning from her during the blocking rehearsals and everything. The opinions that she had were so intelligent and really on point with what was going on in the scene. It was a total honor to get to work with her.”

KIDS TODAY Hunter Tylo vividly recalls Taylor’s 2014 visit, when she finally made peace with a grown-up Aly, played by Ashlyn Pearce. “I was so exhausted after that,” Tylo shares of the gut-wrenching storyline in which Taylor apologized for accidentally killing the girl’s mother, Darla, back in 2006. “It was like four days of really intense scenes, but I think the fans enjoyed that closure. It was very deep and emotional for me, and it was more lines than I’ve had to memorize in a long time so it was a pretty grueling week. But that’s the stuff that really makes it fun and interesting and adds so much to the character.” Now that she’s back, Tylo is hoping to see another child issue addressed: Whatever happened to baby Jack, the child Taylor bore that was fertilized with Brooke’s egg back in 2007? “I’m just wondering when little Jack shows up,” she chuckles. “I think we should revisit that, especially where Taylor could confront Brooke on dropping the ball. We need to see some story there, because this kid is really going to have some issues [laughs].”

THE PLANE TRUTH As most Y&R fans know, Kate Linder (Esther) has also been a flight attendant for many years, so it’s not uncommon for her to be recognized by soap fans when she’s on duty. Of course, that can happen at the oddest times. “I was working this flight and I was the purser, so I was in front of the plane and these people, who were supposedly transporting drugs, were sitting in first class,” the actress recalls. “Somehow, the captain was alerted that these two individuals had to be taken off the plane before it took off, so we had to wait at the gate for the authorities to come on board.” At this point, Linder had to use her acting ability. “That meant I had to pretend everything was normal so no one would be tipped off that something was up. When the agents boarded, they knew just where these persons were sitting so they went right to them and said they were being removed from the plane. As they were being led away, they passed by me and one of the suspects looked at me, then she turned back around with this surprised look on her face and said, ‘Aren’t you Esther on YOUNG AND RESTLESS?’ It was one of the only times I was speechless.”

PRO BALL Laura Wright (Carly) is having a blast sharing scenes with talented GH newcomer Max Gail (Mike). “Sometimes when you have someone new that comes on, they could be very talented and a great actor, but we move so quickly and what we do is so different from what most actors are used to doing,” she notes. “People are used to getting a whole bunch of takes and shooting an episode over eight days. In one day, I’ve worked with Max where we shot three shows. That alone, and the amount of dialogue we have, really can throw people off. Some people are like, ‘Oh, my God, I’m just trying to get through the words.’ Max hasn’t had that moment at all. At all! When that happens you feel so bad for the person, and when one of the actors in a scene is struggling, you all feel the energy and you want to help them. Working with Max, it feels like we’ve been working together forever. I never have to worry in a scene with him that he’s going to struggle. If anything, you end up getting freaked out because you’re staring at him and you’re so amazed by his work that you’re like, ‘Oh, s---, it’s my line! Oh, my God, it’s my turn to talk! I’m so sorry, I was listening to what Max was doing!’ I seriously ask myself, ‘How can he be so good?’ ”