Erbe has appeared on Broadway in The Grapes of Wrath, A Month in the Country and The Speed of Darkness, earning a 1991 Tony nomination for the latter performance.
She may be best known as Det. Alexandra Eames on "Law & Order: Criminal Intent." Other screen work includes "Rich in Love," "Kiss of Death," "Chicken Soup," "Homicide: Life on the Street" and "Oz."
| Full given name: | Kathryn Elsbeth Erbe |
| Where you were born/where you were raised: | Born in Boston, MA. Grew up in Newton, MA. |
| Zodiac Sign: | Cancer |
| What your parents did/do for a living: | Dad: Research Geneticist Mom: Actuary and Landscape Preservationist |
| Special skills: | Making the best of "challenging situations" |
| Something you're REALLY bad at: | Promoting myself! |
| First Broadway show you ever saw: | The Rink with Chita Rivera. Growing up in the Boston area we saw many tours of shows: Annie, A Chorus Line.
But the first true Broadway show I remember seeing was The Rink on a high school trip to see theatre in New York. |
| If you could go back in time and catch any performance, what would it be? | A Streetcar Named Desire with Marlon Brando, Jessica Tandy and Kim Hunter |
| Current show—other than your own—that you have been recommending to friends: | War Horse |
| Favorite showtune(s) of all time: | "And I Am Telling You” from Dreamgirls |
| Some favorite modern musicals: | The Book of Mormon, A Chorus Line |
| Some favorite contemporary playwrights: | Sam Shepard, Daniel Talbott, Moira Buffini, Theresa Rebeck |
| Stage or screen stars of the past you would most have loved to perform with: | There are so many, but the one who just came to mind is Lynn Redgrave. I would love to have a chance to work with her again on stage or on any screen. She was one of my heroes, as an artist but especially as a person and a MOM. |
| The one performance – attended - that you will never forget: | Balm in Gilead, Steppenwolf at Circle Repertory (1984) |
| Music that makes you cry, any genre: | At the moment, Patti Griffin's "Flaming Red" and "Living With Ghosts." I am using both albums to prepare for Yosemite before every performance. |
| Your personal acting idols: | Jessica Lange, Laurie Metcalf, Sissy Spacek |
| MAC or PC? | MAC!!!! |
| Most played song on your iPod: | At the moment, "N**gas In Paris" by Jay-Z and Kanye West. It makes me feel ballsy and like I could run another 5 miles... |
| Most-visited websites: | barneys.com (I am a late night shopping addict) cartoonnetwork.com (my son plays the games) |
| Last book you read: | “The Corrections” (after reading "Freedom" and loving it) |
| Must-see TV show(s): | "American Horror Story" "Dexter" "The Wire" "Friday Night Lights" "Modern Family" "Arrested Development" |
| Last good movie you saw: | "Tree of Life" |
| Some films you consider classics: | "To Kill a Mockingbird" "On the Waterfront" "Tree of Life" |
| Performer you would drop everything to go see: | Jessica Lange |
| Pop culture guilty pleasure: | The Sunday Styles section of The New York Times |
| Favorite cities: | NYC, Paris, London |
| First CD/Tape/LP you owned: | Honestly, probably a Sesame Street album or Mister Rogers, but I wore out my copy of the Annie soundtrack. |
| First stage kiss: | Playing Stella and kissing Stanley at Steppenwolf |
| Moment you knew you wanted to perform for a living: | In kindergarten, playing the Little Red Hen |
| How you got your Equity card: | The first play I was ever paid to do was The Grapes Of Wrath, with Steppenwolf, on Broadway. |
| Favorite pre-/post- show meal: (note where) | French Fries at Cafe Un Deux Trois |
| Favorite liquid refreshment: | Water |
| Pre-show rituals or warm-ups: | Yoga, reading the script, listening to music |
| Worst flubbed line/missed cue/onstage mishap: | In The Grapes of Wrath I played "the woman who gets shot in Hooverville," and one night the gun didn't go off. Thankfully, I chose to stay "in the moment" and not pretend I got shot anyway. I actually considered pretending the gun went off! SO embarrassing !!!!! |
| Worst costume ever: | Curlers in Breathing Lessons |
| What drew you back to the stage and this role? | Yosemite blew me away after reading it for the first time. I knew in my gut I wanted to be a part of it. I fell in love with the characters and their story. I was terrified of the emotional journey but knew I needed to do it anyway, or actually because it was so scary. I crave acting onstage and have missed it terribly. |
| A few of your favorite screen roles: | Maggie in "Stirs Of Echoes," Lucille in "Rich In Love," Liz in "Dream with the Fishes" |
| Something about you that surprises people: | That I was a high school drop-out at 16 who ended up going to an alternative HS, graduating and going on to NYU. |
| Career you would want if not a performer: | Teacher |
| Three things you can't live without: | My kids (that's two) and books |
| "I'll never understand why…" | ... life isn't FAIR! |
| Words of advice for aspiring performers: | Do everything you can to feel good about yourself and don't let rejection discourage you! |
