Mathew Rhys has been an “unabashed” fan of Welsh poet Dylan Thomas for as long as he can remember.
He cemented his love of the writer — best known for his poem “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” — when he portrayed him in the 2008 biopic “The Edge of Love.”
“When you tell most English people that you love Dylan Thomas, they go, ‘Grrr,’ because it’s such a cliché,” Rhys says. “But I’m unabashed that I’m a lifer.”
He’ll play Thomas once again on May 14 in a one-night only stage reading of “Dear Mr. Thomas: A New Play for Voices,” a production by Christopher Monger about Welsh’s time in New York in the 1950s when the 92nd Street Y organized four U.S. tours for Dylan. He wrote the play “Under Milk Wood” during that time while also becoming a rock star-like celebrity known for his drunken escapades and womanizing. He famously stayed at the Chelsea Hotel before dying at a nearby hospital in 1953 when he was just 39.
Keri Russell will play Welsh’s assistant and mistress Liz Reitell. Rounding out the cast are Kate Burton, Gopal Divan, Betsy Zajko and Taylor Trensch.
I caught up with Rhys and Russell over Zoom from their New York home to talk Thomas, Taylor Swift referencing him in the title track of “The Tortured Poets Department” album and what other plays they’d like to collaborate on. Continue reading Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell Talk Starring in New Dylan Thomas Play and Praise Taylor Swift for Introducing the Welsh Poet to a ‘New Generation’
