Atlantica - 01.05.2002, Page 15

It’s an hour before showtime. Teri Hatcher sits alone in
Reykjavík’s City Theatre, except for a few stagehands running
around frantically propping up giant Vs around the stage.
“I love vaginas,” Hatcher moans enthusiastically.
Excuse me. What did you just say?
The sexy starlet, who surged to fame thanks to her portrayal of
Lois Lane in the American television series Lois & Clark: The
New Adventures of Superman, is perched on a stool, her long
black hair fading into a dark tee shirt that’s twisted and knotted
at the waist to accentuate her womanhood. With black denim
jeans, the former Bond girl nearly disappears into black as the
technicians dim the stage
lights.
“I longed to make other women
moan,” Hatcher groans seductive-
ly, as if auditioning to become a
phone-sex operator.
No, this one-time San Francisco
49ers cheerleader has not travelled to
Iceland to confess some well-hidden
secret desire for women. Instead, the
happily married mother of one is here to
perform from Eve Ensler’s acclaimed, but
controversial, Vagina Monologues.
This production is just one of many V-Day
celebrations taking place across the world
to help put a stop to violence against
women. Here in tonight’s performance,
Hatcher will embody a former tax lawyer
turned sex worker.
The opportunity to watch Hatcher waxing eroti-
cally is enough to make enthusiastic men scrape
together the admission fee and fill the auditorium.
After all, a publicity photo of the seductive actress
dressed in nothing but Superman’s cape was, dur-
ing her days as Lois Lane, one of the most down-
loaded images on the Internet. While there will be a
few curious men in the audience, tonight it’s all about
women. And dubious honours aside, Hatcher is deeply
committed to ending violence against women.
“I’m going to use my body and my voice and we are
going to unite to change this world. And that’s why I’m
here,” she says, taking a brief break from rehearsal to pose
for photographs.
Despite the serious nature of the show, though, it will be full
of laughs, as Hatcher will thrill the locals with her imitation of
the Viking moan – a gruff-sounding, fist-cocked-in-the-air “Yes.
Yes. Yes.”
It’s now 30 minutes to showtime. The technicians have finished
mapping Hatcher with lights. She puts down her cue cards and
asks if the audience will understand an allusion to the Meg
Ryan moan. An organiser reassures her that most Icelanders
have seen the film When Harry Met Sally. They will get the joke.
Edward Weinman: How did you become associated with V-
Day?
Teri Hatcher: I started doing the show in NY off Broadway. After
meeting Eve [Ensler], she invited me to be a part of the V-Day
event held last year at Madison Square Garden. It was huge,
with 18,000 people in the audience and 75 major actresses,
including Jane Fonda and Oprah Winfrey. Women from Africa
and Afghanistan came to tell
their stories of struggle. It was
an incredibly powerful evening
and ever since I’ve been
involved with the organisation.
EW: As Lois Lane, you became one
of television’s sexiest actresses. You
were also a Bond girl. Do you consid-
er yourself a sex symbol?
TH: No. I don’t really think it’s that big
of a deal. I’m happy if fans enjoy my
work, because it’s more about the experi-
ence than the actual work. The experience
is what’s important to me rather than the
legacy of how it really affected anybody, or
getting to be on some list. That was never a
goal of mine.
EW: Do your looks ever work against you?
TH: It works against women sometimes. You
often hear women who are attractive talking
about how they have to struggle against a stereo-
type that they might not be smart or might not be
artful. I really think everyone has a stereotype that
they can fall into and it’s up to us not to treat each
other that way. But I don’t really see it as a big prob-
lem for myself compared to other people’s problems.
EW: What do you enjoy most about your profession?
TH: When you’re in the kind of situation where the direc-
tor and actors – where everyone is a team trying to attain
the same vision, when there are no egos about the project.
When it’s not about an individual’s experience, but about a
group experience. When there’s a family energy – that’s when
acting is the most fun.
EW: On which projects have you experienced this type of syn-
ergism?
She’s played Lois Lane. She’s been a Bond girl. Tonight, Teri Hatcher hits the stage as a sex worker.
Edward Weinman talks with the sultry actress and discovers that she’s serious about vaginas.
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Photos by Brian Sweeney A Night With Teri
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