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  • Claire Danes Shines In “Dry Powder”, The Play Itself Is Underwhelming

    Claire Danes, if the reviews are to be believed, saves the clunking new play by Sarah Burgess, Dry Powder.

    The play centers around Claire Danes as a cold-hearted corporate executive, Jenny, and her nemesis and colleague, Seth, played by John Krasinski.

    Claire Danes’ and Krasinski’s characters each come up with a way to save their company from a PR nightmare brought on by a round of layoffs and a simultaneous extravagant engagement party thrown by their boss.

    Claire Danes’ Jenny wants to buy, shell and sell a new company for profit, PR be damned. Krasinski’s wants to put effort into the new company and deal with the PR fiasco by keep the company local, keeping all of the employees and growing it.

    According to one New York Post reviewer, “Happily, Claire Danes (Homeland), John Krasinski (The Office) and Hank Azaria (probably best known for voicing Moe, Apu and Chief Wiggum on The Simpsons) don’t embarrass themselves in Dry Powder — and there’s nowhere to hide, since the show’s staged in the round.”

    The reviewer added, “Sarah Burgess’ play, on the other hand, doesn’t quite rise to the level of its deluxe cast and director (Thomas Kail, of Hamilton).”

    The play was simply, well, meh. That is, if most reviews are accurate of such a subjective thing.

    One read, “Most people, I’d think, have already heard plenty about private-equity investors who live the high life while buying up companies and firing workers to cut costs.”

    It went on, “That’s the territory trod by Sarah Burgess’s play, which opened Tuesday night at the Public Theater. It’s well-acted and not uninteresting in its detailing of high-finance deals, but you keep wondering: Why are you telling me this again?”

    After explaining the plot and characters in a little more depth, the review ends, “The play’s impact, though, can be measured by its climax. Everything has been leading up to the Big Decision: Whose plan will Rick choose? When the answer comes, it’s worth a shrug. Nothing has been established that makes the outcome matter.”

    Ouch.

    Would you still like to see Claire Danes on stage, even though the reviews aren’t spectacular?

  • Claire Danes: Reviews For New Play “Dry Powder” Praise Her Performance As Cold Business Woman

    Claire Danes has taken some leave from Homeland to go on stage as Jenny, a cold-hearted business woman, in Dry Powder.

    In the play, Claire Danes‘ character battles Seth, played by John Krasinski, on how to right the PR issues their company is having after their boss throws himself a lavish engagement party right after massive layoffs.

    Reviews for Dry Powder are in, and it seems Claire Danes impressed with her stage skills more than the play itself.

    A review in The New York Post read, “Happily, Claire Danes (Homeland), John Krasinski (The Office) and Hank Azaria (probably best known for voicing Moe, Apu and Chief Wiggum on The Simpsons) don’t embarrass themselves in Dry Powder — and there’s nowhere to hide, since the show’s staged in the round.”

    It continued, “Sarah Burgess’ play, on the other hand, doesn’t quite rise to the level of its deluxe cast and director (Thomas Kail, of Hamilton).

    One from Variety said of Claire Danes’ performance and character, “Seth’s office rival, Jenny (Danes, in a stunning portrait of a brainy ice goddess), suffers none of Seth’s ethical conflicts because she has no ethics. Crunching numbers is Jenny’s life.”

    It went on to say, “Like some kind of gorgeous robot in her power suit and knife-cut blond hair, she instinctively calculates the precise worth of a company — and then assesses the exact percentage points of profit her firm would realize if they bought and flipped it.”

    Claire Danes clearly impressed on stage, but likely won’t give up being on the screen just yet. In fact, just days ago she spoke of how much she loved doing TV.

    Claire Danes said, “Television is fun too because we’re riding this train on tracks that are being laid and, you know, nobody really knows where it’s going to go, even the writers are not entirely certain.”

    She continued, “And so, it’s terrifying and really thrilling and I’m as hungry for the next script as, you know, an audience is going to be for the next installment, you know, the next episode. We’re all kind of biting our nails.”

    What is your favorite Claire Danes role?

  • Mary-Louise Parker Talks Turbulent Point in Life, Billy Crudup-Claire Danes Memories

    Mary-Louise Parker has written a new book, and earlier this week she chatted about it with Savannah Guthrie on The Today Show. At one point the talk turned to a very turbulent point in the Weeds actress’s life–when Billy Crudup left her for Claire Danes. Mary-Louise Parker was seven months pregnant at the time.

    It was back in 2003, and Billy Crudup was starring opposite Claire Danes in Stage Beauty. Mary-Louise Parker recalls that moment in time in the part of her book called “Dear Mr. Cabdriver.”

    “S–t, goddamn. I mean, why, I mean why the hell-NO! Where are you going now?” Parker yelled at her cabdriver (as excerpted in her memoir). Her shouting got so bad, in fact, that the driver told Parker to get out of the car. “I don’t want you anymore,” he said to her. She replied: “No one does . . . Look at me . . . My life is worse than yours in this moment . . . I am alone. Look, see? I am pregnant and alone. It hurts to even breathe.”

    “This was a complete stranger that met me at a very low moment,” Mary-Louise Parker told Savannah Guthrie. “And had I been in touch with a higher self and been forgiving of him, it would’ve been heroic. But I was so attached to my own unhappiness that I was unable to sort of rise above feeling persecuted, and it just created this dynamic with this perfect stranger . . . and he held up a mirror at my face, he sort of haunted me because I didn’t consider him or his life.”

    Parker acknowledges that something very wonderful came out of that turbulent period–her now 11-year-old son William.

    “It was something that I had waited for all my life,” Parker says of motherhood, as detailed in her memoir. “I wanted a baby my whole life. I was a little girl who wanted that baby.”

    Mary-Louise Parker’s new book, Dear Mr. You, is a series of letters to the men from various periods in her life–some real and some made-up–who have shaped the person she is today. It hit book stores on November 10th.

  • Claire Danes Recalls Relationship With Billy Crudup, His Split from Mary-Louise Parker

    Claire Danes Recalls Relationship With Billy Crudup, His Split from Mary-Louise Parker

    Claire Danes was a guest on Howard Stern’s radio show on Monday, and the topic of an old love interest came up. Stern asked the Homeland star about her relationship several years back with Billy Crudup.

    Crudup and actress Mary-Louise Parker had been together for about eight years and she was pregnant–about seven months along–back in 2003, with their first child. Claire Danes and Billy Crudup met on the set of the film Stage Beauty, and Crudup left Parker for her shortly thereafter.

    “I was just in love with him,” Claire Danes recalled. “And needed to explore that and I was 24…I didn’t quite know what those consequences would be.”

    Danes acknowledged how difficult the public backlash over her part in the split was.

    “That was a scary thing,” she said. “That was really hard. I didn’t know how to not do that.”

    Claire Danes’ role in the break-up of Billy Crudup and Mary-Louise Parker will likely be covered in Parker’s upcoming book, Dear Mr. You, which is due out on November 1st.

    Finally at peace with the entire ordeal, Claire Danes says she and Crudup are friends. The romance only lasted for about three years.

    “We’re friendly–we’re friends,” she says of her ex.

    Claire Danes married former Hannibal star Hugh Dancy in 2009. The couple has a three-year-old son named Cyrus.

    Did you know Claire Danes was once involved in this sordid breakup? How awful for Mary-Louise Parker to have been ditched for another woman while she was seven months pregnant.

  • Claire Danes Thanks Parents As She Receives Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

    Claire Danes made sure to thank her parents on Friday as she received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

    Danes’s parents moved from New York to L.A. several years ago to give their daughter every chance possible in launching her acting career. They believed L.A. was the place to be when she was ready to begin auditioning for roles.

    These days Claire Danes is best known for her role as CIA officer Carrie Mathison on the hit TV show Homeland. She landed her first roles in the 1990s, on TV in My So-Called Life, and on the big screen in Romeo + Juliet and The Hours.

    Claire Danes was thrilled to receive her own star on Hollywood Boulevard.

    “This is huge and wonderful,” she said.

    “This is really cool,” she added as the ceremony proceeded.

    Later she commented about the stars on The Hollywood Walk of Fame, calling them a “wonderful tradition.”

    Claire Danes addressed her fans at Friday’s ceremony.

    “There’s so much low and high in what we do. If I’m here it’s because I have made a connection that is real. I was here and you were here with me,” she said.

    Congratulations are certainly in order for Claire Danes and this most recent accomplishment.

    Are you a Homeland star? Do it think it’s the best role Claire Danes has played thus far in her career?

    Her parents must be awfully proud–and very happy they made that cross-country move all those years ago.

  • Claire Danes in Chains on 2015 Emmys Red Carpet

    Claire Danes rocked the red carpet at the 2015 Emmys on Sunday, beside her handsome husband Hugh Dancy. The Homeland star wore Prada–a cabernet and navy sequin-covered gown–with chains.

    Claire Danes looked hot in her chains, as they served as straps and accents on her sexy gown. Hugh Dancy wore a Ralph Lauren Black Label double-breasted black tuxedo.

    Chatting with Ryan Seacrest on the Emmys red carpet, Claire Danes dished about her gown and her Homeland character, Carrie Mathison. She talked to Seacrest about her character shouldering the plot sans her partner in crime.

    “It leapt off the rack, and it fit,” she said of her gown.

    “I was working pretty hard,” Claire Danes said of her Homeland role. “It was an exciting shift, scary daunting to do it without my partner, Damian [Lewis]. It was rigorous but utterly worthwhile. I can’t quite believe my luck that I’m on a project that continues to challenge me and nourish me.”

    Claire Danes was nominated for her Homeland role. She got the Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. She lost out to Viola Davis for her role in How to Get Away With Murder.

    Did you watch the 2015 Emmys on Sunday?

    Didn’t you love Claire Danes in chains–as well as her handsome hubby on her arm?

    Are you surprised she didn’t win an Emmy?

  • Claire Danes Talks Hollywood Body Shaming

    Claire Danes Talks Hollywood Body Shaming

    Claire Danes doesn’t like the way women’s bodies are shamed in Hollywood circles if they don’t meet certain standards of thinness. She’s decided it’s high time someone spoke up for those who have been or likely will be shamed. The Homeland star shared her thoughts on the topic during a recent interview with People magazine.

    “I feel like my body is monitored and commented on infinitely more than my male counterpart,” she said.

    “I remember a couple of Emmys ago, Lena Dunham and I were on the carpet together. We were singled out and criticized for having different body types–I was too skinny and she was too big,” Claire Danes adds. “She is a dear friend of mine, and it made me angry because this is just how we are.”

    Danes doesn’t like that so many have adapted to these ridiculous Hollywood standards.

    “We just take it for granted that it’s acceptable and we really internalize that as normal and fine, and it’s not,” she said.

    She admits she felt pressure to maintain her svelte physique–even while pregnant.

    “I was very anxious about my pregnancy because I was responsible for this huge show, and I didn’t want to let anyone down at work, but I had this other major project of growing a person,” she said. “I was mindful of what I was eating because I didn’t want to look pregnant.”

    Hopefully Claire Danes will make her beliefs about body shaming in Hollywood her new crusade. People shouldn’t be shamed because they don’t wear a size four and subsist on lettuce leaves and cleansing beverages. Not everyone has the makeup to be what Hollywood perceives as perfectly built.

    Claire Danes could make a name for herself that’s almost as big as the one she has made via her films and shows like Homeland if she continues expression her feelings about Hollywood body shaming. That would earn her even more respect than any Emmy Award or nomination will.

  • Claire Danes: My Body Is Monitored

    Claire Danes is the latest in a long line of Hollywood actresses who are speaking up about sexism in Hollywood. The Homeland star told People recently, “I feel like my body is monitored and commented on infinitely more than my male counterparts.”

    Danes then related a particular incident that exemplifies her point.

    “I remember a couple of Emmys ago, Lena Dunham and I were on the carpet together. We were singled out and criticized for having different body types – I was too skinny and she was too big,” Claire Danes said. “She is a dear friend of mine, and it made me angry because this is just how we are.”

    Danes hit the nail on the head, saying, “We just take it for granted that it’s acceptable and we really internalize that as normal and fine, and it’s not.”


    Claire Danes’ character on Homeland, Carrie Mathison, had a baby. Danes herself was also pregnant during the filming of a recent season, but not a season that corresponded to Mathison’s pregnancy. Danes spoke about how being pregnant affected shooting scenes.

    “I was very anxious about my pregnancy because I was responsible for this huge show, and I didn’t want to let anyone down at work, but I had this other major project of growing a person,” Danes said. “I was mindful of what I was eating because I didn’t want to look pregnant.”

    Claire Danes baby, Cyrus, “is a Homeland baby through and through,” she says.

    “He loves it. A set is such a playground for a kid,” Danes says. “He loved the ops room in the last season because he loved the lights and the screens and the levers to pull. That was also a bit of a joke – little tiny Cyrus in the ops room, saving the world from Armageddon!”

  • Claire Danes Has an Identity Issue

    Claire Danes Has an Identity Issue

    Claire Danes has an identity problem. Despite having a slew of movies and characters under her belt, she keeps getting called by the wrong name.

    “People call me Carrie all the time,” Claire Danes said during a TimesTalks event in New York City. She is, of course, talking about Carrie Mathison. The character is the lead on Homeland, the Showtime series that Claire Danes has starred in for four seasons now.

    It seems the only people who call her by her real name are the ones who shouldn’t be.

    “Unless I’m doing a scene with another actor and then they tend to call me Claire! It’s all mixed up. I hope people are kind of flexible enough to appreciate me in different contexts but I’ve got more lives in me.”

    Claire Danes has received wide recognition for her portrayal of Carrie Mathison. The character has bipolar disorder, and the condition plays a part in the development of the story lines of some episodes.

    Claire Danes is married to actor Hugh Dancy who plays Will Graham on the TV series Hannibal. The pair have a two-year-old son, Cyrus.

    “Hugh and I say, we just want him to be an environmental engineer. We don’t know what that means but it sounds good and it sounds very, very, very far away from [a performance life],” she laughed. “The idea makes me nervous and if he’s interested then I will facilitate it but I’m not sure.”

    As for Carrie Mathison, Claire Danes drops a few hints about the upcoming fifth season of Homeland, which is said to be based in Germany.

    “I think the idea is that she’s left the CIA, she’s utterly disenchanted and isolated, and during those intervening years, she’s acquired an actual life, which she’s maybe never had before. That will be interesting, to see her in that context, to be in a relationship, to actually be committed to her child, to have friends.”

  • Claire Danes Nabs Golden Globe Nomination, Will Go for Her Fifth Win

    Claire Danes has a chance to win her fifth Golden Globe Award on January 11, after she was nominated this morning, yet again, for her role on Showtime’s original series Homeland.

    On the show, which has been renewed for a firth season, Danes plays a CIA operative named Carrie Mathison. Her performance has been recognized by the three major awards organization for television – the Emmys, Screen Actors Guild, and the Golden Globes.

    This year, Danes is nominated for Best Actress in a TV Series (Drama). She’ll have to ward off some strong competition, including Viola Davis, Julianna Margulies, Ruth Wilson, and Robin Wright.

    “It’s really fun to play Carrie because she’s so unapologetic about striving for the things she wants,” she recently told The Independent. “So often women have to equivocate or put other’s needs before our own and she just doesn’t do that. She’s not defined by her sex, she doesn’t put up with shit. She doesn’t conform to conventional social standards. That’s very liberating.”

    Danes won her first Golden Globe in 1994, Best Actress in a Television Series (Drama), for her work on My So-Called Life. She also has Golden Globe wins for Best Actress (Miniseries or Television Film) for Temple Grandin in 2010, as well as in 2012 and 2013 for her role as Carrie Mathison on Homeland.

    Danes has also won three Emmy Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards.

  • Idina Menzel, Others Honored for Charitable Work

    Idina Menzel, Iman, Claire Danes and others were honored Friday by Variety Magazine for charitable work in its “Power of Women: New York” issue.

    Other honorees Sarah Jessica Parker, Susan Sarandon and A&E President and CEO Nancy Dubac, were honored at a luncheon hosted by designer Zac Posen at Cipriani in Manhattan.

    Katie Couric, Gayle King, Josh Groban and others paid tribute at the ceremony sponsored by HTC One and FYIslo, A&E’s new television network.

    Menzel was honored for her own foundation, A BroaderWay, which assists underprivileged young girls from urban communities. She read a heart-wrenching essay by one of her students, but also made the audience laugh after her introduction by long-time friend Groban.

    “He got my name right!” she joked, referring to John Travolta‘s mispronunciation of her name at the Academy Awards this year.

    Iman shared her experiences with the Dr. Hawa Abdi Foundation which helps provide medical attention, clean water and other basic necessities for people in need in her native Somalia, from which she fled decades ago.

    “It’s amazing to me what has happened to my country. … It was once peaceful, progressive, an admirable country,” said the supermodel. “There was nothing that women could not do. Today, they are not even allowed to drive a car.”

    Sarandon was presented an award for her support of the group Hope North, which provides educational opportunities for Ugandan children of war.

    “The fact that we’re here means we are really lucky … so why do this?” said Sarandon. “It feels really good to know you have done something.”

    Danes was cited for her work with Afghan Hands, a literacy program for Afghani women, and Dubac was honored for her work with Project Rubicon/The Mission Continues, which aids military veterans.

    Finally, Sarah Jessica Parker was noted for her advocacy for the New York City Ballet.

    Image via YouTube

  • Claire Danes Hijacks Seacrest Interview

    Claire Danes looked nothing like Carrie from her hit show “Homeland” on the Emmys Red Carpet. She certainly didn’t act like her character when she totally interrupted an interview to enthusiastically greet her good friend Lena Dunham right in the middle of her telling E!’s Ryan Seacrest, that all through last year’s Emmys, she felt like urinating. Apparently the two grew up in the same New York City neighborhood, and met through a mutual friend.

    Danes garnered lots of attention with her new golden bob to go with her sparkling Armani dress. She looked beautiful as the girls squealed like old pals and gushed about each other, totally forgetting Seacrest, and Claire even snatched the mic away from Ryan and began her own interview of Dunham:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njjbdZGE_j8

    “Seacrest out, Danes in,” Dunham quipped.

    “How do you feel being here tonight?” Danes asked, laughing, before quickly admitting, “I’m so bad at this!”

    “I’m really excited because you’re my really good friend and I never get to see you except for on the E! red carpet!” Dunham gushed.

    “I know, it’s totally wackadoodle,” Danes agreed.

    “Are we ruining your life?” Dunham asked the amused Seacrest.

    “No, this is fantastic,” he insisted. “I’m great, I’m gonna have a beer.”

    “I love this lady very much,” Danes revealed. “I love you so much,” Dunham agreed.

    It kind of went that way for a while, then:

    Danes: “I’m in constant awe of what she does.”

    Dunham: “She’s my favorite actress.”

    Danes: “She’s my favorite everything.”

    Speaking of working together the besties clarified the situation:

    Dunham: “I would love to but she’s on a Showtime show and I’m on HBO.”

    Danes: “It’s very Capulet and Montague.”

    Dunham: “We’ll wait unitl there’s a less turf-warrish situation.”

    Danes: “A web series!”

    During the lovefest Seacrest interjected, “I feel like we should do our nails.”

    Dunham also revealed in the presence of her two friends, that she’s an obsessed Kerry Washington fan. “I stalked her and I met her!” she said proudly. Washington “was really nice,” Dunham added. “She knew I’d been stalking her because I said it to, like, 17 media outlets, so she was really great about it.”

    Image via wikipedia

  • Claire Danes Almost Had A Very Different Career

    Claire Danes, who is the cover girl for the newest issue of Vogue, says she was “stuck” after doing the film that won her several awards and accolades from her peers. In fact, she almost changed her career altogether.

    The 34-year old actress said she came away from “Temple Grandin”–in which she portrayed the real-life autistic doctor of animal science–on a real high, but for whatever reason, the movie didn’t pave the way to more roles.

    “It was confusing. I got a lot of plaudits, and it didn’t translate into more work. I was really, really struggling during that time,” she said. “It was grim. I was very hurt. Two years of not working was brutal. And a point came where I thought, ‘I really like interior design.’”

    For fans of the show “Homeland”, a world without Danes as Carrie Mathison seems almost unthinkable. She says she was offered a few roles, but none matched up to her ideals after coming away from the award-winning “Temple Grandin”. And then, she says, she remembered why she started acting in the first place, and it wasn’t for the fame.

    “There’s the movie star that plays herself and the movie star like Meryl (Streep) that has this wonderful, glamorous persona intact and is undone every time she takes on a new character. I think I’m astounded and titillated by that.”

  • Claire Danes Gets Backlash For Bipolar Comments

    Claire Danes has a reputation for playing quirky characters–she got her big break on the teen drama “My So-Called Life”, playing a high-schooler looking for a place to fit in–and isn’t afraid to tackle roles that might be a bit outside the box for some actors. For instance, she played autistic doctor Temple Grandin in a film about her life. But now, the actress has spoken about playing a bipolar CIA agent on the Showtime hit “Homeland”, and her remarks are rubbing some people the wrong way.

    “I had to do a lot of research for this role. And actually, I found great material on YouTube,” she said during an interview with NPR. “There was a lot of footage of people who recorded themselves when they were in manic states. I think they were probably up in the middle of the night and lonely and, you know, needed to talk. So they talked to the camera. So I gorged on sort of manic confessionals on YouTube. They talk at a very fast clip. But, you know, it’s not a strictly unpleasant phenomenon. A lot of people are reluctant to treat themselves because they’re so protective of those manic highs.”

    After the interview aired, several listeners took to NPR’s website to comment on Danes’ remarks, referencing the fact that those who are bipolar and use proper medications and treatment can live quite normal lives. One commenter said, “I am… disappointed that the actress portraying a person with bipolar disorder says she prepared by “gorging on manic confessionals on You Tube”. That’s like studying diabetes by visiting the morgue, instead of talking with those who control it with medication and diet.”

    Another listener agreed, writing, “I was concerned that the actress chose “youtube” as a source of information. I have watched many of those videos and it is important to understand that for those of us living with loved ones who struggle with Type I bi-polar, the “youtube” examples actually appear mild.”

    Though the actress was trying to illustrate that she did her research on how to properly portray her character, her words have garnered some anger and hurt from bipolar disorder victims and their loved ones who say she should have chosen another avenue in order to get a handle on the role.