Troian Bellisario - Baltimore {Sister Cities} #2: "Mom's in the tub... She looks good." - Page 3

t2727 · 09-18-2016, 01:06 PM

You can't say that and then post a totally different gif

**BlondieLeigh** · 09-18-2016, 01:11 PM

The cheapening is not appropriate for

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t2727 · 09-18-2016, 01:39 PM

Boo!

**BlondieLeigh** · 09-18-2016, 01:43 PM

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t2727 · 09-19-2016, 01:23 PM

I saw the cheapening and was shocked and disappointed

**BlondieLeigh** · 09-19-2016, 01:28 PM

I'm sure you loved it really.

Quote:

An Interview With Sister Cities Playwright Colette Freedman

Lifetime Network's Sister Cities is a heartwarming and gut-wrenching story of four estranged sisters, named after cities of the United States, reuniting when their mother passes away. It was based on a stage play written by Colette Freedman, who also wrote the screenplay for the movie. I had the pleasure of asking her a few questions via email on her inspiration for the story, how she matched the personalities of each sister to the city they were named after, and why she would change how Mary Baxter, the mother, dies even in the play.

VOTV: Hi, Ms Freedman! Good evening (my end) and good morning (your end). I'm Dee and I write for Voice of TV. Thank you so much for indulging us with this email interview. The play is so beautiful, heartwarming, touching, and at the same time, quite tragic. I laughed and cried when I read it, especially at the Austin/Mary flashback scene and Mary's monologue. What was your inspiration writing it?

COLETTE FREEDMAN: My grandmother Jeanette had Alzheimer’s. It is an unbelievably cruel disease which forces loved ones to watch a strong, bright intellect wither away. My mom spent three years watching my grandmother disappear from the disease before she died. Later, she asked me to end her life if she was ever afflicted with such a horrible disease and I promised her that I would. This play is, in a way, a love letter to my mom.

VOTV: How did you come up with the the names of the sisters and their mother having ALS?

COLETTE FREEDMAN: I wanted the names to represent the sisters’ personalities. I’m from Baltimore and I always thought that would be a great name. The other names really reflect the sisters: I liked the idea of Austin being an anomaly, a liberal left wing city surrounded by Republicans. It really informs her character. As does Dallas’s name. Dallas is so controlled, so proper - her mom tried to make it up to Taos to have her but, alas, her water broke early so she was born in Dallas. Carolina is probably my favorite name of the bunch because it’s not even a city. It’s a state. But [is] she North or South? It immediately alienates Carolina from her sisters because they are all named after cities and she is not. She is a conundrum and it always made her feel left out.

I chose ALS instead of Alzheimer’s because I wanted the mom to be explicitly clear on her actions. ALS takes away your body’s function; however, your mind is completely intact. It was important to me that Mary was 100% coherent and level headed about what she was asking her daughter to do.

VOTV: How did you get involved with the movie?

COLETTE FREEDMAN: Alfred Molina saw the play several times when we first opened in Los Angeles in 2006. He also saw it when we performed at the Edinburgh Festival in 2008. After Edinburgh, he suggested that I adapt it into a film and was instrumental in helping get producers and director Sean Hanish attached to make the possibility of this film a reality.

VOTV: I noticed that there are some changed and added scenes and characters when I saw the trailers for the movie. Did the director or producers ask that some scenes be changed or that Mary should drown instead of the way she died in the play?

COLETTE FREEDMAN: I decided from the get-go to change Mary’s death to a drowning. If I could do it over, I’d probably change it in the play as well. The way she dies in the play makes it almost impossible to believe the action as a possible suicide, especially at this stage in her disease. The “drowning” is a more logical and cinematic way for her to die. I had also always imagined the film taking place at my friend’s island house in Connecticut, so the theme of water was always in the back of my mind when I was writing the screenplay.

VOTV: How was working with Stana, Jess, Michelle, and Troian? Did you tell them that the characters they're portraying are this and that?

COLETTE FREEDMAN: The cast was unbelievable. Every time Sean called to tell me a new actress was attached to the project, I cried. Seriously, I bawled because I was so happy. Each one of these women is so strong, so dynamic, so intriguing and together, they are unstoppable. Each one of them brings such a unique experience and depth to her character and I’m delighted how much they look and feel like legitimate sisters.

VOTV: How excited were you when it was announced that Lifetime acquired the movie?

COLETTE FREEDMAN: I was thrilled when Lifetime acquired the movie. Lifetime brands themselves as a Fempire and this film is, indeed, a fempire. Where else can people tune in to see not one, but six, strong fleshed out characters who don’t need men to define them; rather, who easily and fully define themselves. These are flawed, funny, badass women and I am honored that the film has found such a large platform to share its story.

VOTV: Please invite our readers to watch the movie and the play if one is playing near them!

COLETTE FREEDMAN: Sister Cities is on Lifetime at 8pm Saturday the 17th. The play is usually playing somewhere around the world. Currently, it is playing in Chicago (The Den Theatre) and Sacramento (Resurrection Theatre) and it opens in October in Sydney, Australia (Factory Space).

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