“[The work] came home with me. From the interior, I could see and feel this woman who had lost track of her pain. I could feel her pain and her loss quite powerfully. It made me have to sit and wonder, for myself, are you losing track of your own pain? Right before I had started this project I’d just lost my mom. That is a very hard thing to go through. It’s a very hard thing to say goodbye to someone. I discovered that human beings are just trying to make it to tomorrow. I was trying to do that, too.” – Uzo Aduba, episode 230 of Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso
Emmy award-winning performer Uzo Aduba (Orange is the New Black, Mrs. America) joins us on the heels of her leading role on In Treatment. Filmed during the pandemic, Aduba plays clinical psychologist Dr. Brooke Taylor, a character she created in the aftermath of her mother’s passing (5:32). In honor of her, we discuss a formative high school memory (11:36), the power of her name (15:19), the racialized roadblocks she encountered as a young actress (20:52), and September 14th, 2012– the day she quit acting (26:20). As we leave, we sit with her mother’s legacy (30:02) and the true meaning of her name, Uzoamaka (32:53).
Show notes
- In Treatment airs on HBO, Sundays and Mondays at 9pm EST. Stream the show on HBO Max, Hulu, or Amazon Prime.
- Revisit Uzo’s post for her mother.
- Follow Uzo on Instagram & Twitter.
- Illustrations by: Krishna Shenoi.