Character Questions with Isaac Wilson

New-to-Pigeon-Creek actor Isaac Wilson discusses his theatrical experience and the character of Suffolk in Henry VI.

My name is Isaac Wilson, and this is my first production with Pigeon Creek. I’m from Remus, MI, which is a very small town near Central Michigan University. I came to West Michigan, because I will be able to enjoy an artistic hot spot while still being close to family. I studied Acting and Theatre at Ferris State University, which has a very tight-nit theatre community presided over by Dr. Katherine La Pietra. This has been the bulk of my theatre experience, and I have been blessed to work in such productions as Spamalot, The Best Man, and Legally Blonde, just to name a few. My favorite role to date, however, would be Stephen Miller in Infinite Black Suitcase: a man in his early thirties who is forced to deal with the mortality of his husband, Dan.

In my free time I enjoy eating too much food with my partner, Johan, and playing pathfinder with my teaching colleagues. I am also an avid painter and writer. Anyone who is curious can find my first published short story, “A Cross Above the Door in Panetauxnie,” in Ferris State’s 2016 PRISM Magazine.

When I begin preparing for a Shakespearean role, as with other roles, I begin looking for the small variations in language specific to that character. These differences show the reality of a character’s true feelings, as in life. From them, we can find motivations, relationships, etc. For example, looking at Suffolk, we can see that his language exists in two modes: specifically chosen to manipulate others, or rashly exploding in emotional outbursts.

Suffolk is a man who could be described as ambitious, sordid, and lecherous. He desperately seeks to use the confusion of England’s troubles to further his own station. He sees his opportunity within a French princess, Margaret, and whisks her away to England. To anyone who is wondering why they should attend Henry VI, I would say that it holds all of the intrigue and artifice of Game of Thrones, without the long periods of waiting. Suffolk is a man whose countless desires lead him to manipulate, betray, and kill in their pursuit, and he is not alone.