Richard Thomas: Acting Is His Life"

For 65 years Richard Thomas has been a working actor, first making his Broadway debut when he was a seven-year-old in 1958’s “Sunrise at Campbell,” later earning an Emmy as John-Boy in the ‘70s TV’s hit series “The Waltons,” and then following his adult life with scores of performances on TV, film and stage. His well-modulated voice is a familiar one for many having narrated more than 340 audio books.

But among his most fulfilling experiences on stage were in a quartet of leading roles at Hartford Stage in the ‘80s and ‘90s: “Hamlet,” “Richard III,” “Peer Gynt” and Edward Albee’s “Tiny Alice.”

The Tony Award-nominated actor (“The Little Foxes”) returns to the state—and to the stage—to star as Atticus Finch in Aaron Sorkin’s stage adaptation of Harper Lee’s classic novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Thomas headlines the national tour of the acclaimed Broadway production which plays Hartford’s The Bushnell June 27 to July 2.

Thomas sat down with Seasons Magazines in a Zoom conversation to catch up and chat about his long career, taking on an iconic character and about Connecticut audiences.

Seasons: There’s something just so right—given where your career took off with the TV series and that role—about you becoming Atticus Finch.

Richard Thomas: I was telling someone the other day that here is one icon—and I don’t mean me personally, but rather then character of John-Boy—playing another icon, Atticus Finch.

S: Both “The Waltons” and “Mockingbird” are set in the South in the ‘30s. Did you see a kinship between these two roles?

RT: They have a similar feel and texture and there’s a connection in terms of sensibility and, of course, Southerness. But the characters have very different emotional makeups. John-Boy was a questing young artist who belongs in his community but also knows that for him there’s something beyond it. Atticus is basically a real estate lawyer, very much content with his place in his community. But they are both good and decent figures.

S: Aaron Sorkin’s version of Atticus is different than the one portrayed by Gregory Peck in the 1962 film. By the way, did you ever meet Mr. Peck in your long career?

RT: I only met him once at some function in Los Angeles and I remember him being always the most gracious of men. And he was a lot taller than I imagined.

One of the great things Aaron has done with this play is that he’s taken Atticus off the pedestal. This is not a perfect man. He’s a good and decent person and has compassion, humility and feelings for other people, but he has a lot to learn—and he’s teachable. Aaron has given him a wonderful human journey and I think the audience can come closer to him …|CONTINUED|