Sarah Snook discusses her 26 characters, 60,000 lines in 'Dorian Gray'

By Jessica Inman
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Sarah Snook attends the Critics' Choice Awards in 2024. She discussed her 26 roles in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" Monday. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
1 of 3 | Sarah Snook attends the Critics' Choice Awards in 2024. She discussed her 26 roles in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" Monday. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo

April 15 (UPI) -- Sarah Snook says she has to "start at the beginning and then go all the way through" when reciting her lines for the one-woman show The Picture of Dorian Gray, which is currently playing on Broadway.

The Succession actress, 37, discussed what it was like to portray 26 characters, memorize 60,000 words and spend nearly two hours alone onstage on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Monday.

"I accidentally did the wrong voice for the wrong character, and I asked the director if he knew, and he said 'No,'" she told Colbert. "I was like, 'I guess I'm not very good after all.'"

Colbert asked Snook how and if she remembers all her lines.

"I've got to start at the beginning and then go all the way through. I really would need to think about it to pick up a thread halfway through," she responded.

Snook, who was honored with an Oliver Award for her performance in London's West End, said that she did forget a line in the beginning.

"In the first preview, in London -- completely dried," noting that she was only seven lines in when she blanked.

The play was adapted from Oscar Wilde's 1890 novel by Kip Williams, who also incorporated video elements into the live performance.

The Roy family: 'Succession' stars through the years

Left to right, Jeremy Strong, creator Jesse Armstrong, Nicholas Braun, Sarah Snook, Brian Cox and Alan Ruck of "Succession" appear backstage during the Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., on January 5, 2020. The award-winning cast has appeared in several other shows and films through the years. Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo

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