HE may play the main character and appear in every scene, but The Graduate actor Rider Strong is happy to play second fiddle in the publicity stakes.
With a co-star as iconic as tall Texan model Jerry Hall in the role of Mrs Robinson, Strong has no problem with all the attention afforded his glamorous co-star.
“I'm nothing, I'm a secondary character, which is funny because if you see the play, I am in every scene and I'm working really hard, but she is the real draw,” Strong laughs.
“It's all about Mrs Robinson!
“I would much rather it happen that way because she is an expert at this, while I get uncomfortable with photographs.”
The 30-year-old Northern Californian actor first teamed up with Hall for the production back in 2003, reprising the roles several times before their reunion for this Perth-only production.
“It's fun coming back to do it again,” he said.
“We're kind of different people, but in a good way, and we like exploring the same characters again and again.”
Strong said the two shared a great chemistry on stage and off.
“She has lived this incredible life and she has paparazzi taking her picture all the time, but she is still very down to earth - she is from Texas!” he said.
“She has a great sense of humour about this crazy life she has led, so she is just a fun and really relaxed person to be around.”
The question on many (men's) lips would have to be: what is it like performing intimate scenes with Jerry Hall?
Strong said there had been plenty of laughing as the two got used to “rolling around under the sheets.”
“I can't remember exactly what the first rehearsal was like, but I remember we were giggling and we got comfortable with each other,” he said.
“When you are acting with anybody, you have to get comfortable whether you are simulating sex or just doing a tense scene, no matter what the situation is.
“Sex scenes with anybody are generally awkward, but you sort of have to embrace the awkwardness.”
It's the first time in Perth for the former child actor Strong, whose credits include television series Boy Meets World and Eli Roth's cult horror film Cabin Fever.
While in town, he has also been editing a short film - one of two shorts he is currently directing as part of a planned move into feature film directing.
Despite their familiarity with the material, Strong and Hall still rehearse for six hours a day, though Strong says much of that is for the benefit of the local actors.
“I've seen the local actors and they are great,” Strong said.
“It's a real relief when you know you have a good cast to back you up.”
The Graduate runs at His Majesty's Theatre from August 26 to September 14.