The thing about sisters is they know how to push your buttons. Whether it’s stealing the dress you just bought, reminding you of the tragic ex you once regrettably introduced to the family or befriending your mates, sisters have the unique ability to seek out your sore spots and use them against you.
For Cynthia Nixon and Christine Baranski, who play sisters in the popular series The Gilded Age, they’ve not only found these pressure points in their characters, but they’ve transformed them into cinematic gold.
Set in New York City in the 1800s, Baranski plays Agnes van Rhijn, a stern, wealthy widow who looks after her penniless, unmarried younger sister, Ada Brooke (played by Nixon).
However, after Ada marries Reverend Luke Forte, and he dies shortly after the wedding, leaving Ada with his fortune, the power dynamic between the sisters is turned on its head.
“When you’re in a series, conflicts develop, and the relationship deepens, and the writer takes you to different places. In season two, my sister finally fell in love and got married, which was traumatic for me, but then she lost him. It’s not a happy situation for Agnes but a happy situation for Christine because I got to be knocked off my perch,” says Baranski, who first worked with Nixon nearly four decades ago, playing her mother in the acclaimed play The Real Thing.
“That allows for a lot of comedy and some poignant moments. When you have a major shift like that, particularly with siblings, it was a vibrant terrain for us to work in [season three].”
Capturing the complexities of sisterhood is something we don’t often see on screen, but Baranski and Nixon skillfully lend depth to their character’s nuanced relationship.
Now, as the series returns for its third season, a new era is afoot for the sisters as Ada becomes the head of the household.
“Ada is not prepared at all. She wants to be the main event. She wants to be the powerhouse, but it doesn’t have the skill set,” says Nixon.
What fans can also expect this season is a new level of cinematic magic from the show’s esteemed creator, Julian Fellowes (formerly the award-winning writer and creator behind Downton Abbey), who is known for his impeccable attention to detail with multiple historical advisors, lavish costuming, full-scale sets.
“The day I most get excited for is when the costume for the day shows up. I’m always in awe of the workmanship that goes into any one piece of clothing that I wear; the detail is staggering. The artistry that goes into the clothes and the sets is astonishing. The final scene at the ball this season is going to be such a visual feast,” says Nixon.
The Gilded Age might be a portrait of New York society, but the cast is its own who’s who of notable New York names. From Audra McDonald, Nathan Lane, Donna Murphy, Kelli O’Hara and Laura Benanti, the cast list reads like a roll call of the best of on-and off-Broadway stars.
This season, we see a few more names come into the fold, including The Good Wife’s Dylan Baker, Broadway’s Kate Baldwin, Michael Cumpsty of Severance, John Ellison Conlee from Boardwalk Empire, Bobby Steggert from Marvelous Mrs Maisel and newcomer Hannah Shealy.
While being a part of an esteemed New York theatre trope is part of the privilege, Nixon admits it’s the show’s rising stars that she gets the most excited to work with.
When asked whether there’s a Broadway actor she would love to make a future cameo on The Gilded Age, Nixon replies: “I’d love to see what we would do with Cole Escola (who plays Mary Todd Lincoln in Oh! Mary).”
After spending the past three years in 1800s New York, the pair admit that working on a period piece has forever altered their perspective of the modern world.
“It’s interesting to think that uptown Manhattan would be like being in the suburbs. There was very little real estate on the Upper East Side. It all started downtown, and it was mostly forest. Central Park was bucolic. The Bronx, now spelled with an ‘X’, was named after a Dutch family called Broncs. So you would go up to see the Broncs because they were the only people up there. Now you go to see the Yankees!” says Nixon.
“I also read that during the Industrial Revolution, the main mode of transportation was the bicycle. I was fascinated by that because it’s a very jarring image.”
Baranski adds: “It’s funny; you’re walking that same plot of Earth upon where those people walked, and they created these enormous cultural institutions. If you go to The Frick museum, you’re walking where the Frick family once were. There’s a magic there. It’s hard to believe that underneath all the cement, there’s actually dirt.
“And we’re walking on granite in our high heels!” adds Nixon.
And had Nixon and Baranski been born a few hundred years earlier, what historical event during the Gilded Age would they have loved to bear witness to?
“The turning on of electricity. I mean, that must have been just apocalyptic,” answers Baranski.
“The telephone! That must have been crazy. And the Brooklyn Bridge, come on,” replies Nixon.
Stream The Gilded Age season 3 on Paramount Plus from $6.99/mth, with a 7-day free trial.
