Jodie Comer, winner of the award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for "Prima Facie," poses in the press room during The 76th Annual Tony Awards at Radio Hotel on June 11, 2023 in New York City© Getty Images

Jodie Comer speaks out after disrupted Prima Facie performance amid New York air crisis

The Killing Eve star was forced to stop midway

Ahad Sanwari - New York
Senior WriterNew York
June 12, 2023

Jodie Comer was forced to stop her performance of "Prima Facie" minutes into the show on Wednesday due to the hazardous New York City air.

Now, the 30-year-old actress is opening up at the 76th Tony Awards, moments after winning the award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play.

Speaking to reporters, when asked about how she cares for herself in the midst of such struggle and the tiring promotional run for her play, she discussed how she rejuvenated and "practiced kindness" in the midst of it.

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"Hot baths," was her immediate response. "Good food, good friends. Honestly, this crew, predominantly women, are just remarkable.

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"The environment the stage management team has created backstage is such a hub of fun and love and safety," she continued. "Everyone is able to voice their concerns and opinions. And we run into the theater everyday because we want to be with each other.

Jodie Comer, winner of the Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play Award for "Prima Facie," poses in the press room during The 76th Annual Tony Awards at Radio Hotel on June 11, 2023 in New York City.© Getty Images
Jodie won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play

"It's all that boring stuff, like go to bed early, eat your vegetables, drink your water. But yeah, you do have to really make sure you take care of yourself in that way.

"Because your body is essentially an instrument, which I don't think I appreciated beforehand doing TV and film. And this is a different beast."

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Having already won the Olivier Award for the role, the Killing Eve star said in her speech: "This has been my greatest honor, and it continues to be these three weeks left."

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The actress opened up about caring for herself amid the stress of Broadway

The English actress beat out Jessica Chastain in "A Doll's House," Jessica Hecht in "Summer, 1976," and Audra McDonald in "Ohio State Murders" for the coveted prize.

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The matinee performance on June 7 was delayed by a few minutes due to Jodie's ill health caused by the unfit air quality in the city, and ten minutes into the performance, she had to be helped off stage, saying she "can't breathe." An understudy replaced Jodie for the rest of the show, although she returned for the evening performance.

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The actress was forced to step off the stage minutes into her performance

In a statement given to The Hollywood Reporter, a spokesperson for the production said: "Today's matinee of Prima Facie was halted approximately ten minutes into the performance after Jodie Comer had difficulty breathing due to the poor air quality in New York City because of smoke from the Canadian wildfires. 

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"The performance was set to start again from the top with understudy Dani Arlington going on for Ms. Comer in the role of Tessa."

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Jodie has received immense acclaim for her performance in the play

The play, which has received critical acclaim and is being turned into a feature film starring Cynthia Erivo, received three other nominations, although its only win was in Best Actress.

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