Edmonton Journal - November 14, 1995

"Follows in the footsteps of Hoffman's Rain Man"
Richard Helm

It's a long ways from the dreamy storybook setting of Green Gables to the emotionally sterile world of Under the Piano, the latest creative port of call for Megan Follows.

The actress who became a household name in Canada 10 years ago for her portrayal of the sunny young heroine in Anne of Green Gables plays an autistic savant in this made-for-TV feature, scheduled to air on CBC in January.

Her clenched and constricted performance as Rosetta in Under the Piano is certain to draw immediate comparisons to Dustin Hoffman's signature role in Rain Man, a reference point Follows doesn't shrink from.

``He did a very good job in Rain Man and many people who I spoke to who work in the autistic community were very pleased with his representation,'' Follows says in an interview.

But that was one individual expression, she adds with a shrug, hers is another.

``I had the real woman the story is based on to meet and talk with and observe, as well as several other women with autism.''

During filming, the auburn-haired 27-year-old also drew daily on her ``barometer of truth'' in Andrea Rifkin, a Toronto woman who runs a group home for teens with autism.

``I found it very difficult in the beginning, extremely difficult and very frightening whether or not I was being truthful,'' Follows said. ``Andrea taught me a new language of expression.''

Under the Piano is the story of a woman's overwhelming faith in her emotionally defenceless but musically gifted autistic sister as they grow up together in a family devoid of love. Amanda Plummer, fresh off a flashy turn in Pulp Fiction, plays Franny, Rosetta's nurturing sister, and Canadian opera star Teresa Stratas is cast as their mother, a faded diva whose desire for control and adulation has poisoned her relationship with her children.

The screenplay by former Edmonton writer Blair Ferguson is based on the true life experiences of Dolly and Henrietta Giardini, two sisters from Brighton, Mass. Henrietta was born an autistic savant; though her mental and emotional faculties have never fully developed she possesses an extraordinary gift for music and memorization. Dolly, born with a paralyzed arm, has stuck steadfastly by her sister's side in the face of a domineering mother.

Follows said working so closely with the autistic community was a real eye-opener.

``I think it's always a revelation when you come up against your own preconceptions. You think you don't have them. It's always a great lesson to learn when you open yourself up to someone else's expression of living.

``Certainly, through my experiences with both Henrietta and Dolly, the real sisters, I did get a better appreciation for the human spirit.''

The movie marks the first reunion of Follows and Sullivan Entertainment since their collaboration in the two Anne of Green Gables mini-series. Producer Kevin Sullivan struck gold last year with a television movie built around another dark story, Butterbox Babies, and acknowledges he doesn't have much interest in lighter fare.

``I like emotional journeys that plunge the depth of the human condition.''

Sullivan had a major casting challenge with Henrietta's character, Rosetta, in finding someone who could inspire emotion without the benefit of expressing it.

``In portraying the character of Rosetta you had to be absolutely accurate because of the particular malady that she suffers from,'' Sullivan says.

``It had to be a true-to-life depiction of who she was and what that was because if you strayed from that you wouldn't be accurate for the audience. The spell would be broken.''

Follows has been weaving most of her magic these days at the Stratford Festival, most recently in her role as Constanze in Amadeus. She's also kept busy with television and theatre work in L.A. and the round-the-clock obligations of mothering a three-year-old daughter and 15-month-old son.

The daughter of Toronto actors Ted Follows and Dawn Green-halgh followed up her Green Gables roles in the mid-'80s with a handful of feature films, including Inherit the Wind and the Canadian feature Termini Station. Her most recent regular television appearances came alongside Connie Selleca on the shortlived CBS nighttime soap, Second Chances.

Source: Edmonton Journal