Jesse Tyler Ferguson is currently starring as the legendary Truman Capote in a new revival of the one-man play Tru. Ferguson stars as the writer over the show’s 90-minute runtime, and, during his time off-stage, the Tony-winner admits that he needs a break.
“I’m trying to get away from [Capote] because he’s everywhere right now,” Ferguson told Jimmy Fallon during a visit to The Tonight Show. “I’m kind of tired of him, to be honest. I love him, but I’m also like, ‘I’ve had a long day of Truman Capote.’ So I went home the other day and I turned on RuPaul’s Drag Race and a drag queen was doing Truman Capote!” said Ferguson, before adding. “I love that Truman Capote is part of pop culture and people are being reminded. He was a genius.”
Also, during his Tonight Show appearance, the actor spoke about taking his kids to a performance of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, 20 years after originating the role of Leaf Coneybear. “My kids… were telling all the people around us that I created the show,” Ferguson laughed. Check out the full interview now.
Tru, starring Tony Award winner & five-time Emmy-nominee Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Truman Capote, will play through Sunday, May 10, 2026. Tony, Emmy, and Olivier Award winner Rob Ashford (Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, Frozen) directs this first New York revival of Jay Presson Allen’s play at House of the Redeemer (7 E 95th St), a historic Upper East Side mansion first owned by a great-granddaughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt. This tour-de-force performance, which also features two-time Tony nominee Charlotte d’Amboise, opened on Thursday, March 19. Tickets are now on sale at www.truplaynyc.com.
It’s December 1975 and Truman Capote is alone in his New York apartment, reeling from a crisis that cost him the elite social circle he adored. Drawn entirely from Capote’s own words, this funny and heartbreaking one-man play is an unflinching portrait of an artist at his breaking point, confronting the consequences of his most scandalous work. Performed in House of the Redeemer’s hyper-intimate Library, this strictly limited engagement offers a rare, immersive theatrical experience brought vividly to life by one of today’s most celebrated actors for an audience of only 99 patrons nightly.
The creative team for the revival includes Mike Harrison (scenic decor and properties), Emily Schmit (lighting design), Christopher Darbassie (sound design), Kate Wilson (dialect coach), Stephen Sposito (associate director), and Eloia Peterson (production stage manager). Hudson Theatrical Associates serves as production supervisor with Jonathan Whitton & Christophe Desorbay of Seaview as General Manager.
The one-man play originally premiered on Broadway in 1989, with Robert Morse as Capote, who went on to win the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding One-Person Show. He reprised his role in the 1992 American Playhouse presentation of Tru, winning the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie.
