Q: Is there anything you could tell us about the upcoming stories involving your character and any other characters on the show that you can share with us?

Christine Ebersole: Tonight is a show called Strategic Planning, and the show is about Hank treating a prospective Notre Dame football player who comes down with slurred speech and vision. And Evan, in the meantime, is entertaining ladies in the grotto. And I come on briefly tonight because I think this is where they establish their sort of concierge system where I sign on to have a doctor at my beck and call. And then July 16th, I give a bark mitzvah to my dog. My dog has a bark mitzvah, and all the guests come down with a mysterious ailment … then hijinx ensue. This is comedy at its finest.

Q: How did you get the role of Ms. Newberg on Royal Pains, and what about the series convinced you to accept the role?

C.E: Well, I was offered the role. I didn’t have to audition, which is always nice. And what drew me to the role is, I think she’s a very outspoken and kind of larger than life character, and gets to play somebody rich. That’s always fun, and the great thing about doing the show is the locations that we get to visit are really just extraordinary. I get to see all these beautiful things, and to be a part of a comedy and to be working with the people that I’m working with is just a really rarified air, so it didn’t take much convincing. When I read the script, I saw that it was such an intelligent, funny script, and with really well developed characters, and so it was kind of an easy decision.

Q: Do you have any experience dealing with concierges doctors?

C.E: No, but I can say that, you know, because I’m 56, when I was in the 50’s, that’s when doctors made house calls. Doctors did make house calls back then. You didn’t have to be rich to get them either. So, in a way, this is sort of like the old days, but now it’s just only afforded to the rich. But you also have to remember that Hank Lawson is a very sort of reluctant to be a concierge doctor because he really – his job is to really service the people, I mean, all people, not just rich people, so that’s why he’s sort of reluctant, but that’s what I think is great about the series is that it also shows you, you know, his humanity in terms of those people that can’t afford that kind of thing. He serves them as well.

Q: So where do you draw inspiration from for the character of Ms. Newberg? I know you’ve had like lots of Broadway roles and stuff. Do any of those help you out with this character?

C.E: Well, I think there are people in life that are sort of wealthy, eccentric, that you sort of draw from your imagination, and I think that’s really kind of what acting really is. It’s imagination, and I can certainly draw on a couple of people that I know personally that I won’t mention any names, but people that are very wealthy, and sort of eccentric. And I think money allows that sort of eccentricity because you can do things that other people normally can’t do, like have a bark mitzvah for your dog and have hundreds of people come over, and sit poolside, and have the rabbi read from the Torah. So, yes, I think it’s from life. It’s just sort of drawing from life and my imagination.

Q: Ms. Newberg is kind of mysterious to us so far. I was curious if there was anything you can tell us about her personal life beyond the fact that she has a dog and a lot of money.

C.E: Well, I found out – you know, these kinds of things you find out sort of piecemeal because when they draw up the characters, they don’t – you don’t necessary always have all the information about the back story on the character, and these things sort of unfold as the episodes are presented. But I do find, I did find out that I have a 22-year-old granddaughter, and I’m a dowager, I believe. In other words, I believe I’m a widow, and my husband was Jewish and had a lot of money. So we had agreed to raise all the children Jewish, and I guess the dogs are included.

Q: How did you enjoy filming in the Hamptons?

C.E: You know, fantastic. Can you imagine? I mean, it’s such a fun fantasy fulfilled where you have a location of a house that sits on the ocean, and it’s just this big mansion with a private beach, and it’s mine for the day, you know. So it’s pretty great.

Q: I was wondering if you can tell us about anything besides the bark mitzvahs of Ms. Newberg’s other medical conditions – why she calls Hank?

C.E: Well, as you know, in the pilot … because I had a flat tire. Those have been my only medical conditions, although a medical condition rises out of the bark mitzvah. That’s in the episode that runs in July.

Q: Do you think that there’s going to be – you’re going to be calling Hank for things other than medical drama? I mean, the flat tire wasn’t super medically related. It kind of was, but do you think you’ll be calling him for like emotional things too?

C.E: I hope so.