Eva LaRue Talks ‘AMC’ Reunions on ‘General Hospital’ & Sharing Scenes With ‘Iconic’ Sonny

The Doctor Is In

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Soap alum Eva LaRue, who became a fan favorite playing All My Children’s Maria Santos Grey on ABC on and off from 1993 to 2011, will make her General Hospital debut on February 26 as Blaze’s mother, Natalia Rogers-Ramirez.  And though she’s been a working actress for nearly 40 years, LaRue admits she had some trepidation before starting her new gig.

“I do still get nervous,” she shares. “Of all the different genres, soaps are by far the hardest, I think, because there’s an element of theater to it; there’s no stop-and-go like in nighttime television or in a feature film. There’s no getting to do it again unless there’s some major technical difficulty, so there’s that flying-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of feel to it, and it’s also so much dialogue, which is a little anxiety-producing, especially when you’re jumping back into it again after a bunch of years break. So, it’s exciting and scary all at the same time.”

Fortunately, she saw some familiar faces upon arriving at the set. “That’s been the best part of the job,” she declares. “I started at GH in January, which was so fun because there are so many All My Children and One Life [To Live] actors over there; so many New Yorkers. When I went in to go do my wardrobe fitting, the first person I saw was Finola [Hughes, Anna], so that was fun. There’s a new guy on the show, Adam Harrington [who plays John], that I did a Lifetime movie [Cries in the Dark] with. He started the same day I did. And Nancy Grahn [who plays Alexis] and I hadn’t worked together before, but she and I are friends. Just seeing everybody has been a blast.”

All My Children cast in 2003 (ABC/VIRGINIA SHERWOOD)

LaRue is enjoying getting to know more about her new alter ego, who is struggling with her daughter’s sexuality. “Natalia is a very conservative Latina, single mom who raised her daughter to be all of these amazing things, supported her and her talent, and went out of her way to make sure she had all she wanted,” the actress explains. “My first scenes are such chewy material, and I was really grateful for that. Natalia walks in as Blaze is coming out of the shower and Kristina is in her bed, so this feels like a major betrayal to her because Blaze has been keeping this big secret.

Bill Morris / ©ABC / courtesy Everett Collection

She continues, “She knew her mom was not going to understand it and she doesn’t. It’s not malicious and it’s not out of hate; it’s just out of a surprise and shock and conservativism that Natalia is having a really hard time being okay with it. I think the storyline is great because it’s so topical. There are so many nuances to having to play it with some heart and depth and understanding.”

LaRue is also thrilled that she gets to share scenes with Maurice Benard [who plays Sonny], a first for her. “We’ve never worked together before, but we’re acquaintance friends,” she details. “But it felt so legit, so iconic. When I told all my ‘mom friends’ who are huge General Hospital fans that I had scenes with Sonny, they were like, ‘No way!’ That was really fun. And our scenes together were great.”

Maurice Benard as Sonny (ABC/Valerie Durant)

As was her first day in general. “I loved it,” she enthuses. “You don’t always walk away, thinking, ‘That was a great day at work.’ Sometimes you’re like, ‘Oh, I can’t believe that’s gonna air,’ but I walked away that day going, ‘Oh, my God. I feel so good about this. Yay!’ I really walked away on cloud nine. I was very excited.”

While her length of time on the show is undetermined for now, LaRue would be open to a longer Port Charles stay. “They brought me on for the story, and I don’t know anything other than that,” she notes. “I’m recurring right now, but I would love to hang out and recur for as long as they need me or want me. It’s such a great place to work.”

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