|
Diagnosing 'Royal Pains' with Andrew Lenchewski, Michael Rauch, and Mark Feuerstein
by Reg Seeton
 The
programming on USA Network continues to get better
each year after such shows like The Dead Zone
and Psych paved the way for others like Burn Notice
and In Plain Sight. Now USA is about to roll out
Royal Pains on June 4 at 10pm, starring actor,
Mark Feuerstein, in the role of Dr. Hank Lawson
who loses his position in a New York City hospital
after fighting for the life of a patient and turns
to a new and lucrative career as a concierge doctor
for the wealthy in The Hamptons.
Filled with a colorful blend of relatable comedy, current music, and upscale drama, Royal Pains sees Dr. Hank become the "hot new doctor in town" as he serves both upper class and blue collar patients as a small town freelance physician.
Created by Andrew Lenchewski (What Women Want, Defiance) and show run by Michael Rauch (Life is Wild), Royal Pains is another fresh new USA series that should easily find an audience given its rich versus poor humor, vibrant visual style, and likeable lead character within the unique setting of The Hamptons.
Interestingly, when we caught up with Royal Pains creator Andrew Lenchewski and executive producer Michael Rauch on a recent conference call, we got a first hand house-call in what fans can expect from the tone of Royal Pains when actor Michael Rauch unexpectedly jumped into the conversation for a quick couple of minutes before getting called away.
By the end of our round of rapid Royal Pains questions, we got a laugh not only at Mark's sense of humor but also his sense of Royal Pains timing.
THE DEADBOLT: How prevalent are concierge
doctors in real life given the state of the
healthcare system?
 ANDREW
LENCHEWSKI: I think we're finding that they're
increasingly common. The trend actually was
born in Seattle and it's extremely prominent
in Florida, and they’ve obviously popped up
in all the centers of wealth around the country,
LA, New York, etc.. So it's interesting; it
seems to be a pretty hot button topic and a
lot of people seem to know about it, but at
the same time it seems like it still has a growth
ahead.
THE DEADBOLT: Visually, what was the approach to the transitions that set the tone of the show, like before Hank was called before the medical board?
MICHAEL RAUCH: Hey, Reg, it's Michael. That was a combination of Andrew, who created the show, Jace Alexander, who directed it, and the editor, Charles McClelland, to try to find a visual style that felt fun and also organic to the storytelling itself. So that moment that you were referring to, specifically, you mean in terms of the glass?
THE DEADBOLT: Yes, right.
RAUCH: Going from frosted to clear?
THE DEADBOLT: Exactly.
 RAUCH:
Well, let it be known throughout cyberspace
that I actually found the button on the location
scout that turned that glass from frosted to
clear and back, and if anyone else takes credit
for that, you let me know, Reg.
MARK FEUERSTEIN: No, I’ll take credit
for it, because this is Mark Feuerstein. What's
up, fellows? What's up?
LENCHEWSKI: Hey, Mark.
RAUCH: [laughs] We're talking to Reg right now, and he was just talking about how much more important the writers are than the actors in the show.
FEUERSTEIN: That couldn’t be more true and just to show you how true that is, I'm going to yell in about five seconds ...
RAUCH: Reg, do you have any questions for Mark while you have him?
THE DEADBOLT: Yes. Mark, what were some of the challenges for you in bringing Hank to life?
 FEUERSTEIN:
Dealing with these two guys who you're talking
to. No, when you have great writing, honestly,
there are no challenges. You just try to serve
the material. It was a beautiful script from
the get-go in the pilot. And then when Rauch
joined the team, it only got stronger and deeper
with every episode, and the challenges are just
trying to live up to the quality of the writing
and the work and relax into it and figure out
how to say certain words, like "xanthochromia".
THE DEADBOLT: [Laughs] So is sushi really filled with diamond chunks in The Hamptons?
FEUERSTEIN: You’ll have to come and find out for yourself. All right, fellows, I'm going back to work. I just wanted to [yell into] your phone across the country.
|
