'Dare Me' star Alison Thorton says preparing for her role was a fun challenge: 'I had many bruises, but I didn't mind them'
She might be the youngest on the highly competitive Sutton Grove cheerleading squad, but her determination and hunger for perfection are at par with some of the most-experienced and much-older squad members.
Alison Thorton, who plays Tacy Cassidy in USA Network's latest mystery-drama series 'Dare Me', in an exclusive interview with MEA Worldwide (MEAWW) spoke at length about her transformation for the challenging role, which is truly inspiring!
There’s a lot more to cheerleading than meets the eye, especially when it is portrayed on-screen. 'Dare Me' centers the volatile relations between ambitious female characters and explores various facets associated with the sport and the sort of pressure it inflicts on the participants.
According to Thorton, her show stands different for its realistic approach.
Discussing how shows dealing with cheerleading are often made cheesy or comical, she said, "I think the show ('Dare Me') does a really good job at keeping it real and making those relationships something that any high school girl or athlete or really anyone with ambition or any kind of relationship can relate to. So I'm thrilled about it."
The series is based on Megan Abbott's novel of the same name. However, Tacy revealed to MEAWW that her character is a bit different from what it is in the book.
"In the show, I play Beth's sister. So that added a whole other layer of character dynamics and the dynamics between Casey and Beth and Casey and Burt, her father. I don't even think it's in the book."
When asked how she prepared for her role, Thorton said it included reading the book and placing sticky notes over everything. "I trained in gymnastics as well because I wanted to know what it was like to push myself to physical extremes because I think that's also a really important theme in the book," she added.
Not only did the training exhaust the actress physically, but also caused quite a few injuries in the process. Elaborating on that, Thorton shared, "We had a couple of concussions. We had a girl fracture her foot. I had many bruises, but I didn't mind them."
Despite lack of prior experience in cheerleading, Thorton enjoyed preparing for her role, which in her words "was a really fun challenge".
When asked to what extent she can relate with Tacy, she said while she can relate with her characters in terms of her ambition and hunger to be the best version of herself, she wouldn’t agree with all her choices.
She said, "I guess that feeling of always wanting to prove herself, I really can relate to that from when I was younger. And the thing about Tacy is that she's really entitled and she thinks that she deserves everything, even when she really hasn't worked as hard. So she gets kind of a rude awakening."
Episode 2 of 'Dare Me' clearly established the changes in Tacy's behavior, majorly influenced by the coach's treatment of her. We can't wait to see more of her as the series develops.
