Amanda Seyfried Gets Over Her Crippling Fear Of Crowds By Appearing In A Stage Production

With Amanda Seyfried’s first Vogue cover and subsequent interview came the revelation she actually suffers from a crippling fear of appearing in front of crowds – something Amanda’s fans wouldn’t have guessed after her long list of television and movie roles. Although her famous drunken appearance on the Letterman Show might have been a give away. After Seyfried saw that show played back, she realized she needed some serious help.

“I watched it [Letterman] and was like “That is not what I want to promote about myself.” I have a lot of anxiety that I’ve been struggling with my whole life,” she said. “So I have been working through it. I’m terrified, but this is exactly what I wanted.”

After this timely wake up call, the 29 year-old went to counselling – and joined a stage production! The Way We Get By is a new Neil LaBute play, directed by Leigh Silverman and tells the story of two people who get drunk at a wedding reception and have sex. Their story is told from the morning after that event. Amanda Seyfried, while suffering from anxiety, has certainly thrown herself in at the deep end, not only having to appear on stage in front of a live audience but having a nude scene that also involves conversations of a risque nature.

Along with her fear of crowds, Amanda Seyfried is also constantly worrying, whether it be about her performances – or her animals. While she is rehearsing for The Way We Get By, she is also constantly fretting about her dog, Finn.

“I just don’t want to leave him anymore. Maybe it’s because I’m subconsciously aware of his mortality. I try not to think about it, but somewhere inside of me, I’m like, He’s going to die way sooner than all the rest of the people I know!”

But when Amanda Seyfried isn’t worrying about her furbaby, she is considering her future, aiming to one day raise children in Stone Ridge and bring them up in a level of normalcy that Hollywood just can’t bring. While Seyfried’s relationship with her current boyfriend, Justin Long, is only fresh, it seems they both share the same values.

“I want to have kids. And I want them to go to local schools, and there are some really good schools around here. I would like my life to be the same as it is now, but with a little less stress and a little less work.”

But with such a stellar career already behind her, Amanda Seyfried just might be in demand – and under pressure – for a little while longer before she can consider settling down and having those children she dreams of.

You can view all the gorgeous images of Amanda Seyfried in the June edition of Vogue magazine. As well as staring in The Way We Get By, Amanda Seyfried is also currently promoting her latest movie, Ted 2.

[Image credits: Getty Images/Jason Merritt and Vogue/Mario Testino]