“Abbott Elementary” principal Ava Coleman is a lot like Janelle James | Salon Talks

Comedian Janelle James, who plays principal Ava Coleman on ABC’s #abbottelementary, talks about her similarities to the beloved sarcastic administrator. In this “Salon Talks” interview, James shares how bad jobs helped her bring Ava to life and how the show has changed her life in real ways, from her stand-up routine to being recognized. James says public school teachers and parents talk to her about the realness of Ava all the time. “Through the writing of Quinta and other writers and what I'm hopefully bringing to the performance, I'm trying to make her a real person,” James said. “This is a person that exists in the world and in school settings. It's not made up so no matter how people might try to say that she is.” #janellejames #standupcomedy #salontalks

Chapters
00:54 Playing Ava Coleman
03:46 Toxic workplaces
06:01 "Abbott Elementary" cast behind the scenes
08:29 Inside an episode
10:15 Collaboration on the writing of "Abbott"
15:35 Getting back to stand-up comedy

Subscribe to SalonTV’s Channel HERE:    / salontv  
For more content from SalonTV, click HERE: https://www.salon.com/tv
Like Salon on Facebook HERE:   / salon  
Follow Salon on Twitter HERE:   / salon  
Follow Salon on Instagram HERE:   / salonofficial