ESPRIT LIBRE // Press Archive

Performer Of the Week: Erika Slezak (Soap Opera Digest 7/3/07)

Nothing could be more harrowing for a mother than watching her child die and feeling utterly powerless. Erika Slezak's portrayal of a woman in just that position was as heartfelt as if it were happening in real life.

When Paige informed cancer and heart transplant survivor Viki that she could not undergo transplant surgery to save Jessica's life, Viki refused to take no for an answer. Slezak played Viki's determination with a mix of indignation and relief, clasping her hands over her heart and breaking itno sort of a smile as she declared, "It's my life; the choice is mine." Viki continued to blame herself for her daughter's predicament, so when she recognized that she couldn't turn back the clock, but could fix the sitaution by offering her own liver, her tears were not of sadness but of joy that there was a solution. Slezak's eyes were wild as she conveyed Viki's desperation and her body shook as she shouted, "I want my child to live; I don't care, I don't give a damn what happens to me."

It wasn't until Jessica noted that Viki would break her daughter's heart by risking her own life that Viki finally started to come unwrapped. She covered her tear-stained face in shame, admitting that she was terrified, and apologized for not being strong enough. Later, as Jessica prepared to say her final good-byes, a genuine look of concern and a hint of understanding came over Slezak's face when Jessica said she wasn't in the hospital, she was "somewhere bright." When a priest arrived, Viki exclaimed that it wasn't time; then, her lips quivered as she woefully accepted the cruel reality that her daughter's time had come (even though Jessica did survive).

While we regret that Viki hasn't had her own story in eons (although new Head Writer Ron Carlivati assures us that she will), we applaud Slezak for her ability to shine in one that primarily centers on others.