Aubrey Plaza Would Like to Drink a Cosmo With Patti LuPone

Aubrey Plaza likes a good cosmopolitan. The presentation doesn’t matter much — “I like a goblet,” she admits — but the recipe does: vodka, cranberry, lime, and specifically, Cointreau. As the face of the brand’s new Keep it Cosmo campaign, Plaza joins Contreau and Toby Cecchini, the inventor of the cosmo, in suggesting that we think pink for this year’s holiday fêtes.

“I don't get too fancy with it, and I like the old-school iconic drinks,” Plaza says. “I like the margarita. I like the cosmopolitan. The ingredients are just refreshing. It's a really simple crowd-pleaser.”

"Did Sex and the City invent the cosmopolitan?" shows up when anyone types the cocktail's name into a search bar, and alongside the iconic HBO show, the cocktail has become a stand-in for unapologetic and flirtatious femininity. It's a cross-generational crowd-pleaser. It reigned as the sophisticate's drink of choice in 1980s NYC and popped off again in the aughts during SATC's time on television — and now, it's back to party. 

“When I invented The Cosmopolitan in the autumn of 1988, I was trying to find way to make a super fun, grabby drink with fresh juice and top-notch ingredients,” says Toby Cecchini, inventor of the cosmopolitan. “A simple mix of vodka, fresh lime and cranberry all corralled and elevated by the unique orange notes of Cointreau. It was the work of experimenting for 15 minutes and has been going strong now for 35 years and counting.”

This month, Plaza makes her stage debut in the off-Broadway revival of Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, which first premiered in 1983. A two-person play written by John Patrick Shanley, it tells a desperate, explosive love story, and Plaza stars opposite Christopher Abbott, whom she met four years ago on the set of Black Bear (he was also on Girls).

Read on for more on Plaza’s new cocktail campaign, how she’s prepping for her very first theater role, and who she’d love to have a cosmo with in New York City.

I saw that you met Toby, the real-life creator of the cosmo. What was that day like? 

It was actually really funny because we were both learning a lot from each other. For example, I was holding the stem of the glass too close to the cup. He kept telling me, “Slide your hand out. Hold it at the base.” I never knew how to hold a martini glass properly. Or a wine glass. I never know. Do you hold the stem, or do you cup the cup or whatever? And he was like, “No, you hold it at the base so that your hands don't warm the drink.”

What did you teach him about acting? 

I was trying to give him all of my Michael Caine tips — which eye to look at the other actor with and which eye to save for the camera, how to angle your body right, and things like that. 

How do you like your cosmo?

My ideal way is the iconic, classic recipe, which is vodka, cranberry, lime, and Cointreau. But glassware? I'm not very picky. Although, I sometimes can be clumsy, so I sometimes have a hard time with the kind of swishy glasses that spill all the time. But I like a goblet. I like old school. I want heavy glassware. 

The trick that Toby taught me about how to hold the glass. Actually, I was like, "Oh, OK. That actually helps because I can balance it more if I'm holding it at the base." But we'll have to see it in action this holiday season.

When you say goblet, is it like a Medieval Times goblet or like a Baccarat, Martha Stewart goblet?

Like a medieval one, yes, fit for a queen. I feel like they came back in the '70s.  

Is there anything you're excited to wear this holiday season?

I'm actually very excited to whip out my New York fall wardrobe. I'm feeling a very Annie Hall vibe this year, like long skirts and vests and layers.

I love being in New York in the fall because it motivates me to actually dress myself when I go out the door in the morning. But I'll be in rehearsals, so I'll have to adopt this kind of stage flair, whatever that means.

Maybe I'll get a Gena Rowlands peacoat and big glasses. I want a kind of iconic, classic peacoat this fall. I'm really jonesing for that. If you have any ideas on where I can get a great one, please tell me. [Ed note: The writer recommended this vintage Schiaparelli coat, which she acknowledges is technically a swing coat.] 

What attracted you to the stage? Are you nervous? 

It's my first professional play, so it's kind of my stage debut. I'm pretty nervous, but I'm excited, too. I was attracted to it for a couple of reasons. One, Christopher Abbott, who's playing Danny in the play opposite me, we've worked together before. He's done a lot of theater, and I just think he's one of the best actors around. I love the character, and I love the play. It's so heartbreaking. It's a love story, and I love love stories. I'm nervous about doing it in front of an audience. That's the thing that I'm trying to wrap my head around right now. 

Is there anything you're doing to get in the mindset? How are you approaching the role?

I have this tiny little version of the play with me at all times in every purse. I've been carrying it around with me for months. It's completely battered and falling apart, but it's kind of romantic, and I sleep with it next to me. It's been to multiple countries at this point. 

I'm like that with scripts. I keep them around so that they're kind of always lingering in the background for me so that I am doing unconscious work on it or something. I'm always thinking about it. It's hard to articulate it, but it's just keeping it around. I write in it, too. It becomes like a journal, almost. I can't have a purse that’s too small, because I need to fit the play.  

Obviously, the cosmo is very closely associated with Sex and the City. Are you a fan? What did you think of the latest season of And Just Like That …?

Yeah, I'm a fan. I just love anything about female relationships, and I think I'm such a sucker for shows that are set in New York where New York becomes a character because I just love New York so much. So, it's very comforting for me to watch because I love how sacred New York is to the show and to those characters. 

In the latest season, I would say Miranda's storyline is really interesting to me. I feel like her episodes are really going for it in a way that I find really cool. And I really like the episodes that [Cynthia Nixon] directed, too. I think she's a really great director, and I was really happy to see her name up there as a director.  

Are you a Miranda? 

No. I don't know. Every woman, in my opinion, has aspects of all of them because I even see myself as a Charlotte sometimes. I'll admit it.

What do you think of when you think of cosmos?

I think about people in my life. I mean, there are certain people, it’s their go-to. I think of Holly Marie Combs, who is a friend of mine who also loves a cosmo. And my younger sister, Renee, loves a cosmo. That's her go-to. I got into them because of her. 

What are your favorite stories from when you were drinking cosmos with them?

We were celebrating my mother's birthday, and we went to ‘90s Con in New Hampshire to hang out with the cast of Charmed. We hung out afterward, and Holly ordered a cosmo, and my sister ordered a cosmo, and it was like we were off to the races. It was a really fun night. We all kind of bonded over it.

How many cosmos does it take you to do karaoke?

Oh, I can do karaoke with no help at all.

If you could drink a cosmo with anyone in New York, who would it be?

Patti LuPone. Hands down. I want to drink a cosmo with her and absorb all of her theatrical wisdom to carry me through this production. 

My ideal scenario: I'd invite her over to my fabulous New York apartment, and I'd have all the ingredients right there, and we'd shake it up and sit by the fire, and she'd tell me all her stories about Company, and Gypsy and Evita, and we'd just knock them down.