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Lincoln
Center Theater (under
the direction of André
Bishop, Artistic
Director, and Bernard
Gersten, Executive
Producer) will continue
its 20th
Anniversary season with
THE LIGHT IN THE
PIAZZA, a new
musical with book by
Craig Lucas, music and
lyrics by Adam Guettel
and direction by
Bartlett Sher. Previews
for <p> begin
Thursday, March 17 at
8pm n the Vivian
Beaumont Theater (150
West 65 Street).
Opening night is Monday,
April 18 at 6:45pm.
THE LIGHT IN
THE PIAZZA,
based on
the novella by Elizabeth
Spencer, is set in the
summer of 1953 and tells
the story of a mother
and daughter traveling
through Italy, the
daughter’s romance with
a handsome,
high-spirited
Florentine, and the
mother’s determined
efforts to keep the two
apart.
THE LIGHT
IN THE PIAZZA’s cast of 18 will include
Glenn Seven Allen,
Michael Berresse, Sarah
Uriarte Berry, David
Bonanno, David Burnham,
Victoria Clark, Patti
Cohenour, Beau Gravitte,
Laura Griffith, Mark
Harelik, Prudence Wright
Holmes, Jennifer Hughes,
Felicity LaFortune,
Catherine LaValle,
Michel Moinot, Matthew
Morrison, Kelli O'Hara
and Joseph Siravo.
Where were you born.
I am an Army Brat.
I was born at Ft.
Ord
Army base in Northern California.
What was the moment you realized your passion was acting?
I did a
children's theater show called "The
Herdman's Go to Camp". (I think
that they made it up!) It was when
I was visiting family in Arizona
when I was about 10 years old.
Anyway, It was just a bunch of kids
on stage singing and dancing and I
had the time of my life.
Who is your mentor?
I've had
several in my life. In High School
there were two teachers who really
paved the way for me and encouraged
me to stick with theater. Their
names were David Green and Ralph
Opacic. As of late, I've been
fortunate enough to have mentors in
the shows I've done. Dick Latessa,
from Hairspray, was and is still a
great mentor to me. And while
working on the film Once Upon a
Mattress, Denis O'Hare was there to
offer invaluable advice to me. I
think the greatest thing about these
mentors is that they wouldn't call
themselves mentors. They are just
amazing human beings who don't even
know that they are inspiring people
all around them. I feel lucky to
have been in their presence.
Let's
talk about "Hairspray". Tell me what
it is like to work with the one and
only Harvey.
Hairspray was
the show that put me on the map and
I wouldn't be where I am today
without it. I loved every second
with that show and the amazing cast
that surrounded it. Harvey was like
a father, and of course, a mother to
us all. We still talk on a regular
basis and he is proud of me like I
was his very own son.
Tell me
about Rocky Horror. What was it like
to work with Tom Hewitt?
I was a
replacement in Rocky, so I didn't
get to work with Tom Hewitt. I got
to do the show with Terrance Mann,
which was a little more exciting for
me because I've always been such a
big fan of his. Rocky was like a
big playground. I couldn't believe
that I was getting paid to go to
work every night.
I heard
you like extreme sports. Do you have
any other hobbies?
I do love
extreme sports like skydiving. I
just picked up boxing not to long
ago. Had a bout with my roommate
last November. We both trained for
3 months and then went a couple
rounds. It was really intense.
When I'm in a show though, I take up
less strenuous hobbies like reading
and taking in movies!
How did
you prepare for Piazza. You go from
Teen heartthrob via Elvis to Opera
star. How did you prepare?
Piazza was the hardest thing that
I've ever taken on
thus far
in my career. I met with friends
who spoke fluent Italian, and even
some Italian natives. I just wanted
to be enveloped in the language.
Then I had to work really hard on my
voice to get the sound that they
wanted for this show. More of a
legit
operatic sound with pop
under
tones. It's nowhere near
perfect yet, but I'm happy to say
that I pass for an Italian!
Tell me
about Jerry Mitchell. The dancing in
"Hairspray" is miraculous. Were you
exhausted after 8 shows a week?
Jerry Mitchell is a crazy talented
individual. I've been lucky to work
on many projects with him and I
expect to collaborate on many more
in the future. It's weird, I'm a
lot more exhausted after Piazza than
I ever was in Hairspray. In Piazza, it's
vocally and emotionally demanding.
Hairspray was just physically
demanding. I have pretty good
stamina, so it wasn't that tiring
for me.
The
chemistry between you and your
leading ladies is exceptional. Tell
me are you and Kelli in love? (Do
you hear the bells)
I really do fall in love
with my leading ladies. I think the
offstage relationship is vital to
building 'real' chemistry
on stage.
I just respect the ladies that I
work with so much. It didn't matter
if
Marissa and I were fighting
or laughing offstage. We knew what
we needed from
each
other when we got onto that
stage and we respected that.
Kelli
is the same way, and it will just
get stronger the more we perform
together.
Who do
you most admire?
My friends. They are the strongest,
most loyal group that anyone could
ask for. They keep me grounded and
sane. I don't know where I would be
without them.
What is next?
Nothing that I'm
allowed to
talk about right now. But I do have
a TV movie called "Once Upon a
Mattress" starring Carol Burnett and
Tracey
Ullman
coming out sometime in December on
ABC.
Any other passions or dreams?
I'm living my dream. If I could do
anything else though, I would want
to be a midwife, like my father.
I read
that you loved Assassins. Is that
still your favorite show?
Still my favorite show. I love this
show more that anything.
Would you
like to star in Assassins?
I actually did the show in High
School and I played John Wilkes
Booth. I would love to do the show
and the part again someday when I'm
age appropriate.
THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA
will be performed Tuesday
through Saturday evenings at
8pm, with matinees Wednesday and
Saturday at 2pm and Sundays at
3pm. (There is no matinee on
Saturday, March 19.) Tickets,
priced from $65 to $90, are
available at the Lincoln Center
Theater box office, by calling
Tele-Charge at (212) 239-6200 or
by visiting
http://www.lct.org/. |
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