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BroadwayWorld's Debut of the Month Flashback - Where Are They Now?
By: Caryn Robbins Jul. 30, 2017
Each month, BWW profiles a talented performer making their debut on Broadway. While each actor has their own unique journey to the Great White Way, each inevitably describes the experience in similar terms - thrilling, unforgettable and surreal. Today, BWW looks back on some of those fresh-faced, up-and-comers and finds out, 'Where are they now?' (Not surprisingly, they've done quite well for themselves!)
Jessie Mueller Back in December 2011, Chicago theater actress Jessie Mueller made her Broadway debut in ON A CLEAR DAY, opposite Grammy and Emmy winning recording artist Harry Connick Jr. At the time, Ms. Mueller had impressive credentials of her own, winning the 43rd Annual Equity Jeff Award and being named 'Chicagoan of the Year' in theater by the Chicago Tribune.
On the first time she sang opposite Harry Connick Jr. for an audition: "I was just so nervous, I wasn't sure if I could concentrate. Harry started singing first and I mean I'm sure everyone in that room saw it across my face. It was just unbelievable... I had a bunch of his records, but to see and hear that sound coming out of his mouth, just a few feet away from me! I actually was like, 'Wow, now I have to sing!"
On her Broadway dream role: "I feel like I'd like to do anything and everything from INTO THE WOODS. I'd like someday to play Mama Rose. I'd like to play Fanny Brice and I'd love to do some more plays. I haven't done a play in a couple of years."
On Making her Broadway debut: "It was such a wild crowd, with such a great energy in the audience that night that it was a thrill - it was really thrilling. I tried to concentrate on what I was doing but there was a little part of my mind that was in touch with what was going on and that this was my debut and it only happens once so I tried to take it all in!"
Where is she now?: Mueller went on to receive a Tony nomination for her role in ON A CLEAR DAY. In 2013 she joined the cast of NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET, followed by a run in 2013's THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD. The actress went on to win the 2014 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her star turn in BEAUTIFUL: THE Carole King MUSICAL. In 2016, she played the lead role of Jenna in the musical WAITRESS on Broadway, receiving a third Tony nomination. She will next grace the Broadway stage in the upcoming revival of CAROUSEL.
Read the 'Debut' interview in full here
Paul Nolan: Talk about some big shoes to fill! In 2012, Paul Nolan made his Broadway debut as none other than 'Jesus Christ' in The Stratford Shakespeare Festival's production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR. The actor originated the role at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival as well as at the La Jolla Playhouse.
On getting his big break while singing in the shower: "That was simply luck. Complete and utter luck. I was hanging around in Toronto, working at a Starbucks and trying to get work as an actor. I was living with my sister who had broken her ankle so she had to hold meetings out of her house. She was having a meeting to plan a professional fundraiser with a board member from the Randolph Academy of Musical Theater, and he heard me singing in the shower. He didn't stick around to meet me but he told my sister he'd call later and talk to me about the school and that they were having auditions and that I should go. So I did!"
On taking on the role of the iconic religious figure:" I don't feel pressure to be everybody's Jesus because obviously that's not possible. But I do feel a sense of, I don't think responsibility is the right word, more a sense of privilege playing him and I do respect that I'm playing him. There's no part of me that would ever set out to be irreverent ever."
On making his Broadway debut: "You know, I'm not one to bask in the limelight of what I'm doing and I have to say that I haven't always been that way. There probably would have been one time in my career, maybe even as early as five to seven years ago, where I would have loved all the attention. But honestly I was pretty overwhelmed that night because there were so many people congratulating us and pulling us in every direction. It was pretty overwhelming."
Where is he now? Following his leading role in 'SUPERSTAR', Nolan went on to star as 'Guy' in the Tony-winning musical ONCE. In 2015, he appeared in the original musical DOCTOR ZHIVAGO, before moving on to the role of Jimmy Ray Dobbs in BRIGHT STAR. Most recently he appeared on Broadway as Billy Flynn in CHICAGO. Nolan will soon lead the cast of the Jimmy Buffett musical ESCAPE TO MARGARITAVILLE on Broadway as island bartender-singer Tully. He originated the role in the musical's world premiere at La Jolla Playhouse earlier this year.
Read the 'Debut' interview in full here
Alex Sharp Fresh off of his graduation from Julliard, Alex Sharpe made his Broadway debut in 2015's THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME, taking on the challenging role of Christopher, a 15-year-old who has an extraordinary brain, is exceptionally intelligent but is ill-equipped to interpret everyday life.
On making both his Broadway debut and professional acting debut at the same time: "Well I was still at Julliard, I hadn't graduated yet, and I didn't have an agent or a manager. But Kathy Hood at Julliard administration had sort of recommended me to [casting director] Daniel Swee and also a friend of mine who was a reader in the room recommended me, so I kind of got in there through friends really. Very lucky!"
On bringing his own unique childhood experiences to the role of Christopher: "I bring everything I have as Alex, anything I can possibly use I bring to Christopher. Because when you have a character who's so complex and beautiful and feels like there is endless discovery to be done, you just have to keep digging and using what you have. But also, I struggled a lot in school for various reasons and I use those challenges I had in school as well."
On making his Broadway debut: "I don't know how to describe it. I thought I was going to be sick, and pass out at the same time! And I had no idea, you know we had done so much work, but I had no idea how it was going to be received, so I was very nervous, very nervous. Yes, that was a night that I will never forget!"
Where is he now? Sharp went on to win the Tony Award for Best Lead Actor in a Play for 'CURIOUS INCIDENT', the youngest recipient of the prize in that category. He will soon be seen on the big screen in John Cameron Mitchell's HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS AT PARTIES opposite Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning and can currently be seen in the Netflix original movie TO THE BONE.
Read the 'Debut' interview in full here
Phillip Boykin In 2012, Phillip Boykin made his Broadway debut in the role of 'Crown' in The Gershwin's PORGY AND BESS, opposite Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis. Boykin originated the role in the production's sold-out world premiere engagement at Boston's American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.).
On listening to the PORGY AND BESS cast recording as a young boy in South Carolina: "My uncle had the album of the High Performance of Porgy and Bess with William Warfield and Leontyne Price on the cover and I began to sing after listening to that album. I wanted to be a singer... I played that record over and over and tried to sing the songs and all of that. That's how it started and it's quite amazing that I'm making my Broadway debut in that same show."
On playing the villain: "It's so funny because Crown is so far from my own personality. And I actually use that character as therapy sometimes - yes! You know sometimes when things don't go your way you want to just scream and be mad at the world? Well I get to do that through Crown."
On getting physical with co-star Audra McDonald: "In the scene in which I have to change Bess' mind about me and about what she's feeling toward Porgy, I have to hold her tightly. When we first starting to do it in Cambridge, I lifted her for maybe two or three weeks and I injured my left shoulder. So then to compensate, I started holding her with my right arm and injured my right shoulder! So by the end of the run up there, both shoulders had been injured... But I've been fine ever since. And everything else between us is just wonderful kisses. Audra's a good kisser!"
On making his Broadway debut: "I had been dreaming of being on Broadway forever, forever. And when it finally happened it was just overwhelming. When we had the Gypsy Robe ceremony, they asked all of the people making their debuts to come to the center of the stage. From the moment I got there, I started crying. I was just bawling. I was thinking about the years of dreaming and praying and hoping and wishing that I would get into a Broadway show. All the auditions that I did, hiring coaches, hiring acting coaches, I didn't think it would happen. And it all came together at that one moment at the Gypsy Rose ceremony."
Where is he now? Boykin went on to receive a Tony nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical for PORGY AND BESS. In 2014, he starred in the Tony-nominated revival of ON THE TOWN. Last summer he appeared in the Barrington Stage Company's production of PIRATES OF PENZANCE. Most recently he appeared on Broadway opposite Jake Gyllenhaal in the revival of SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE. As BWW just announced, Boykin will take on the role of Tonton Julian in the upcoming Broadway revival of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND.
Read the 'Debut' interview in full here
Phillipa Soo In 2015, Phillipa Soo starred as Eliza Hamilton in The Public Theatre's off-Broadway production of HAMILTON, receiving the Lortel Award for her performance. She went on to reprise the role for her Broadway debut later that year.
On whether she had any inclination that HAMILTON would become a cultural phenomenon "I mean I knew about the talents of Lin [Manuel Miranda] and Tommy [Kail] and Andy [Blankenbuehler] and Alex [Lacamoire] and because of the success of 'HEIGHTS' I was eager to work with them, but it was when I really got into the room with them, that I was like, 'Oh, this is a magical room to be in!' The way that these guys are able to work together and create work was really inspiring to me and I was just really excited to be in that creative space with them."
On learning Miranda's challenging musical score: "While it definitely asks a lot of skill of the actor, it's so well done that once you learn the music and learn the rhythm, it soon becomes a part of you and it really flows with the rest of the story. You know, now it's almost like second nature to me, so I'm trying to think back to the first time that I was learning these songs and was trying to connect the inner tissue and the fabric and the inner workings to try to get it into my body, because it was something that definitely challenged me, but was also very exciting."
On making her Broadway debut: "It was definitely so thrilling and just overwhelming and I had a lot of support from my loved ones who were there that night, and it was really, really special to be able to share that moment with everyone. You know, it wasn't just my own experience, it was the experience for the handful of other people who were doing their debuts, who I was so excited for, and everybody else who was witnessing that. So it was a very special night and I'm so happy that it all happened this way!"
Where is she now? Soo went on to receive a Tony nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for HAMILTON. This season, she took on the titular role of the original Broadway musical AMELIE. In 2016, she lent her voice to various characters in the Disney movie MOANA.
Read the 'Debut' interview in full here
Photo credits: Joan Marcus
Porgy & Bess Photo Credit: Michael J. Lutch
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