BWW Blog: Jessica Gould - Interview with Harvey Evans

During my week in New York, I had the amazing opportunity to interview Harvey Evans! He was a Jet in West Side Story on Broadway and in the movie, and danced alongside legends such as Gwen Verdon, Chita Rivera, and Ann Margret. Harvey was so sweet and kind to talk to, and here are my questions and his responses!

Q: What got you into performing?

A: When I was four or five, my parents thought I was shy, so they sent me to dancing school. The teacher was an old Vaudevillian, and every weekend he would take us to a show. This taught me to like performing at a young age.

Q: What was it like working with Jerome Robbins?

A: I knew that he was the king of Broadway and I knew that he was a taskmaster. I don't mess around when I work. I always try my best and attempt to understand what the choreographer wants, so Jerry was just an extension of that. Because of that, it was easy to work with him. The only times that there was a conflict was when he was mad at himself. Overall, he was great to work with and made me better.

Q: How is Broadway different from Hollywood?

A: When you're in a movie, you film such a limited part of it before you go and sit down for an hour. You don't get a sense of completion or receive a reaction. In West Side Story, before we filmed a scene that took place after "Cool", we would have to rehearse "Cool" before hand. We had to run that dance so many times that when we found out we would never have to dance it again, we burned our kneepads in front of Jerry Robbins's office. To me, Broadway is more rewarding than filming a movie.

Q: Which do you prefer, making a movie, or performing in a musical?

A: Making a movie is hard to resist. It's all of our childhood fantasies, but musicals are much more fulfilling.

Q: What have you been working on lately?

A: Not a lot. I enjoy doing little parts in projects, but I find that auditioning becomes harder as you age, especially since there are less roles for older people.

Q: What was Rita Moreno like? I love her, so I just have to know.

A: Rita was wonderful! She worked so hard in West Side Story. She was a dancer, but not in the same category as Chita was, so she had to work really hard to perform her work.

Q: What was your experience at the Tonys like?

A: It was enjoyable! Afterwards, I got to have a party with my old friends in show business, so it was really nice getting to see them again. I also thought that the Tonys handled the tragedy in Orlando really well, and James Gordon was a great host. During the commercial breaks, he would go into the audience and get everyone to sing.

That was my interview with Harvey Evans! Thank you for letting me interview you, Harvey! It was terrific having the chance to talk to a Broadway gem!