BWW Exclusive Interview - Meet Kristin Chenoweth's White House Duet Partner Rachel Levy

Rachel Levy, a Montville, New Jersey resident, became involved in the world of theater at the young age of seven when an Off-Broadway theater troupe called Sandcastle Kids performed the show "The People Garden" at her elementary school. Since that time, she has been a member of MPAC's performing troupe in Morristown, NJ where she has been cast in such impressive roles as Eponine in LES MISERABLES. In addition to composing her own music and playing piano and guitar, she attended Berklee School of Music last summer where she performed as a cast member in IF/THEN.

However, nothing could have prepared this 17-year-old talent for the moment she found herself performing one of her favorite Broadway tunes opposite one of her biggest Broadway idols, Tony Award winner Kristin Chenoweth, on TLC's BROADWAY AT THE WHITE HOUSE. Today, Rachel speaks exclusively with BWW about that special moment which she calls, "truly a dream come true."

Can you tell us how the White House performance came about and how you found out you would be participating in this special event?

My director called me from Morristown and she said, "We have this really great experience and we want you to be a part of it." One of the producers of the show was actually familiar with shows that we've put on at MPAC in the past, so she invited us to come and sing at the White House. And we actually at first had no idea that it was a TV show, we really knew anything about it. We just thought, "Okay, we're going to have workshops at the White House with famous Broadway people. This is so cool!"

And I'm sure that in itself would have been enough!

Yeah, of course, anything would have been enough! I mean, we're going into the White House! And I found out I was going to miss school, and I was like, "Okay, great! Can't wait!" And then my director actually called us later on, I think the week before the event and said "I lied - it's a TV show!"

So at what point did you learn you would be singing a duet with Kristin?

I found out the day of the performance, when she picked me for the duet, that was sort of the moment. Nothing was sure before that, they just said that I had a possibility of being chosen, but nothing was set in stone. Everything was pretty up in the air until the day of, sort of like, let's see what happens. And then she did choose me.

Did you know beforehand which song you might be singing?

Yes, they had told us that Kristin was going to sing "For Good" and Gloria Estefan was going to do "On Your Feet", that sort of thing, so we knew the layout of the day.

I'm sure you were familiar with the song, but how prepared were you to actually perform it?

Well I'm obsessed with WICKED. I sang it in choir, I sang it when I was little. I sang it in a little Broadway workshop class, so I'm pretty familiar with the song.

Did you have any rehearsal prior to the performance?

We actually didn't rehearse. It was more like we had the workshop in the morning, and then we had lunch, and then we had a workshop with Stephen Schwartz, and then we went into the room and they told us how it was going to work, and then we did it!

So when you were about to tape your duet for the TV show, that was the first time you actually met Kristin?

Yeah!

Wow, what were you feeling at that moment?

I felt like my head was just somewhere else! I felt like I wasn't even myself, like I was dreaming. I look up to Kristin Chenoweth so much, I think she's incredible, so to be there with her was insane. It was just everything I've ever dreamed of and I was just kind of like "is this really happening?" I smiled so much my cheeks hurt.

Did you have a chance to chat with her afterwards?

I got to speak with her a little bit, she was really sweet. When we were walking off she asked me, "How are you feeling right now? Do you realize Michelle Obama just gave you a standing ovation?" And I was like, "Okay." And at the end, she whispered in my ear, "See you on Broadway!" And I couldn't find words to speak. I was just trying to TAKE IT ALL in.

Did you get to meet Michelle Obama as well?

Not personally. But I feel like I met her, because I love how she is such a big supporter of the arts and everything she said in her speech seemed so personal. And she sat right in front of me, so that was pretty cool.

What was the reaction like when you returned to school following the show?

Well, every single person who saw the show, even people I don't really know, were like "Oh my God, my whole family watched you!" And at the beginning of my classes, my teachers were like, "Everyone, did you see Rachel this weekend?" After a while it was sort of weird!

What did you take away from this whole experience that you think will help you with your career moving forward?

I took away a very different mindset, which I think is really awesome. After having workshopped with Mia Michaels and Matthew Morrison, they reassured me that you shouldn't have a fallback. Because I feel like with theater, it's really hard to say, okay I'm going to pursue theater. A lot of people tell you that you should have a fallback. And I think for a while my mindset was, of course I'm going to major in theater, but maybe I'll minor in psychology or focus on something else. But after speaking with them, and hearing Mia Michaels saying, "go for your dream" and "if it's not your passion, then it's not right" and things like that, it made me realize that I don't want to waste my time focusing on anything else, if this is what I want to be doing. So it really made theater my priority and my focus and just made me feel that I should be confident in myself.

You certainly should be - and we're pretty certain Kristin was right, we just may be seeing you on Broadway some day soon!

Below, watch Rachel Levy and Kristin Chenoweth's full performance of 'For Good' from TLC's BROADWAY AT THE WHITE HOUSE:

About Rachel Levy: Rachel Levy, a Montville, New Jersey resident, became involved in the world of theater at the young age of seven when an Off-Broadway theater troupe called Sandcastle Kids performed the show "The People Garden" at her elementary school. After viewing the show, the company announced an open call for new cast members and she begged her mother to let her audition. She was the youngest child to be chosen to perform in the troupe and acted in several roles Off Broadway in the York Theater. She was soon cast in seven episodes of "The Wonder Pets" on Nick Junior earning her membership in Sag Aftra.

Rachel continued to perform on stage earning lead roles in many shows at camp, the JCC, and MPAC. Summers were spent at theater camp at French Woods and Long Lake. This past summer Rachel attended Berklee School of Music and performed as a cast member in "if Then."

When Rachel was 11 years old, she became a participant in Saturday workshops at MPAC and then was chosen as a member of the performing troupe. Having the advantage of having an amazing director brought Rachel to a much higher level. Through Cathy Roy's great leadership, Rachel improved her skills, gained invaluable experience, and obtained the knowledge and confidence needed to get to a higher level. Cathy has been a mentor in Rachel's career. When Cathy cast Rachel as Eponine in Les Miserables, Rachel cried tears of joy. This truly was the highlight of her theater career. Through this amazing program, Rachel has also had the opportunity to sing with some of Broadway's greatest stars on the MPAC stage.

Attending Montville Township High School has afforded Rachel the opportunity to be actively involved in Choir, the Broadway Theater Club, Drama Club, School of Rock, and in their musical productions. Having Stan Dunn as her voice teacher during the past two years has been instrumental in getting Rachel to sing at a professional level. Stan taught Rachel how to use her voice as an instrument and gain more range.

Rachel composes her own music and plays piano and guitar. Her songs are deep and meaningful. She attributes her mature lyrics to her childhood which was extremely difficult due to the death of her father when she was only nine years old. Rachel's father truly was a hero to her. He was a gifted cellist who shared his love of music with her from the time she was an infant. Her mother sang to her constantly while she was growing up, making up songs to teach her educational lessons. She was brought up in a musical household. Both of her brothers are involved in the world of entertainment. Her oldest brother Steven, works as an executive assistant to writer, Dan Harmon and her brother Jordan works for Comedy Central.

Rachel truly knew her destiny from the young age of seven and will never give up on her dream. An invitation has been extended to Rachel by the NY Mets to sing the national anthem at Citi Field next year and she is extremely excited to have this opportunity. Performing at the White House in this special Broadway event means the world to Rachel. This is the highlight of her life and the pinnacle of her singing career. Singing "For Good" with Kristin Chenoweth is truly a dream come true! The talented actress is currently seeking representation.

Photos courtesy of TLC