News on your favorite shows, specials & more!

BWW Exclusive: MARY POPPINS Cast Memories- Rommy Sandhu

By: Feb. 28, 2013
Get Show Info Info
Cast
Photos
Videos
Get Access To Every Broadway Story

Unlock access to every one of the hundreds of articles published daily on BroadwayWorld by logging in with one click.




Existing user? Just click login.

LATEST NEWS

Twelve Days of Christmas: Zachary Quinto & Shailene Woodley
Sam Adams From STC's LEOPOLDSTADT Takes Over Our Instagram
7 Underrated Christmas Songs From Broadway Shows
Brian Press, Original 'Chip' In BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, Has Passed Away

As the Broadway production of Mary Poppins comes to a close, we asked current and original principle cast members, as well as current cast members who have been with the show since day one, to share with us some memories and tell us what being a part of the magic has meant to them. Rommy Sandhu, who is an original and current cast member shared:

Mary Poppins has and will always be a special part of my Family. 7 years ago I was in between jobs, my wife and I were about to have our first child, and we worried how we'd be able to make a life with our new family. Mary Poppins flew in and changed our lives, forever. She brought with her; insight, struggle, growth and a good deal of love. I think that the mark of good theater is it's ability to move the audience, to change their outlook and give them some perspective. Something similar and yet very different has happened over the six and a half years we've called the New Amsterdam Theater home. Mary Poppins flew over and beyond that hope, she changed the actors, crew and orchestra telling her story. She gave us hope, reinforced our faith in the face of struggle and change, that all will be just as it should. That anything can happen if you let it.

My family has been extended, I've made friends for life. My own children will have more Aunts and Uncles than they'll be able to keep track of. I will always remember the first rehearsal (August 21 2006), meeting the company who were charged with sharing her story. I sat alongside three women and two men who became more than just fellow actors, they were/are my Brothers and Sisters. The day after each of my children was born and I went back to work, the sheer excitement in my swing family's eyes was the strength I needed to be away (albeit briefly) from my wife and child. Just as my kids have grown in number, so has our Super Swing Family. And each new member has made a special place for themselves. The love and kindness they've shown will stay with me always. There will always be funny stories, moments of frustration and shared joy. Too many and precious to isolate to a single line. I/we will cry a tear (or two) of sadness when we exit the theater after Mary's last flight over the New Amsterdam.

But as Jane and Michael reflect, "there are other families that need her." Mary says it so well, "In every job when it's complete, there is a sense of bittersweet. The moment when you know the task is done." I love you, Mary Poppins.

Mary Poppins will conclude Broadway run at The New Amsterdam Theatre Sunday, March 3, 2013 after 2619 performances and more than six years. With attendance totaling nearly four million guests, the show has been seen by more people in the last six years than any Broadway show except Wicked and The Lion King. Mary Poppins opened on Broadway in 2006, just two years after debuting in London's West End, where it had received nine Olivier Award nominations and won Olivier, Evening Standard and WhatsOnStage Awards. The Broadway production received 25 major theatrical award nominations, winning Tony and Drama Desk Awards.

Mary Poppins will rank as the 22nd longest-running show in Broadway history by the time its run is complete, ranking between Best Musical winners Hairspray and Avenue Q on the list of long runs. For tickets, visit: http://www.marypoppins.com/tickets







Videos