BWW INTERVIEWS: Gavin Lee Talks 'MARY POPPINS' on Tour

Gavin Lee first took his bow as the beloved character of Bert five years ago when "Mary Poppins" began its first previews at the Bristol Hippodrome in England. Since then, he has performed the role at London's Prince Edward Theatre, New York's legendary New Amsterdam Theatre and, beginning Friday, will be taking his bows on the stage at Cleveland's State Theatre in Playhouse Square.

For those with an extremely sheltered childhood, "Mary Poppins" tells the story of two rambunctious English children who are taught magical lessons about life by the title character (played by Ashley Brown, who originated the role on Broadway) to the Oscar-winning music of the Disney masterpiece. Mary's partner-in-crime is the charming jack-of-all-trades Bert, and together with the children they navigate a world filled with moving statues, evil nannies and lots of dancing chimney-sweeps.

Lee stopped by BroadwayWorld to talk about performing as Bert for five years, seeing America for the first time (he's a native Brit) and those really tight harnesses he has to wear every night.

What has kept the character of Bert and the show so fresh for you these past five years?

On a day-to-day basis, sometimes I really don't want to go in and be 'cheeky' Bert every night. But I can always step back and look at the whole picture and realize how lucky I am to be in such a great show with a great part. That's part of the reason I keep signing on for more; while I was on Broadway I don't think there was a better male role in a musical.

The other thing is that it is your job to keep it fresh. You have to go out there every night, even if you've got a bit of a hangover or you aren't in the mood, and you have to remember that the audience is seeing it for the first time. There are no excuses. I can't stand lazy actors who aren't pulling their weight. There are so many thousands of us in New York auditioning-and that's why I have to pull it out of the bag every night.

Aside from New York City, is this the first time you are getting to see so much of the United States?

I've been to Florida a few times to go to Disney World and visit my father, who used to live there, but that and New York is all I've seen. This is going to be great. I've never seen a job that gives you the opportunity to travel like this. I've always wanted to do a road trip across the States, and now I'm getting to do it. Chicago is a great town and I'll be really upset to leave it.

What is surprising you the most about American audiences?

I remember my very first performance in New York. I was just amazed at the volume and noise that the American audience makes at the end of a number or the show. English audiences are very reserved and will clap politely and we might get a standing ovation half the week. But without fail, every show in New York got a standing ovation and it's the same here in Chicago.

I'm kind of like the old man at this now since I've had three opening nights. It was great to see the cast's reaction after the first show because they go "they are just loving it and lapping it up!"

And it's true. American audiences aren't afraid to show their appreciation.

Let's talk about the tour version of the show.

We were really lucky with the tour. The creative team obviously felt that, if they were going to take the show out on tour, the whole of the country should see what people are seeing in New York. They didn't cut back. Bob Crowley, the designer, completely redesigned the house to turn around and open up like a picture book. But none of the magic or spectacular elements of the show have gone.

Who has the more painful harness for the special effects: you or Ashley Brown?

Once you get used to the harness you can get it comfortable for you. Then it's okay. Every production I've done has had a new harness and a new automation company. Every harness has been very different in shape and look, and then you get used to it and tighten it in the right places and make it snug in the shoulders or the hips-sometimes I need more padding on my hips (laughs)-but then it's fine. It becomes just another part of the show now and I'm used to it.

Tell me about meeting Julie Andrews.

We had a special night for her and she was so gracious and lovely. She met the girl who played Mary and I in London The Day Before, and we just talked with her for twenty minutes. She was everything you'd want her to be: Lovely, polite, funny, beautiful-just practically perfect in every way. At the end of the show she walked onstage and talked about how Mary Poppins had been her role for the past forty years and now she felt like she could pass it on.

It was a great honor to meet her and I was just so taken with her. Hopefully the same will happen and I'll be able to meet Dick Van Dyke in LA. It would be a dream come true for me.

What other celebrities have come to see the show?

I'm a big fan of Conan O'Brien and he came to see us in New York. He came backstage afterward and me and Ashley got to meet him. It was so cool to meet him.

There were other celebrities as well, but we are hoping that in LA there will be some famous film star with their kids wanting to meet us after the show.

Let's talk about your partner-in-crime Ashley Brown.

I can't stand the girl. When she said she was doing the tour as well, I almost just said "Forget it!" (laughs)

When she got the role she went to London for a week to meet me and see the show. She also wanted to get as 'British' as possible in a week's time. So we met and instantly got on with one another. We are partners-in-crime because we get along really well offstage.

We were asked by the director to come up with what our relationship was. I always say that Mary comes from a different world and is a spirit who comes down on her umbrella. Bert is just a normal guy who is infatuated with her. Whenever she comes down and asks her for help, he's there 100%. Whenever she says goodbye, she gives him a kiss on the cheek and that just makes his day. He knows that she'll be back at some point and he'll help her again.

Both you and Mary are have mysterious origins in the show. You mentioned where you think Mary comes from, but what about Bert? Where do you think he comes from?

He's just a regular jack-of-all-trades. He'll sweep the chimneys or busk and paint in the park. Only when she arrives can he really come alive and do the magic he does in the show. He normally can't walk on walls or pull flowers out of paintings. Also I think in "Step in Time" all the chimney sweeps are the same because we are all just in awe of her and are so happy she is there. Bert is just one of thousands of chimney sweeps all over the world that she could pick at any time. It just so happens that our show is the one where she asks Bert to help her. She could have asked Hank or Bob or anyone else. We just have to wait our turn.

But Bert is her favorite, right?

Oh, of course. She always asks me more than anyone else.

The show has changed a bit since its inception back in 2004-05. The tone was lightened a bit for Broadway and now the set has been redesigned for the tour. What other changes have there been?

I think it's nice that the creative team comes back every time we do a new production, and then every now and then they'll come to see the show again. 

The tour script had lots of tiny little changes in it. It's kind of settled now and I doubt it won't change much more. But it's nice that little things are being changed. There is a new 'toys' song on the tour, very similar to "Temper Temper" but it has a different tempo and Mary is in the number now. That was done to make more sense of why the number happens, but other than that there weren't a lot of changes.

What's your favorite Disney movie?

I'm a big fan of the Pixar movies. Back in the '90s a girlfriend of mine dragged me to see "Beauty and the Beast" and I hadn't seen a Disney movie since I was ten. I remember walking out thinking it was such a good movie. It wasn't even that it was just great animation, it was so well-written with such great songs.

What makes "Poppins" such a special show to you?

What "Mary Poppins" has going for it is that every generation of the family will hopefully get something from one of the characters- especially the dads. They probably get dragged along to see the show, but when they leave, I hope that they have really connected with George Banks, because the show is really George Banks' story. It's not Mary's story. It's not Bert's story. It's about this man and everything is falling apart around him. He can't connect with his wife, his kids are running all around him and he's about to lose his job at the bank. So when dads leave the show, hopefully they will be able to connect with that character and see the show as more than just 'song and dance'!

"Mary Poppins" premiers at Cleveland's State Theatre tomorrow, July 17, and runs through August 9^th. Check back tomorrow for an interview with cast member Dominic Roberts, Saturday for an interview with Mary herself, Ashley Brown, and read the BroadwayWorld review of the show Monday. Tickets are available online at www.playhousesquare.com.