Interview: Carman Napier Talks Bringing EVITA Back to New York with the Gallery Players

The Gallery Players present EVITA as the final musical of their 48th Season. With music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, this epic musical is directed by Mark Harborth (Rent, Dreamgirls), choreographed by Elyse Daye Hart (Dreamgirls, A Little Night Music), with music direction by Emily Croome. Carman Napier (Next to Normal) fills the title role of the Argentinian legend, with Dale Sampson (Rent) as Che, and Jonathan Mesisca making his Gallery debut as Juan Peron. EVITA opens Saturday, April 25th at 8 p.m. and runs through Sunday, May 17th, 2015. Find out more about the show and purchase tickets at galleryplayers.com.

Napier recently chatted with BroadwayWorld about her history with EVITA, the pressures of playing an iconic role and historical figure, her favorite moments in the show, and much more. Check out the full interview below!

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How have rehearsals been going so far?

Rehearsals have been going very well. It's been a while since I've been in a show with this big of a cast, so it was a little overwhelming at first, actually. So we just recently put it all together - before this week, we were pretty segregated, where the leads would be in this area and the ensemble in this area. The men have numbers that are just them and also just female numbers. So this week has been really exciting because it's the first time when we all have been all together, we get to show off what we've learned a little bit, stuff like that. So, they've been going well, and I'm excited.

What's your history with the show? Have you played the part before?

I have never played the role before. I actually got into musical theatre fairly late - kind of like end of high school. But this was one of the first musicals I really just fell in love with - really the role of Eva. The show itself, I don't consider to be perfectly done. It's hard to put that much history into an hour and a half/two hours. But, Eva, I always connected to, even before I knew I wanted to act. She's an anti-hero - you don't know if you love her or you hate her, you don't know if she's good or bad really. And I love characters like that. They're human beings too. Everybody's complex. So, I grew up knowing that score. And I saw the revival, and I remember when I first found out that Patti had done it originally, that same season I saw her in Sweeney Todd. And for me, I was so new to musical theatre, I was like, "I get to see the original Evita!" That's all I cared about. So, it has definitely been a dream come true to get to play it. Hopefully, I'll get to play it over and over again. I'm excited.

Of course Eva Peron is an iconic musical theatre role and also an historical figure. Did you feel any pressure playing a character based on a real person?

You know, what's interesting is this is my first time playing someone who actually was a real-life person. That being said, I have played a role that is really, really thought of in terms of they know an actress has played her. I did a performance of Next to Normal, and Diana - people assume Alice Ripley - that's the performance they're based off of, and I'm not trying to compare those two things - you know, an historical figure - but it's a similar feeling. You just have to go in and be like, "I wasn't there. I'm going to take the facts that we do know and feel what I think she'd feel." In reality, this girl was - I'm 25 right now - and most of her big accomplishments were made by 26. So a lot of the controversy surrounding Eva Peron, I sit there going "Oh my gosh, give her a break. She was 26! Do you really think all of this was premeditated or connived?" I really highly doubt it. So, playing the role has put a different perspective on it in terms of what she really was.

But, ultimately, I'm at a point in - you know, I'm a young artist - I'm not going to worry about that stuff. I cannot, otherwise you'll drive yourself crazy. People are going to like you, they're not going to like you. That's what art is. I just do what the text is in front of me, If you like it, you like it, and hopefully it moves you or it sparks your interest to research more.

What would you say is the most challenging aspect of the role?

I will say, it is not what I thought it was going to be. Surprisingly, it is not as challenging in terms of material as I thought it was going to be. And that probably is because I did know a lot of it before, and I connect so well to it. I will say I have 30 changes in this show, so there is literally no time to even collect your anything. If something goes wrong, you just have to keep going, which is fine, but that's actually the hardest part of it. And I think for me, right now, it's like, you have to remember the fun of it. Because once you add the technical stuff, that's when it gets stressful. And also, especially for a show like this, that really does make a lot of her character. So I would say it's challenging, but not. I mean I have to have a costume now, I have to change my wig here - well, that's not fun, but that's part of who she is. Once you put the costumes on, you're really, really in her world. And for this show, in particular - cramming ten or so years of history into that amount of hours - she has to go from a 15 year old poor girl to the top and all this stuff, so the costumes really make it, in terms of how you feel. So I would say that's the challenging part, but also, once you add those on, it really adds - you know, you're rehearsing not in a fur, you really have to feel that you're in a fur. That surprised me, I will say.

What is it like for you to sing "Don't Cry for Me Argentina," and how do you make such a famous scene like that your own?

Again, such an iconic song. What I love about that song is that I really get to sing it to people. Ultimately, that scene is about relationships, and I can look at the people I'm singing to, and that makes it easy. I will say, this show is very - that specific song, I remember feeling stressed over at the beginning. Thinking, "How much of this song was premeditated? Did she know she was going to give this speech to the crowd, or was this genuinely an 'Oh, I guess I'll speak'?" If you listen to the text, there's a lot of different ways to go with it. And there are other moments in the show that are like that as well. But in terms of actually what is it like to sing it, there is all of this chaotic music and then suddenly it's just silence and that music comes in, and it's just filled with people hanging at your every word. And to put yourself in that situation is like, "Oh my gosh." It is definitely an incredible feeling to sing that song. I cannot wait to sing that.

What are some of your favorite moments to perform in the show?

I was actually just talking about this yesterday - we did Act II straight through for the first time, and since there's no text in the show really, these songs jump from song to song, so you really have to find the acting switches within the lyrics and how the music changes your emotions internally and whatnot. So, between the songs "High Flying Adored," which really is Che's song, and talking kind of about how she has a moment of weakness, a moment of "Am I doing the right thing? Why isn't it going the way I want it to go?" But at the end of that song, she says, basically, "I'm just like anyone else. I just got lucky. But, no one else can do it like I can." And then immediately she goes into "Rainbow High," which is like her most egotistical, extravagant number. And she goes from basically breaking down to that, that is my favorite part, that internal switch that she gets to do. I love it musically and acting wise.

So that's my favorite part, and I'm going to love doing that, because, I think that's the moment for the audience, where they're like, "Wait, I just felt for her, and now I kind of feel like she's not a very nice person. I'm confused." But that's the point. That's definitely my favorite moment as of now, but if you ask me two days from now, it could be different.

What are you most excited about in bringing this show back to NYC?

I like shows that make you think. My mom would rather see something that's kind of light and fluffy, and not all the time does that actually end up having depth to it, but, I'm always going to like the show that makes you go home and say "I want to know, I want to research all of these characters and what they're based off of." So I think this is - even if I wasn't in the show right now - how one woman could captivate so many people in such a - I don't know - was it good? was it bad? - kind of way. It makes me feel like I have to know more. So bringing shows like this - it makes poeple think. And I think it's cool to make you think about life - like what would you do?

I'm just excited. I love the Gallery Players, I think they're doing really really great for New York theatre, so I'm thrilled for the opportunity.

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Carman Napier was born and raised in Louisiville, Kentucky. The daughter of two lawyers, she has always been the eccentric member of the family, re-enacting disney movies from the age of three, and making up harmonies to any tune she heard. Carman was accepted into the Youth Performing Arts School for high school, where she majored in Vocal Performance and minored in Musical Theatre. She then began to perform for theater companies around town. Carman continued to perform professionally in the Louisville area. In 2008, Carman was accepted into the musical theater program at the Boston Conservatory. She has been blessed with a wonderful education, and has been given the opportunity to peform several challenging roles. Carman graduated in 2012, and has since lived in New York City. Her recent credits include: Next To Normal (Diana), Gallery Pleyers; Hair (Sheila), The Secret Theatre; Bye, Bye, Birdie (Rosie) Reagle Music Theater; Songs For A New World (Woman 1), BOMP Productions. Carman also recently made her solo cabaret debut in Little Fish, Big Apple - which she wrote, directed, and produced. The show incorporated over 20 young artists, raised money for the Brain and Behavior Research Center, and featured the lovely Anita Gilette.