Interview: Cessalee Stovall Is Helping Teens Follow Their Dreams with Music Dance Theatre Workshops

Cessalee Stovall has been chasing her Broadway dreams since she was 10 years old and she still hasn't stopped. After booking The Book of Mormon, her NYC dreams were finally realized! Then, she decided to give back. She started the Music Dance Theatre Workshops to help teenagers get on the right path to realize their own Broadway dreams.

BroadwayWorld recently chatted with Cessalee about her journey to Broadway, working on The Book of Mormon, and creating Music Dance Theatre Workshops. Check out the full interview below!

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What was the first show that you saw? What gave you the hook into the world of theater?

The first show I saw was Chicago, when it came though Indianapolis. I remember that being the moment where I was like, 'I want to do this!' The women were so strong and fierce and I fell in the love.

How old were you at the time?

I think that must have been when I was 13 or 14. I was definitely in high school. I took acting classes when I was younger though I never really understood that it could be a career or a profession until I saw Chicago. We went with my high school International Thespian Society. It was probably '96 or '97.

What first got you interested in theater to join a troop and take these acting classes?

A teacher told my Mom that I talked too much in school and I needed an outlet for my energy. My mom took me out of a gymnastics class that I was failing miserably in and put me in the drama class, which was down the hall in the same building. I fell in love with it. I loved performing, I loved people clapping at the end. I loved the safety of being able to be creative and explore. I did that though 8th grade and then in high school I really started doing more of the plays and the musicals. At that point I had taken dance classes separately and sang in a church choir and I had been taking these acting classes, but it really wasn't until high school that I understood the concept of putting all three of those things together into one individual show or job or project.

How encouraging were the teachers that you had in school?

I have been so incredibly blessed with amazing teachers all around me. My first acting teacher, Ms. Kaufman, taught us Hamlet's speech to the players and made us recite it weekly! And I definitely credit my AP English teacher for allowing me to realize my dream of working professionally. Her husband was the Artistic Director of a Cabaret theatre and she encouraged me (and nudged her husband to allow me) to audition for my first professional show. That was during my senior year of high school and my first taste of performing and getting paid for it. $25 a show, four shows a week. But I've always had great teachers, the Indianapolis theater community is amazing. There are just such devoted people who just love making great theater. I didn't realize how lucky I was until I left Indianapolis. There are several wonderful community theaters and great high school programs and ways for you to get on stage and learn the ropes. I would not be where I am if I did not have such dedicated people in my life from a young age.

You continued to study theater in college?

Yeah! I went to Florida State and I actually graduated with a BA in theater arts and english literature. College was a really great learning lesson for me. I wanted to be in the BFA program and I auditioned before I got to school, when I got to school,and then again after my freshman year and I never got it. I think that was the best things that could've happened for my career and my life. I learned that I wasn't ready to take no for an answer. I figured out pretty quickly that there were going to be SO many more 'Nos' in this business than there were going to be 'Yeses.' I'm so thankful for Florida State, I think it's a great program, but a BFA wasn't my path. It wasn't meant for me, but I'm so proud of the lessons I learned from that time in my life.

How did you find your way to New York?

New York, for me, sort of didn't permanently happen for quite a long time. For about 3 years after college, I kept "moving to NYC." I would take all my stuff in a suitcases or two, telling myself I'm going to live and work in NYC. But before I could get settled, I would book a gig outside of NYC. So, For a few years after college, I worked in regional theaters, dinner theaters, cruise ships, then I moved to Chicago and I was thereon and off for about 4 years. I finally made my way back to NYC at the end of 2011. And I finally just said I was moving and I wasn't going to do out of town jobs but then Book of Mormon called.

What was the Book of Mormon experience like?

Awesome! There are so many layers and levels to the show that go so much deeper than the humor on the surface. It was a great experience to get to work with Casey Nicholaw, Steven Oremus, Trey Parker, and Matt Stone, these guys are geniuses! To create these characters and bring their stories to life with an incredible cast, to be able to perform a show that brings people to their feet 8 times a week, I don't think you can ask for a better job as an actor. So, it was great. It was everything. You walk out of the theater on a high. You are at the top of the game and it was amazing.

What inspired you to start teaching?

In 2010, I was hired to play Kala in the regional premiere of Tarzan at Tuacahn Amphitheatre. Long story short, I went out to Utah and fell in love with this place and a boy at the same time,so I decided I was going to maybe try and live there for a while. There was a teacher at one of the high schools that was getting her PhD and she needed a long-term substitute to teach her classes while she was finishing off this portion of her degree. It just happened to time out right for me, andI was hired to teach 6-12th grade dance in the school. Before that opportunity, I had taught masterclasses here and there, and had taught in dance studios, but had never spent much time teaching fine arts in academia I found that my students were coming to my office hours, not with questions about classes or help with choreography, but with questions about life. How do I get paid to perfom? How do I move to LA or New York? What's it like to audition for Broadway? What should my resume look like? All of these questions were the same questions I had at their age and there was an opportunity to be a source of experience and encouragement that I remember craving as a student. So, that's how MUSIC DANCE THEATRE WORKSHOPS started!

How has Music Dance Theatre Workshops evolved since it started?

Well, it has evolved a lot. It started out with a masterclass format for kids anywhere from about 10-18 years old. Then we concentrated on the high school age. So, for the last 4 years all of our workshops have been geared towards students who are 13-18 and have decided that they want to pursue a career in the arts. We are not a company that teaches you how to sing or teaches you how to dance, I trust very much in the actual teachers and educators, to do a great job of that. Our goal, is to show that there is a pathway to a professional career in the arts. We want to encourage students who would like to pursue the arts as a career and not just a hobby. Our high school program, PERFORMER PREP, has a great mix of learning career fundamentals and also having a fun time with musical theatre!

We also offer a program called ARTISTS IN THE CLASSROOM. With this program, we work with teachers and administrators to create an in-school field trip that will not only meet your state's Academic Standards, but will also be a fun and exciting, hands-on experience for students. These workshops can be tailored for drama, music, speech and debate, English or other fine arts classes.

New in 2016, we are introducing our college program, BFA TO BROADWAY. This program helps bridge the gap between your BFA and the big city. We aren't teaching you how to sing or dance, your teachers have already taught you that. We talk about things like, what is a dance audition like? What do you wear? What do you sing at a singers call? What does it mean when they say 'pop contemporary?' We teach a business class. What's a 401K? When do you join the union? How much does it cost? What are the pro and cons? We bring in a headshot photographer who talk about how you get the most out of your sessions. What should your headshot look like for NYC vs. Chicago vs. LA? BFA to Broadway is about taking the last step on the path to becoming a working performer.

And clearly, it isn't just for BFA's because I am a BA myself, but we really focus on encouragement to become a professional, encouragement to keep going, encouragement to turn your dreams into reality. Yes, these dreams take work, talent and direction, but they can be achieved. It's possible. This life is possible. You would not have been able to convince 10 year old me that in 20 years, I would be performing in one of the biggest Broadway shows of the decade. I didn't know that was possible. I love the idea of helping people see what is possible.

What has the student reaction been?

It has been great. It's amazing to have a student call to tell you that they got into college because someone taught them something in the audition workshop that they never knew, or someone told them to change their song, or not look the auditors in the eye, or thank the accompanist! We had a student who got accepted to 4 BFA programs last year. That is SO awesome. We're very proud of our students and their accomplishments!

What about online classes? Is that coming in the future?

We currently offer Skype lessons. Generally speaking we reserve those for students that have taken a workshop. Once they have a comfort level with an instructor, we create a pathway to maintain communication with them. t's hard to teach someone over the Internet. It's hard to do something in a video when you don't know that person or don't know what they are capable of, but we may offer some of our classes online in the future.

Talk about who some of the other teachers are that have also joined the program.

Sure! We've got a wonderful roster of teaching artists. David F.M. Vaughn is my business partner and he's a Broadway vet by way of Shrek all the way through the National Tour and Broadway. He's been bi-coastal between LA and NYC for the last few years working as a writer, director, and actor, so he's really great because he's able to offer commentary from of the other side of the table. Ryan Reilly is one of our other teaching artists who recently made the move from NYC to LA, but he's spent a good amount of his career in Chicago. He's a really great source for us in the Business of the Business classes and the Moving to the Big City classes because he has lived in all 3 of the major metropolitan cities and has been an actor and working director in all three.

Our vocal team is just as dynamic! One of our certified teaching artists, LaDonna Burns is on the faculty as a pop/rock instructor at the New York Film Academy, Musical Theater program using Sheri Sanders method. Another one of teachers, Melody Betts, she just finished doing Invisible Thread Off-Broadway and is a powerhouse singer with an MFA in Acting. Michael Thomas Murray has done music direction for several Off-Broadway shows and regional theatre.

And then we've got a few awesome wild cards to round out our team. Caitlainne Gurreri and Ben Mapp both bring a great deal of film/tv and commercial experience to teach our on camera audition classes. Caitlainne also is an established photographer and Ben is one of the best tappers I've ever seen! We have Zach Frank who works frequently as a choreographer for NYC area high school musical theatre departments so he has great first hand feedback about moving from high school to college and beyond.

And a few of our teaching artists come out to teach when they can! Some are currently busy on Broadway or advocating for students in different ways, but we all share a passion for this awesome life we've chosen. And we agree, there is nothing better than seeing a dream come true.

Originally from Indianapolis, Cessalee Stovall discovered her love for performing in her 4th grade production of The Pied Piper of Hamlin Town and she hasnt stopped since! She graduated Florida State in three years with a BA and before her commencement ceremony could begin, she was off to work. Her time since college has been filled with several tours, cruise ships, regional theatre productions (including two Regional Premiers), a plethora of Cabaret and benefit shows, and more karaoke nights than should be legally allowed! Stovall is known for her work in The Book of Mormon. In addition to performing, Cessalee has devoted a large portion of her time and energy to her business, Music Dance Theatre Workshops! She created this program to bring professional performers from New York to aspiring artists across the country.