Lynne Page Is Using Every Kind of Dance to Tell the Story of TAMMY FAYE

Lynne Page is no stranger to Broadway. This fall, she returns for the fifth time with Tammy Faye, the much-anticipated new musical about a traveling preacher’s wife who beamed into homes with a message of hope… and stole the country’s heart.   

Page choreographs the production, which arrives following a much acclaimed run on London's West End. Along for the ride is two-time Olivier Award winner Katie Brayben (who will make her Broadway debut) joined by Christian Borle and Michael Cerveris- both new to the show. 

Lynne took a break from rehearsals to check in with BroadwayWorld and chat about how she is using dance to tell Tammy's story. 

How does it feel to be back in rehearsals? 

Well, actually I was just saying to my director, Rupert, that this will be my fifth Broadway show! I haven't been here since Ink, which was pre-COVID and feels like a lifetime ago. It feels familiar, which is surprising, but also thrilling. It's always thrilling to be back and have the privilege of doing a Broadway show. 

My understanding is that movement-wise, Tammy Faye really runs the full gamut stylistically?

I think it uses a full range of vocabulary because of course, it's very showy so I can use bits of vaudeville. I can use bits of what we would call classic musical theatre. I can use tap, which we put in there in a very sort of alternative way. But then of course it becomes a little bit more expressive because we get inside Tammy's head- there's some sequences that are dreams, and so then I can push the vocabulary right to the other end of the scale. I draw from my modern dance background. So it's sort of infused with every style of dance really.

What's the point in even doing a musical if there's not a tap number?!

Exactly. Well, there's a great sequence where [Jim]'s sort of raising money. And of course, in those days, money was quite visceral. There was the sound of money and the sound of coins. And then of course, you think you can correlate that with some of that rhythmic sound, so it all becomes one world. And the tap dancing becomes display, but it also becomes the sound of raising money. 

Obviously you've worked with Katie [Brayben] before, but Christian [Borle] is new in the room. What's it like exploring like their new dynamic? 

You know, it's a joy. We are very lucky to have Christian. Any actor of that level just brings always something original, something special, something unique. To see him make the role his own and to see him connect with Katie and move her in, not particularly different direction because her Tammy is her Tammy... but to see that new relationship and all the things that they're finding between them is a joy to watch. 

You've worked with Rupert [Gould] quite a few times now. What is it you like about collaborating with him?

I think Rupert is a director that really trusts his creatives but he also trusts dance and movement as a form of storytelling. I never feel that actually the dance is an accessory in the production. I always feel that it's a really strong and essential part of the show. And I think as a director, he trusts that dance and movement can tell the stories. And that's hugely important to me for a director to give me that trust. 

What do you think the New York audiences will be surprised to see? 

I think they'll be surprised to see the juxtaposition with the wonderful showbiz element to the show, which was obviously inspired by Tammy and Jim's TV show, but then obviously we have James Graham as our writer and he's a mastermind at delivering comedy, but with a real political twist. Some of the dialogue has incredible political significance and relevance, especially at this time. So I think that's the surprise- that you can get both in one show. You can get a tap dance in number one minute, and then you can get some political questions and things that will make the audience think. 

What are you most looking forward to in these weeks ahead, leading into previews and opening night?

Introducing Katie Brayben to New York is a thrill for me because she in an extraordinary performer. And as ever, the privilege to be able to do a new musical. They are, they're not easy things to do, but we need people to be brave and make new musicals. And so to be given that honor of being able to make one is something that I'm thrilled to bring to a New York audience.