Spring (Awakening) Fever: An Interview with Lea Michele

And, just a couple of days later, they were having an open call for young Cosette in Les Miz in my town and she wanted to go audition and her father unfortunately got very ill the night before. Her mother asked if we would take her since it was such a huge dream of hers, and for whatever reason I decided that I wanted to audition as well. I had been listening to the soundtrack of Phantom non-stop and had memorized "Angel of Music". I went in and sang at the open call "Angel of Music" a cappella and I ended up booking it right then and there and that's what started it all for me.

How long did you do Les Miserables for? 

I did Les Miz for a year and a half till I outgrew it, which is what happened with most young Cosettes. I think that I left Les Miz on like August 1st or something like that and took a week's vacation with my family. I came back, auditioned for Ragtime and was literally on a plane to move to Canada by the 30th of August. We packed up our bags, my mother and I, and we left for Toronto. It was literally one thing right into the next.

I already had the amazing luck and blessing to move from one great thing to something new, which was also great in its own special way. The great thing about starting off in Les Miz is that being a young Cosette is really a great way of stepping in to the business because you learn so much so quickly. The size of the role, the amount of work that they put on me was just enough. I also was lucky to have people like our stage manager and Richard Jay-Alexander and my conductor and fellow cast members of Les Miz so it was like a lesson right there that got me to understand what I was doing since I basically came into this with nothing, knowing actually nothing about theatre or acting or anything. Neither did my family - we didn't know anything!

So, coming in to Ragtime, I had a pretty good foundation that Les Miz gave me and then I was able to work with Audra McDonald, Marin Mazzie, Peter Friedman and Brian Stokes Mitchell. They are the most amazing actors in my opinion on Broadway and they just taught me everything that I know now and it was also really special to me being in Canada with them for a year.

What did you learn from them?

Anybody will tell you when you do a show on the road or out of town that you bond with the cast members more because they're there so much more and it's all that you had. I was really at a very vulnerable age and I was just like a sponge taking everything in and I remember little things like I'd be warming up backstage and I remember Audra McDonald, coming back stage and saying "make sure when you warm up…" and I remember her putting her hands around my diaphragm and saying I want you to take a deep breath in and she would teach me how to extend my diaphragm and tell me what scales to do. Peter Friedman taught me about being on time, and being ready for your cue and how to behave on stage. And Marin taught me how to have fun and she taught me how to laugh and to not be so hard on yourself. All those little things were my lessons and I got them without taking singing lessons, acting lessons - those were my teachers and I owe everything to them. That was Ragtime for me basically.

While I did workshops of Spring Awakening during my freshman, sophomore and junior year of high school I wasn't really auditioning very much because I wanted to give myself in high school time to focus on school and I wanted to just have a normal high school life for a little while. I was in and out of school so much moving to Canada and for the rehearsal process for Ragtime so I really just wanted to have a nice, solid few years in High School which was great because I'd do workshops of Spring Awakening sporadically but I was able to still be in school. It wasn't until my summer before the senior year of high school that I booked Fiddler on the Roof and that was my 3rd Broadway show and it was pretty unbelievable because there was like a 3 year gap between Ragtime and Fiddler and it reminded me that there was still something there and I shouldn't give up - that I could not work for 3 years and it was still there for me.

When Fiddler came it was a big deciding point in my life. I had just been accepted into NYU, and I was just about to graduate and to head to college so it was a real deciding factor for me - which way is your life going to go? The college route and act a little bit on the side and major in law or something or are you just going to really give yourself to this? And that's what I decided to do. When I graduated I got an apartment in the city and I decided to not go to NYU and I've been working from then on.

That sounds very well thought out, what came next?

I did Fiddler and when I left Fiddler, I did the Diary of Anne Frank for a while. All throughout, I continued to do workshops of Spring Awakening. We did the Lincoln Center workshop almost 2 years ago now and then I booked Spring Awakening at the Atlantic and I've been there since.

From that moment on, things kept getting better and better until we froze the show on Broadway. Our reviews at the Atlantic were good, but they were just enough for us to say, ok, we know what we have to do. I was so amazed that Michael Mayer, Duncan and Steven took those notes and just put it together so, so beautifully. I can't begin to express to you enough the sheer and utter joy to be a part of this production. I think that every single person, and not only the three main people, every person is such a brilliant creative team. Everyone works together so well and they were able to make the changes and they were able to grow and work together and everyone rose to the occasion when we got to Broadway and put together this piece.

They had some pretty weird ways of casting the show. Some were found through regular casting, and others like Lauren Pritchard were found on MySpace so they really looked all over and in different kinds of places, so I hand it to God that everyone was placed together. It's the most extraordinary talented group of actors that I have just the honor of performing with every night and we have 2 talented actors - Stephen Spinella and Chrstine Esterbrook whom are a joy to work with every single night. They go along the lines of the other amazing actors that I've gotten to work with as just other amazing teachers for us.

I couldn't believe it. I was freaking out because Sarah Jessica Parker was there and I felt that every day there have been moments where it kind of hits me because our cast is so engulfed in the show still and we're working so hard on our performances that it's hard for us to stop and think oh my god, can you believe that all of this is happening, which is good because we shouldn't really be focusing on that stuff. But when you go to Virgin Megastore and you see tons of fans holding signs and you see Sarah Jessica Parker at the show, it's little things like that that make you go "Oh My God! Thank God so much for this amazing blessing."

Have any other favorite celebs been by?

Steven Spielberg also came last week. I'm waiting for Alanis Morrisette or Madonna and once they come, I'm set. I know that Jonathan Groff really wants Jennifer Garner to come. So Alanis, if you can hear me now, I'm waiting, that's all. Great people have come, but we all have our special people that we're hoping for. David Schwimmer came by the other day and he was awesome. My boyfriend freaked out because he's a huge Friends fan, and so that was pretty cool.

Let's hope that they're all reading BroadwayWorld.com then and will show up soon...

I hope so!

But as far as reactions from audience members, I've seen some extraordinary reactions, and it's at those moments when you're most thankful to be a part of this production. I feel like I've seen everything including grown men being brought to tears when Jonathan Groff sings "Left Behind" The other day, when "Left Behind" was over, there was about an 8 year old girl sitting next to her mother and her mother was really emotional from the song. She wasn't sobbing or anything, but you could tell that it was getting to her for whatever reason. Whether or not this is something that happened to her, or because it was a beautiful touching moment. When the song was over, the little girl looked at her mother and she just put her hands on her mother's face and just gave her a kiss and hug, and it was like oh my god, this is exactly what we want.

For people to see and hear our music and to be touched by it and to take something from it. And for whatever moment, it brought that mother and daughter together. I thought it was very, very beautiful and that symbolizes everything for me in one moment.

I've had friends come, family members come, my boyfriend, and I don't even think about it because I think that it was just done so tastefully by Michael and Jonathan makes me feel so comfortable. I really don't think about it at all and I'm interested to see how I'd feel in another situation, if I do come up across that ever again in my career if I would feel that comfortable. I don't know if any other actor or director would make me feel that comfortable, but for whatever reason in this situation it was a very easy decision. I just find that it's not uncomfortable for me at all.

How have your friends, family and boyfriend reacted?

Have you followed any of the online reactions to the show?

I try not to. I'd be so afraid that if I was to just see one bad thing that I'd not be able to leave my apartment because I'd be so upset. I understand that everyone, totally can feel however they want to feel about anything. My character is not the easiest of characters to understand, so I'd worry that I'd read something that would be uncomfortable or hard for me so I try not to.

I'm sure that you'll get the chance again someday!

Thanks, I hope so!

Spring Awakening is currently running at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on Broadway. Click here for tickets and more information. The original cast recording of the show is now available as well, click here to purchase.