BWW Interviews: Anastasia Lange, Cats’ Grizabella

 

Cats is one of those shows that even non-theatregoers know about. It has become part of pop culture and history, perhaps because of its feline choreography, or its energetic numbers and over the top costumes, or possibly the memorable score. But, when these fantastic felines show up in Atlanta on August 4^th at the Fox to host their Jellicle Ball once again, all your favorites will be there with them including Grizabella, the Glamour cat. And behind Grizabella's worn whiskers will be Anastasia Lange. I had a chance to talk with Anastasia about the show and life as a "cat".

BWW: Anastasia, thanks so much for taking the time to talk with me today. I am excited to hear about the show and I know our readers will be too. We are really looking forward to Cats' return to Atlanta!

Anastasia Lange: Of course! We are excited to be there soon!

Tell us about yourself. How did you get into "the business"?

I started doing regional theatre in Michigan when I was about 10 or 11 years old. It was something that I always knew that I had a love for and wanted to pursue professionally. I moved out to L.A. for a little while and did a little bit of film and television work and a little bit of theatre, but I was always itching to get back to an exclusive theatre twist to my career again. So I moved to New York a few years after. I have been in New York for about 4 years now and I have been on the road for most of it! Prior to this tour I did a national tour of Man of La Mancha, I traveled with that show for a year and I have been with Cats now for almost two years.

And is this your first experience with Cats or have you been connected with the show in the past?

I had never done a production of this show before. I think it's kind of impossible to be of my generation of music theatre performers and music theatre lovers without having grown up with Cats, so I definitely remember, as most of the cast does, seeing the show when I was very young. But, actually, I had never seen a production of the show as an adult. So it has been a show that has grown very close to my heart in the last couple of years.

It has to be interesting to be part of a show that has developed such a broad awareness over a long period of time.

What's so wonderful about that is so much of the audience is having the same experience. People remember seeing it as a kid and are seeing it now again as an adult and oftentimes bringing their own kids to see the show. It may be the first time that they have brought their kids to see a show. It kind of comes full circle that way. It's one of the few shows that exists still that has that.

And Cats is definitely one of those shows that has been around for a very long time.  What do you think keeps it popular?

Well, I think the initial interest is definitely the novelty of the actors behaving as animals and the costumes and the makeup. People are just so interested to see what we are going to look like and how we are going to move and I think that definitely draws the audience in. But I think the reason the show has withstood the test of time and the reason people come back over and over again is because really at the end of the performance people leave having had such an emotional experience. Often they can't even explain it and they arent even sure exactly why they felt everything that they felt. The show tends to be very emotional for a lot of people.

That's so interesting because it is not like you are able to pinpoint it to a particular plot thread, but it is really just raw emotion.

Exactly. The nature of the show coming from the poetry of T.S. Eliot as it does, the poems are dated, they aren't something that is common for this generation and they contain a lot of references that modern people don't necessarily get right off the bat. Yet, still, the show has such an emotional range for people. Everyone laughs and cries and jumps to their feet at the end of the show and has just a fantastic range of emotion, and that is the brilliance of the show.

Let's talk about your character, Grizabella, for a moment. One might say that Grizabella is one of the most emotionally engaging roles in the show. Is it hard playing the lows and highs every night?

I think it's a great responsibility to be able to take on most of the emotional context of the show and I just hope to create that experience for people every night. I want them to feel all of that and in turn I get to feel all of that. It comes with responsibility but it's also very rewarding.

And she starts out as an outcast, someone who is not accepted by the group. I personally have always found her eventual acceptance and elevation to be inspiring to anyone out there who feels "different". Do you see it that way?

Of course. And I think no matter who you are, everyone can relate to that on some level. Everyone has had that experience of feeling like and outcast or feeling like they don't belong in a certain group. It is so relatable to so many people in the audience.

And even on another level, with Grizabella being someone who in a previous life was very popular.

Exactly, and all of those ideas of aging and how does one age gracefully and how long can you hang on to the aspects of your youth that you still want to cling to.

Many actresses have played your role over the years, how do you make a role like Grizabella your own? How do you add your own personal stamp?

I think the first thing you have to do is take everything you have seen and all the knowledge of these other actresses that have played it over the years and the other performances that everyone in this business knows so well and kind of throw it all out the window and start fresh and allow yourself to really find where the character lives inside you. I think that there is always a challenge in singing a song that's so recognizable. People have such an expectation of the song and what they want to hear, and again, the best thing to do is sort of strip everything away and find the simplicity. Ultimately, the song is so well written that it's just best for me to go out and be as genuine with it as I  can and sing the lyrics and sing the melody as it was meant to be done and let it take it's course.

Talking about "Memory", it really is the most notable song from the score and you get to sing it every night.  Tell us what it's like delivering such an iconic number.

It's just an incredible experience. I have never in my life felt an audience react that way. There are few songs written that elicit that kind of response so consistenty, night after night after night. People just connect with the song, and it's overwhelming at times.

So, does the costume and makeup hinder you or help you as you personally "transform" into the character. I would think it would help make the true transition from person to cat.

Absolutely. As an actor there is really nothing more freeing than being covered head to toe by costume and makeup. It just allows you to transform and take on characteristics that would be much more difficult without all of that sort of armor. With that you can just go to a whole different level. I really think that, for all of us, the first time we really did a dress rehearsal and actually got into our costumes and makeup was really when everyone was able to make that transformation believable from human to animal and into all of these interesting and different characters.

Cats is also known for the physicality of the choreography and the movement. Did that take a lot of training to learn how to do that well?

It's a huge part of the rehearsal process. Lots of improvisational exercises that help us adapt all of those physical characteristics. It's interesting, my character dances so much less than any other character in the show, but yet, I still feel that it is one of the most challenging physical roles that I have ever done. It's so much about the way that you use your body and the added layer of using my body in a way that shows that it is being broKen Down by age is another thing to add on top of the movement of taking on a feline characteristic as well. It's amazing how you really do use every muscle in your body in this show. It goes for everything, your face to the tips of your toes. Everything works the whole time we're on stage.

Was the show something you wanted to be a part of when you were younger?

Not necessarily, I was always a singer and an actress, I have always danced in musical theatre but I'm not a trained dancer like most of this cast is. Of course when I saw the show for the first time at the age of seven, I didn't think I'd be the old lady either. Funny how that happens! There are so many shows that are that way for me, though. Most of Andrew Lloyd Webber's other shows I saw at a young age and thought oh I want to play this role, but this was one show I didn't necessarily see myself in.

Of all the shows out there, I see Cats as a true ensemble, and the connections feel strong even out in the audience. Is that how it is with the cast, is everyone close?

Yes, the cast is unbelievably close. Many of us started together two years ago and have stayed with the production all this time because not only do we enjoy the show so much but we enjoy each other so much. And you really do become very close to the people you work with when you work together and live together and we have spent so much time together in so many different places. It's just an amazing bonding experience.

What's the best part of playing Grizabella? What do you look forward to the most each night?

Many people who haven't seen the show may not realize that this character has very little stage time. I don't spend an overwhelming amount of time on stage. So I think that every single moment is so important. It's almost as if one moment can't exist without the other because I have so little time to convey to the audience the plight of this character so the big moment at the end matters to them. The first entrance needs to be just as important as the last.

Let's talk about that a moment. Since your character is not on stage a lot of the show, is there anything in particular that you do in those in between times or before you go on to keep the energy going?

There is such an adrenaline rush that comes with performing on stage it's one of the reasons that actors who do live theatre love it so much. It's kind of an interesting roller coaster to have that and then have a lull, then have that again. So, I really try to get back on the deck of the stage in the wings and kind of watch what is going on out there for a few minutes and reconnect to being a part of that. That way I feel like I am coming from a place of being connected with everything that is going on.

What do you like most about being "on the road" and what is the biggest challenge?

I think that the travel is just so interesting. We play all of the biggest markets in the country and we also play a lot of smaller cities; so many places you wouldn't necessarily go on vacation. How interesting it is to experience seeing all of these American towns. And then there are days when you are schlepping your suitcase into the next hotel and you wish that you had drawers and a closet and a kitchen pantry and all the comforts of home. There are times when it's difficult to constantly live on the road, but I think the benefits outweigh that. It's just such an interesting way to spend a few years of your life.

So what's next for you? Anything in the works?

I know that this role will be a tough act to follow, and I just hope to be able to continue to have roles that will allow me to grow and stretch in different ways. This role has really done that, it has been such a special experience. I just want to continue on that path of things that really provoke me to try new things on stage.

Is there a dream role that you would one day like to play? Was there a role you wanted to play when you were growing up?

I think I saw myself in almost every show I saw. I think it is the job of stage actors and musical theatre actors especially to allow ourselves to be chamelions and be able to take on so many different roles and so many different characteristics and develop a voice for every character that is unique.

And have you ever been to Atlanta, or will this be your first visit here?

I have not played the Fox before. This is the first time I have been to Atlanta with a tour.

Anastasia, I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with me today.

Absolutely! Thanks so much.

CATS will play the Fabulous Fox Theatre in Atlanta from August 4-8, 2010. Performances are Wednesday-Friday at 8 pm, Saturday at 11 am, 3:30 pm & 8 pm, and Sunday at 1:30 pm & 7 pm. Tickets are on sale NOW at all Ticketmaster outlets, at 800-982-2787 and online at www.ticketmaster.com.  Ticket prices range from $25-$65.  Special group rates are available through the Fox Group Sales Dept. at 404-881-2000.

Theater of the Stars celebrates its 58th Anniversary as one of the nation's premier regional theater companies.  A civic not-for-profit cultural treasure, Theater of the Stars is dedicated to presenting and producing the best in musical theater.  To learn more about our history of excellence, visit www.theaterofthestars.com. .

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