BWW Interviews: Burke Moses, 'MUSIC's' Captain Von Trapp

Best known for creating the role of Gaston in Broadway's Beauty and the Beast, Burke Moses has played some amazing leading roles during his theatrical career. In the upcoming Theater of the Stars production of THE SOUND OF MUSIC, he has the opportunity once again to pick up the whistle of Captain Georg Von Trapp (he most recently played to role in the acclaimed Toronto production) and command a new brigade of Von Trapp children on stage at Atlanta's Fabulous Fox Theatre. Broadwayworld.com had the chance to talk to Burke about this turn as the Captain, working with children, and the timelessness of this amazing Rodgers and Hammerstein classic.

Burke, 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 Sound of Music in Atlanta!

Great! 

I like to start out these interviews by having you tell us a little bit about yourself and your career. Specifically, how did you get into the theatre business??

You know I was in Boston, waiting tables, I was 19 or 20 years old and didn't really know what I wanted to do. There was an open call for Franco Zeferelli's Endless Love with Brooke Shields and I was down there with all the other 5,000 intelligent, charming, charismatic, beautiful people. That is what the ad said. I sat there for seven hours, and they brought us in 200 at a time and picked 2 guys and told the rest of us to go. I just stood there and couldn't believe I had waited seven hours. Over in the corner was this man giving out little white cards so I went over and talked to him and he was with Barry Moss' office in New York. Two weeks later I was standing on the stage of the Minskoff Theatre singing "Something's Coming" for the revival of West Side Story. Years later I was told that Leonard Bernstein was in the audience that day. Unfortunately, I was a baritone so when I hit the top note in Maria it was more like a high Z than a high A. But when I was on stage I realized that I was home. 

Had you done any theatre before that? Or was that your first time? 

I had done nothing. I sang in the shower. I took a group singing lesson when I was 19 and that's how I found out I could sing which was pretty much by default. I thought everybody could sing, but some people there just couldn't make a sound.

That's amazing because so many people who are performers these days knew at a very young age that is what they wanted to do and had experience as a child or in school.

No, I didn't do that. I was not exactly outgoing enough or courageous enough at a young age to do that. In junior high I was the lighting guy and did a couple shows in the lighting booth. I kind of wish I had done chorus work, that would have been fun. I played football and rather badly, too. I played baseball and loved it but I don't think I was all that good. I just did things normal kids did, but the idea of being an actor was akin to being an astronaut or a fire chief. It's something that everybody wants to do but you don't seriously think about it.

And this is not your first experience with The Sound Of Music, you were Captain Von Trapp in Toronto too, correct?

I did, I played in a wonderful Andrew Lloyd Webber production with the reality-show casted Maria which was divine.

Let's talk about that, when you reprise a role, is it easier to step back in those shoes than starting fresh, or is it challenging considering differences in direction, production, etc. 

Absolutely, it is much easier to do. I just did Dirty Rotten Scoundrels in Sacramento and I had never done the role before. I was working with Tim Gulan who had done the production before and I was under the gun for two weeks. With this show you sort of know the deal so you figure out what it is and you change according to the direction and according to your leading lady, which in my case is the charming Mandy Bruno.

And talking about Captain Von Trapp, he is billed as stern yet compassionate. Is it hard playing those multi-faceted emotions? How do you evolve the character during the course of the show?

To be honest with you, I remember being up in Toronto, and it actually took me awhile to figure this guy out and figure out how he works. He has a very dramatic change yet he is very subtle, so its not like it leaps out at you. He has some very difficult moments but he is this guy who has so many flaws and has such grief and is so closed off. It's really about him opening up through the catalyst of this nun who comes to take care of his children. It is really a beautiful turn. The scene where he finally opens up and begins to sing is one of the greatest scenes in musical theatre.

I would be remiss if I didn't ask about the kids. The Sound Of Music has a lot of children playing the Von Trapp children. That has to be interesting at least.

It's not that difficult because a child looks at you and you can easily endow it with anything you wish. I have children which helps a great deal. I think it would be hard to imagine this role were I childless. It is so much easier to understand having children.

As their "father" do you see yourself taking on a parental role during rehearsals/performances?

Well, obviously I don't reprimand them or anything like that, but what I find when you work with kids is if you can make them laugh on a regular basis then when you need them to pay attention they will notice the change in you. You begin to care about them if you spend enough time with them, care about them deeply in some cases. I remember a child up in Toronto, I had tears in my eyes when she left the show. But, kids are kids and if you don't talk down to them and treat them the way you should it all works out.

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

I played Atlanta a couple times, I actually did The Sound Of Music there ages ago, and then I did The Music Man there, and I did one week of Beauty and the Beast, because I wanted to play the Beast role, and after one week I realized I never want to play that role again as long as I live, so I got it out of me. That costume was an absolute horror.

I am curious about the difficulty of playing a part that is so well known and well loved. Does that make it more difficult or easier?

To be honest in never occurred to me until I went to Canada and some interviewer said "So what's it going to be like playing Christopher Plummer?" Usually I am prepared for interviews and can pretty much answer anything. That one just stumped me. I didn't realize that Canadians saw Christopher Plummer as the penultimate actor. We think Julie Andrews, but nobody here really thinks Christopher Plummer. That was the first time I ran into that. 

I would imagine with a show like The Sound Of Music as far as the audience goes, you have big fans who come and sing the songs, etc.

I think that is far more a Maria thing. Fortunately, we have Mandy Bruno who is absolutely delightful. I think some audiences come in with pre-conceived notions, those who are so in love with the movie, they come in with their arms folded, but after the first song they unfold their arms and embrace this very charming, delightful and lovely individual.

What's it like bringing this story to a new generation of audiences?

It's one of those shows that needs to be put up every seven years. To bring it to a new generation of children and families, is so great. It translates so well. It is a lovely show that works on its own merits. If you put it on a junior high stage it would still work. And that's the strength of any good show.

What part of playing this role do you like the most? What do you look forward to the most each night?

I think it's the turn, that one scene in the show which is so beautiful. There's the eleven 'lock number, "Edelweiss", which is lovely, but I have to go back to the "Sound of Music" reprise, it's just a perfectly written scene. You can look through the lexicon of musical theatre and you see scenes like "Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat" from Guys and Dolls and one of those scenes is this scene in The Sound Of Music. It's so beautfiul and unexpected.

You have played some great roles in the past but thinking toward the future, do you have a dream role that you would one day like to play?

I would like to do Sweeney one day. My favorite shows have to be on one end The Music Man on the other end Sweeney Todd, the darker sicker side. They are so incredible. To be honest with you this was a part that when I first did it I thought was a limited role. I didn't think much on it and didn't embrace it much. But in Canada this role came to life. Captain Von Trapp is far more complex and interesting than I ever thought. This guy is just a very interesting and unique character.

What's next for you after The Sound Of Music?

I am going back to my other job which is looking for work. That's the job that never ends. Even while you are working, you are looking for work. I have been on the road for a long time, I was up at A.R.T. for three months working on Johnny Baseball with Diane Paulus. I spent one week back at home with my boys, then to Sacramento then straight here.

Burke, I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with me today. Is there anything else you would like to share with the readers?

The show is about Von Trapp and the kids, but the whole thing really rests on the shoulders of Mandy Bruno. I didn't know her coming in, and it was so refreshing to realize this lovely woman who does so well on TV hits the stage and knows exactly what's she's doing like a real pro. What a joy it is to support her. She is just delightful.

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THE SOUND OF MUSIC will play the Fabulous Fox Theatre in Atlanta from August 24-29, 2010. Performances are Tuesday-Friday at 8 pm, Saturday at 2 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.

This presentation of THE SOUND OF MUSIC is produced by Atlanta's Theater of the Stars. 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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Photo credit: Joan Marcus

 

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