Interview: Emerson Steele Finds Happily Ever After Playing Dream Role in Theatrical Outfit's A LITTLE PRINCESS
By: Kiley Gipson Nov. 27, 2015
Do you ever find yourself watching interviews with young victors every two years during the Summer or Winter Olympics and thinking "He/She is a Sophomore in high school and has won a gold medal in (insert event here). What am I doing with my life?!" Never having been athletic myself, I more so admire young theatrical geniuses with talent far beyond his/her years. Fifteen-year-old Emerson Steele has been called "the next Lea Michelle" (Teen Vogue) and was most recently seen headlining at 54 Below in her solo show ROLES I CAN'T PLAY EVER...OR NOW...EXCEPT TONIGHT. Her New York theatrical introduction in VIOLET as Young Violet was called "a strong Broadway debut" by NBC News and those in the theatre community call her "a genuine revelation," "feisty", a "talented newcomer," as well as "endearing, hearty-voiced." Most recently, her talents have taken her back to her home city of Atlanta, Georgia where she is performing in A LITTLE PRINCESS at Theatrical Outfit. The humble actress plays heroine Sara Crewe, a role she has dreamed of playing since she first heard the cast album from Andrew Lippa and Brian Crawley, the same critically acclaimed bookwriter and lyricist behind VIOLET. I had the privilege of picking the rising star's overly-mature brain about her transition from New York back down South, sharing the stage with the legendary Sutton Foster, and her dream of being the first female to play Jean Valjean on Broadway.
Broadway World: Tell me a little bit about your experience working on this production at Theatrical Outfit.
EMERSON: Well, first of all, I want to say how incredible a theater company Theatrical Outfit is. They are not only a great theater company; they are such great people to work with. Everyone, from the casting process, to costuming, to the creative team, to production, to management, has been wonderful!
A Little Princess is special to me for quite a few reasons. One reason is that I just absolutely fell in love with the show after listening to the cast album about a year and a half ago. It is also written by Brian Crawley who wrote Violet and who is such a special person to me. I have dreamed of playing Sara Crewe since first hearing of and reading about her optimism, which is one of my favorite qualities in a person.
There are definitely some challenges to my role both emotionally and technically. I have to go on a bit of an emotional rollercoaster ride with Sara in this show and express feelings that I've never had to express in a role before. It's extremely exciting to get to add these things to my tool belt for other roles, but I'm not going to lie, it can be quite hard to go from being at your happiest and in the next instant, hearing that the one thing you had left in this world is gone. Technically, I have to sing very low, belt, mix, and sing very high in this show. I've done all of these separately, but now I put them all together in one role. I have definitely surprised myself with what I can sing, thanks to my vocal training with Keleen Miskin. I love playing a role with such depth and range.
Being onstage for just about the entire show requires me to use muscles and to have endurance that I didn't know I had. I also love discovering how Sara and I are actually pretty similar in some ways. We both always try to find the positive in a situation, we try to uplift and encourage others, and we also stand firm in what we believe in and don't back down.
You are clearly wise, and talented, beyond your years! Many of our readers are familiar with the NYC theatre scene but may know little about theatre in Atlanta. After performing in both cities, what would you say are the biggest differences/similarities?
Atlanta is a lot smaller than NYC, as you know, but it is such a great town for theater. The qualities of the productions here in Atlanta are amazing and there are quite a few shows that have launched in Atlanta to go to Broadway. I would say that in Atlanta, everyone has worked with everyone. It is a very small community and so you end up doing two or three shows with a lot of the same people within a span of just a year. That's so much fun, because you become like family.
In NYC, you may work with the same people once in a while, but you don't tend to go from show to show to show with them. In NYC, there are many opportunities to perform when you aren't doing a show on Broadway. There are a lot of cabaret spaces, Off-Broadway theaters, and even more.
In Atlanta, if you aren't working at one of the 8-10 main theaters, and you are Equity, like I am, you can't do community or non-equity theater. So, at my age, you probably aren't performing as much as you'd like, unless you are performing out of town. I would work in Atlanta as often as they will let me! There are definitely benefits to both Atlanta and NYC, and I am so grateful I have gotten to work in both.
You've of course worked with a number of critically acclaimed directors and performers, Sutton Foster being one of the greats. What was your biggest takeaway?
My assistant choreographer from Violet, Oneika Philips once told me, no matter what I go through in this business, whether it is rejection or the complete opposite, I should never ever lose sight of or change from the little 14 year old girl whose excitement and zest for performing and being in this business reminded everyone else why they do what they do. She said that how happy I am doing what I love is how I should always be and that the kindness I share with others can never change either.
Charlie Pollock, my friend and Violet castmate, expressed similar thoughts to me when he graciously performed with me at 54 Below last month. This conversation has stuck with me since then and I know it always will. One of the things about Sutton and Leigh Silverman (my genius director from Violet) that I love so much and experienced from watching them at work is that no matter how many Tony nominations or wins they have, they still possess that child-like excitement and passion for what they do. I only hope that I will, too, as I continue to grow up in this business.
You mentioned your recent Feinstein's/54 Below solo show. Congratulations! What was that like?
Thank you so much! Gosh, it was exhilarating for sure! It was really, really, REALLY fun and so exciting. The process of putting the show together was very hard work, but very creative for me. It felt like it went by so quickly, but I showed myself that I could do something that I had been so nervous to do. I had so many incredible people that came to support me and make me feel good. That was one of the best things about that night.
I also had some killer special guests, including my mom (singing with her was the biggest highlight of my night and a top highlight of my life), who I had dreamed of performing with come and sing with me and that was so awesome, too. I really hope I can do it all again very soon! 54 Below is such a cool and unique venue and it really meant a lot to me that I was asked to make my solo show debut there!
You've had a vibrant and constant career that most performers only aim to achieve, and yet you're only 15. After finding so much success at a young age, what are your hopes for your career in the future?
That's so kind of you to say. Thank you so much! I really just love what I do and I feel so blessed to have gotten to experience all that I have so far. I have so many hopes and dreams for the future. I want to break into TV and Film and work on a medical drama or sci-fi show, and have a big movie career. I want to do comedy, maybe on a sitcom or in films. I would just completely freak if I got to work with Robert De Niro, who has to be my favorite male actor.
I would love to do a revival of Thoroughly Modern Millie on Broadway in a few years and play Millie. I would love to star in a show on the West End. I would love to play Eva Peron in Evita when the next revival comes along. I want to do a movie musical. I want to originate many more roles. I would absolutely love to just keep doing what I love and never go a day without it. Most of all however, I want to be the first female to play Jean Valjean on Broadway! Yes, that dream is a bit far-fetched. But if back in the Renaissance period male actors could play girls, then don't you think female actors can play Valjean?!
Absolutely! I would pay any amount of money to see you in that role. What advice would you give young performers who are trying to break into the business?
Never, ever give up! If this is what you love to do, always go for it. The rejection can be harsh. I have had my rejections, even though you only hear about my "wins"! But there will be that perfect role for you. It may not always feel like it, but that perfect role comes with perfect timing. Also, always strive to be better. Keep training. It keeps you ready for when the right opportunity comes along. Of course you can never be perfect, but if you are always bettering yourself, then you are always growing.
A LITTLE PRINCESS runs December 3, 2015 through December 27, 2015 at The Balzer Theater at Herren's, with a post-show talkback on December 18. Tickets range from $20 to $48 and can be purchased from Theatrical Outfit online here. Photo Credit: BreeAnne Clowdus.
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