SPOTLIGHT ON: Rachel York, Cruella de Vil in THE 101 DALMATIONS MUSICAL at Atlanta’s Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center October 28 – November 1

When asked to come up with the most vile, sinister and deliciously evil villains in popular literature and culture, one name would likely appear on many lists: Cruella de Vil. Notorious for kidnapping innocent Dalmation puppies to use their distinctive spots for her own evil purposes, Cruella conjures memories of divine extravagance coupled with pure greed. And nothing beats seeing a villain of her stature live and in the flesh (or rather, the flesh of her animal du jour).

Audiences in Atlanta will soon get their chance to revel in the antics of Cruella and her canine cohorts when The 101 Dalmatians Musical, based on the 1956 classic story written by Dodie Smith, rolls into the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, October 28^th. Filling the glamorous shoes (and don't forget the gorgeous frocks) of Cruella is Drama Desk Award Winner Rachel York. Best known for her critically acclaimed Broadway performances in shows such as City of Angels, Les Misérables, Victor/Victoria, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Rachel York will soon take the stage in Atlanta in this one-of-a-kind musical adventure for the entire family about what it means to be a family, canine and courageous. I caught up with Rachel while the show was still in rehearsal in Minneapolis and discussed her thoughts about the production and her take on playing such an iconic villain

You open in Minneapolis this Sunday, is that correct? Is the excitement building with you and the cast as you approach opening night?

It is! We are about to start costume tech tomorrow and when one is working with stilts there can be a lot of unknowns ahead of us. We don't know what problems we might face, but so far in the process things have gone very smoothly.

Speaking of the stilts, that seems to be a factor that might create a unique challenge as an actor and is probably very physically demanding to pull off. Has that been a challenge for you?

It is a challenge for all of us, but it just requires a new set of muscles, and of course our bodies just have to be conditioned to them. The great thing about our company is that, not only do we have a really talented group of people, but everyone is really game and great to work with. If they are like me they were all probably saying after the first couple of days on the stilts that it was fun  but at the same time, complete insanity. As time went on, we have gotten better and better at walking in the stilts and then suddenly you realize you are dancing in them! So, it has actually been a lot of fun.

I understand that you were a fan of the 101 Dalmations book when you were a child. What is it like transforming a story, and a character like Cruella de Vil from the page to the stage? Is that something you have had the opportunity to do before or is this something new for you?

No, not quite in this way. Because this was a children's story, I think in some ways I have so much fun with it because it reminds me of the happy part of my childhood since it was one of my favorite stories and I was always so taken with Cruella de Vil. I guess because she is this juicy, bigger-than-life character and is so despicable that you can't help but be intrigued by her antics.  I even used to do impersonations of Cruella de Vil for my family as a kid. So you find yourself forgetting these things and then it comes back around years later in your career and you have the opportunity to bring that memory as a child out and to life on stage. It is a fun process. I am really having a good time.

Taking a familiar character like Cruella and and making it your own doesn't always come easily. Has that been a challenge?

It is interesting. Sometimes you play characters that scare you and that you have to do a lot of research  to really find their nuances. This is not the case with Cruella. Because I had this image of her in my mind from so far back, it just sort of unfolded naturally, so the process has been really easy. It is the way we always hope the process goes when we are approaching a character; we want things to unfold naturally and organically, and in a way, that is what has happened. Cruella is sort of leading me and I am just going with it. I will say that my Cruella is inspired by many strong female personalities such as Eartha Kitt, Shirley Bassey, Bette Davis, and sometimes a little bit of Katherine Hepburn. It is like she is a combination of all these women and organically I seem to be channeling all of them and it works.

I am not aware of any true "villain" roles in your past, is this your first chance to be truly evil on stage or screen?

On stage, this is probably the first time. I did play a villain of sorts on Hannah Montana. I played a Madonna-esque pop diva who is very competitive with Hannah, so you can see me as a bit of a villian in that episode. I haven't played too many villains in my career, so this has really been a lot of fun.

Tell us a little bit about this production. I understand It really is very unique on a number of levels including the staging, the use of the real live dalmations and more.

All of us are very proud of the show. This is a completely new musical based on the original Dodie Smith novel with original music by Dennis DeYoung. There really is such a vast array of music in this show. There are 2 or 3 beautiful ballads that bring a tear to your eye, and there are a lot of fun numbers as well. I think people are really going to enjoy the music. We have a wonderful book and some wonderful character actors bringing that to life. The sets are incredibly colorful and vibrant and the costumes are quite stunning. I don't think many people have seen these types of costumes on people on stilts. Jerry Zaks is a fantastic director, and he has such a  great vision here along with Warren Carlisle. I am very excited about the whole thing coming together. The dogs are just one more aspect. There are just so many wonderful pieces of candy in this production. This is a Broadway caliber show with great actors, singers and songs and it is completely unique.

And it is a show accessible to many people, children and adults included, right?

Yes, because it is a children's story, children are going to love it. They will love the dog aspect and will love the fact that there are children playing puppies that they can relate to in the show as well. Adults will get the humor as well, in places where the kids don't. So it really is accessible to everyone.

WC Fields said something once warning about working with children and animals. And you get to work with children playing animals. Does that create a double challenge?

I sing a song called Cruella Always Gets Her Way, and since Cruella gets her way, she doesn't have to worry about that, and therefore, I don't.

Cruella De Vil is such an iconic villian, one that people love to hate but it has to be a blast playing her on stage. What are you most looking forward about bringing her to life on the stage?

Right now, we all just can't wait to do the whole thing with costumes, sets, orchestra and all of that. I am excited to really bring this character that I have created to life and to share it with the audience because she cracks me up! There are many performances in the show that I can't wait for the audience to experience because they are just so funny.

With a potential young audience experiencing this show you might have some young people out there who think they want to get into the theatre business. Any advice for those aspiring young actors?

Strangely enough, I recently had someone write me a letter asking the same question. I was inspired to write a letter back to him and I posted it on my blog, so I would urge people to go to rachelyork.net and read my response, because I believe it expressed what I really wanted to tell people from my heart and my experience.  In short, theatre is a difficult business and everyone will tell you that, but if it is truly in your heart and you simply have to do it, you absolutely should give it a chance or you might regret not trying. There has to be a certain drive and passion in order to succeed in this business because the competition is so fierce. I encourage people who have a dream to try and make that a reality.

Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?

Just that, I play Cruella de Vil and I am the villain, but Pongo and Missus are really on stage all the time and James Ludwig and Catia Ojeda who play those roles are working so hard and are wonderful and really hold the whole thing together. Everyone in the cast is doing a great job of bringing the show to life.  I am happy to be working with such a talented company!

The 101 Dalmations Musical arrives in Atlanta on Wednesday, October 28 at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at www.ticketmaster.com, by calling 800-982-2787 or at the Cobb Energy Centre box office.  Prices start at $15.  Orders for groups of 15 or more may be placed by calling 404-881-2000. For more tour and ticket information, please visit: www.the101dalmatiansmusical.com and for more information about Rachel York, please visit www.rachelyork.net                                                                                        

Production Photo Credit: Joan Marcus

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