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Andy Karl and Margo Seibert, the stars of Broadway's "Rocky: The Musical," stopped by this morning's TODAY on NBC to chat with anchor Matt Lauer about starring in the Broadway version of the Oscar-winning first film in the "Rocky" franchise, as well as Karl's intense training for the starring role.
"Having the time of my life," said Broadway vet Karl. "Taking on this icon could scare people away. For me, there was something that felt right about doing the show and doing this role."
Said Seibert of her pre-Rocky life, "Before this I had a lot of part-time jobs. I was babysitting quite a bit, I was running a homeless dinner on Wednesday night and I happened to be babysitting when I got the [casting] call. It was great. It was pretty amazing!"
Watch the appearance in full below!
ROCKY brings to life the iconic and inspiring story of struggling small time Philly boxer, RockyBalboa, who gets a once-in-a-lifetime shot to go the distance against heavyweight champ Apollo Creed. Both an adrenaline-infused spectacle and a surprising story of blossoming romance between two lonely outsiders, Rocky is a heart-stopping and viscerally theatrical new musical for everyone brave enough to follow their dream.
Produced on a shoestring budget, the original 1976 film, Rocky, was shot in 28 days, and starred its young and then-unknown screenwriter, Sylvester Stallone. Like the character of boxer Rocky Balboa, Stallone had to fight the studio, which wanted more bankable stars like Ryan O'Neal or Burt Reynolds, to be cast in the role. Stallone's performance would earn him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and launch his career as one of Hollywood's biggest stars. The small underdog film went on to become an American film classic, winning the 1977 Academy Award for Best Picture, and launching one of the most successful and iconic characters in Hollywood history.
ROCKY features an original score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, the celebrated Tony Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated songwriters behind Ragtime, Once on This Island, and Anastasia, and a book by multiple Tony Award-winner Thomas Meehan (The Producers, Hairspray, Annie) andSylvester Stallone, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the 1976 Oscar-winning Best Picture, Rocky.
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