BWW Q&A: Brittany Bradford of LEROY AND LUCY at Steppenwolf Theatre Company

Steppenwolf Theatre Company, the nation’s premier ensemble theater company, continues its 49th season with the world premiere of Ngozi Anyanwu’s Leroy and Lucy, a bluesy and seductive play with music, directed by Awoye Timpo, playing October 24 – December 15, 2024 in Steppenwolf’s in-the-round Ensemble Theater in Honor of Helen Zell, 1646 N. Halsted St. in Chicago.

Tony Award-nominated ensemble member Jon Michael Hill (Elementary, Pass Over, Superior Donuts) returns following his critically acclaimed performance in Steppenwolf’s world premiere of Purpose, joined by Obie Award-winning stage actor Brittany Bradford, also known for her TV roles in Julia, The Watcher and Dead Ringers.

Two lost souls meet at a crossroads, in the dead of night, deep in the Mississippi of it all. They laugh, they flirt, they make sweet music. Together, they conjure a familiar sound from long ago, one of wondrous deals and dangerous aspirations. In this sultry world premiere inspired by the myth of musician

Curtain Times: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 7:30.  Single tickets starting at $20 are now on sale at steppenwolf.org or the Box Office at (312) 335-1650.

Brittany Bradford (Lucy) Broadway: Bernhardt/Hamlet. Off-Broadway: The Comeuppance (Obie Award, Signature Theater), Wedding Band (Obie Award, TFANA), Fefu and Her Friends (TFANA), Mac Beth (Hunter Theatre Project), Merrily We Roll Along (Roundabout/Fiasco Theater), TV: Julia (HBO Max), The Watcher (Netflix), The Gilded Age (HBO Max), Dead Ringers (Amazon), Fire Country (CBS), Fear the Walking Dead (AMC), New Amsterdam (NBC). Film: The Same Storm (dir. Peter Hedges). Classix member and HomeBase Theater Collective co-founder. Training: Juilliard.

What attracted you to the role of Lucy in "Leroy and Lucy"?

It was a mix of the creative team, and the ask of the character. I'd worked with director Awoye Timpo many times as we are in a collective together and I trust her and her taste implicitly. I've admired Ngozi Anyanwu as both a playwright and actor, and have been a huge fan of Jon Michael Hill's work for years as well. So check check check there. And then when I got the chance to read the play, I was really struck by its lyricism, its twists and turns, and the big asks it had of the two actors within it. It's always a good sign when you're a little scared before entering a project, wondering if you can really do it, and that's what I felt with this one, so I knew I had to say yes.

Could you share a bit about your character, Lucy, and what aspects of her resonate with you the most?

Lucy is such an enigma! She's hard to explain without giving too much away, but I will say: She's strange and unique, has secrets of her own that make you wonder what is really going on beneath the surface, and what she is holding back. She lives in this semi-feral, semi-childlike intersection of light and dark, humor and tragedy, that is really fun and challenging to find. She's like quicksilver, and it's what I love about her the most. I think she feels everything very deeply, very truthfully, and is really in search of deep connection and love within the world; it's something that I feel strongly about as well.

How has the rehearsal process at Steppenwolf Theatre Company been for you?

Working at Steppenwolf had always been a dream, and this process has exceeded those expectations. There are so many aspects to this show, so while there were only two actors, we had a very strong and very present creative team: music director, movement, cultural consultants, two voice coaches, dramaturg, etc. It really was an all hands on deck approach. We were all committed to making this the best that it could be, and using each other fully to help one another out. You knew that someone in that room would have insight to any question you had, and that kind of trust creates a beautiful creative intimacy within a show. Everyone was bought in, everyone was ready to stretch themselves to their fullest capacities to make this show soar.

"Leroy and Lucy" features live music - could you elaborate on how this element enhances the storytelling?

Jon and I like to joke that this show isn't a musical but there sure is a whole lot of music! The show wouldn't be the show without the music that is there. The play is really examining the myth of Robert Johnson in a new light, and you cannot tell his story without blues music being central to that. There's a line in the show that "songs came before words," and there is something about that relationship between those two modes of expression that is also integral to this piece. There is a power in music that can get you to an emotional truth faster than language sometimes. And that is happening to these characters. This storytelling is both intimate and epic, and there are moments where a song on harmonica, or a lilt, a hymn, a guitar lick, can get you into the emotional life of a character in a way dialogue never could.

You have an extensive background in stage, TV, and film. How have these varied experiences influenced your approach to your role in "Leroy and Lucy"?

I think this play very specifically is asking me and Jon to have the intimacy that you may find moreso in tv and film, with the grandness that is more attributed to stage (although the more I work, the more I feel like those lines get blurred in a beautiful way). The play is 90 minutes of just me and him up there, creating a whole world together. The connection we have with one another is what is propelling that piece, and we have to have our smaller cocoon that is enveloping us where we are exchanging energy (which feels very film-like) before we then broaden that circle out to the largeness of the theatre and the audience that is there, in a way that you can only do on stage. Whenever I'm doing one medium, I'm always thinking of how I can bring that to the other when I switch back over, and this project feels unique in getting to do both at the same time.

What are some key messages or themes you hope audiences will take away from "Leroy and Lucy"?

I hope people can see not only the magic of theatre in general, but the magic of watching these two characters connect to one another with hearts open, and that that is something we can do in our day to day lives as well. There's a mutual presence and vulnerability that has to happen in order for two people to bond, and it gets harder and harder to do that as we become more online. I hope people can see that there is still beauty and magic and importance in that. And that the people we connect to in our lives are also there to help us fulfill those inner destinies we all have.

How has it been working with Jon Michael Hill and the rest of the cast?

I don't know how I lucked out getting to work with someone as wonderful as Jon. You couldn't ask for a better teammate, a better compatriot for a two-person play. In general, when I'm in a play, I am ALL IN; I love the work of it all, I love process, I love getting into the muck. Jon is exactly the same. We have the same work ethic, and that immediately makes things so much easier. We can lean on each other, ask one another for help in different moments, work things out together. There is no ego attached to it for either one of us, and I think we both want the other person to succeed as much as we want it for ourselves. And it doesn't hurt that he is also an immensely kind and generous human being to boot!

Why must audiences come and see the upcoming world premiere of "Leroy and Lucy"?

You'll be the first audiences to see the world premiere of a new play that is full of twists and turns! What's not to love about that?? I also think more and more people are wanting to find moments of shared wonder and surprise with fellow human beings; you'll get that too...and you may also go home and wonder, am I following my life path? My passion? My dream? And if not, how can I do the thing I was put on this earth to do, and pursue it with my whole heart? Entertainment and Introspection! Not a bad night out at all!

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