Liz Callaway Q and A: Chicago, Sondheim, iPhones, & More

BWW: What can audiences expect at An Evening With Liz Callaway at Metropolis on the 27th?

LIZ: I don't want to give too much away, but it'll be an eclectic evening. A lot of songs from Broadway and movies. I always do some pop songs and I'm doing to do some from my new CD, Passage of Time, and a nice chunk of Sondheim. Lots of stories, too. I like the audience to feel, at the end of the evening when they see one of my shows, like they enjoyed some good music, but they also just had dinner with me. They've gotten to know me. I like to have that kind of connection with my audience.

BWW: Growing up in Chicago, can you recall a company, theatrical experience, or given performance which really stands out as a "Yes!" moment?

LIZ: I can say no one's ever asked me that before. What a great question. I remember seeing the national tour of Pippin three times when I was in high school. It was amazing. I fell in love with that score and there was just something about that show that I loved. And what's so cool is Thursday I'm flying to LA to do concerts with Stephen Schwartz! (laughs) So every so often I have to remind myself, "Wow, someone I kind of idolized growing up is someone I now know and call a friend." Another show I remember, it was a community theatre production of The Most Happy Fella in Highland Park. I went with my mom and we just loved it. It's still one of my favorite scores, Frank Loesser's score. I also remember in high school seeing something of Steppenwolf's when they were just in a church basement. I really remember enjoying it but it wasn't until years later I went, "Oh wow, I saw one of their first things!"

BWW: Is there a "Stop Everything! I Must Eat Here!" place you have to visit when home in Chicago?

LIZ: Actually, and I won't be able to get there during this trip, The Berghoff. I think it reopened.

 

BWW: It has!

 

LIZ: Because my sister [Ann Hampton Callaway] texted me from it and sent a picture of her food. She and I were so sad when they closed because that was a place we went a lot as kids. And this has nothing to do of when I lived in Chicago, but I love Frontera Grill. In fact, the last time I ate there was with my dad and Rick Bayless was there. I was like, "I have all of your cookbooks!" He knew my dad's [the late John Callaway] show, so that was a really neat moment.

BWW: Have you tried chef Bayless' XOCO yet?

LIZ: I haven't heard of it. It is amazing?

BWW: It's right next door and it's sandwiches and street food. Delicious!

LIZ: Oh, that sounds good! I'm a big cook and I love his cookbooks. I love him.

BWW: You mentioned your sister Ann. Your most recent show, BOOM!, features a collection of songs from your childhood in the '60s and '70s. Which such a wealth of songs to choose from, how did you two work together and specifically not kill one another in terms of picking the songs and forming the show?

LIZ: Well we're actually very bruised and battered from the experience. (laughs) It's hard! It's very hard. We have very different tastes in music from back there, for the most part, but we always know when the song is right. In this case, some of the songs we'll do individually - Ann was always a big Joni Mitchell fan and I was big 5th Dimension fan - but we both loved the Beatles, so choosing a Beatles song to sing together was not difficult. We have one part of our show we call The Back Seat of the Car Medley from when we took family vacations when we were little. We would sing horrible medleys of Top 40 hits on the radio. You know, like the Osmonds, lots of strange pop songs. But there are lots of times when we say, "Let's do this one because I want to sing it and we'll sing that song because you want to sing it," so it's not so much battling with each other over what to do ... there's just such a plethora of songs. A big goal of ours is to get it recorded this year.

BWW: For the phenomenal William Finn Infinite Joy recording at Joe's Pub, who approached you to sing "Sailing" [from A New Brain]?

LIZ: Bill Finn, he asked me. He asked everyone to do their songs. And I adore him, I adore Bill Finn. He's just a great guy and a wonderful composer. So when Bill Finn calls you up and says, "Hey, would you come and sing my song?" you, like, jump!

At which point a dog barked.

LIZ: Oh god, my phone is barking. Oh, it's my sister! Hold on a sec.

Yup, Ann called during the interview. It seemed right.

LIZ: You can put that in your article: her iPhone ring is a dog bark and we were interrupted by it! (laughs) You know, the deciding factor in getting an iPhone was when I saw I could have a dog bark as a telephone ring. "Hey, I'll get an iPhone!" (laughs)

BWW: When I heard it I thought it was a real dog and I was going to ask you its name.

LIZ: No, I've got my cat sleeping next to me. No dog, I wish I could have a dog. So anyway, when we originally did [Bill's show] it was a concert at Joe's Pub. I think we did it only once but he called to say, "I think we're going to do it once more and we're going to record it." And I'm like, "Ok!" But I have to admit it took me a while to listen to it because, like, I don't relish in listening to myself or watching a DVD of myself. I did listen to other people, but I didn't listen to myself for a while. One day I talked to Bill and he said, "What do you mean? You haven't listened?" "No, not yet. What I heard I liked." (laughs) But eventually I did listen to it all and it's a wonderful collection.

BWW: Have you had a chance to read Stephen Sondheim's Finishing the Hat?

LIZ: Yes! I pre-ordered it. I haven't read all of it, but the first thing I read was the Merrily We Roll Along chapter. And actually, about a week after the book came out, I got the two-act solo concert of Sondheim music in San Francisco, so I looked up all the numbers I was singing. It is just fascinating and brilliant. I gave it as Christmas gifts! It's just so interesting hearing him dissect his work and what he thinks about other composers. I'm really looking forward to the next volume because I didn't want it to end! Specifically Sunday in the Park With George, which is one of my favorite scores.

BWW: It's such a cliffhanger, with the very last two words [of volume 1] being 'James Lapine.'

LIZ: I know! Isn't that something? You're like, "Aaaahh!" because there's Into the Woods and Sunday... and everything else he has to say. It's just a fabulous book.

BWW: With your experience in Merrily We Roll Along, were you and your cast mates aware of the woes throughout the rehearsal process Sondheim wrote about?

LIZ: I was aware of it. I would say some of us were aware of it. I did a TV movie the summer before we started rehearsals with Jason Alexander so we had become friends. I remember the first week of rehearsals we went out to dinner and we looked at each other and we were like, "Uh oh. This needs work. This isn't all perfect and smooth and fabulous." But by the time we opened we had worked so hard on it. And then the reviews came out and it was like, "Ugh!" We were all devastated but I went, "Oh yeah, I kind of forgot, there were problems." But I think it's a wonderful wonderful piece and yes, it's flawed, but most shows are.  Even though everyone now has such a higher opinion of the show and the score now, but at the time it was clobbered. Though it prepared me. "This is what show business is and this what a career in theatre is." I also think of it as the ideal first Broadway show experience because I worked with the greatest people in a piece that ultimately didn't succeed. And I was in the chorus of Merrily..., but I think for someone whose first Broadway show is Wicked, you have have nowhere to go but down, so I wouldn't trade my experience for the world. Very emotional and very sad, but also an exciting and fantastic experience. I mean, the first Broadway show I ever saw was Company and I just loved it, so the fact I got to make my Broadway debut in a Sondheim/Prince/George Furth show was unbelievable. And a lot of what Steve wrote about Merrily... I agreed with and that's why I was so interested. I agreed so it was like, "Ah, yes, that's my memory of it too!" I loved that he said as hard as it was, it was so much fun.

BWW: Just three "Off the Top of Your Head" answers. What role out there are you absolutely perfect for?

LIZ: The role hasn't been written yet. Something new. Something new.

BWW: What is your favorite voice over role?

LIZ: Anastasia. (laughs) That's easy.

BWW: And finally, is there a role that you're never ever going to get to play but you would love the chance to try it one day?

LIZ: Yes. Annie. No! (laughs)

BWW: You were so ready with that answer. (laughs) I love it!

LIZ: Can you put that in there? (laughs)

BWW: If you want, sure! With no laughter marks or anything. Just, "Annie."

LIZ: (laughs) It was the first thing that came to mind. "I'll never get to play it but damn it I'd be good!" (laughs)

BWW: It will be a straight, no laughter, no irony answer.

LIZ: (laughs) Oh, actually you should put it in there!

BWW: Everyone's gonna talk about it and Tweet about it.

LIZ: This is good! Press is good! This'll make us famous, you and me.