Interview: Brittney Johnson of MAD HATTER THE MUSICAL at Place Des Arts - Théâtre Maisonneuve

Brittney Johnson is an accomplished and commanding performer. She made her Broadway debut in MOTOWN THE MUSICAL understudying the character (based on) Diana Ross. She quickly followed that with LES MISERABLES, a production in which she performed one character at a matinee and the other that same evening! Most recently she made Broadway History by becoming the first Black Woman and the first woman of colour to play the title role of "Glinda", in WICKED on Broadway. I had the distinct pleasure to chat with Johnson about her career as she gears up to perform in Montreal in a special concert version of MAD HATTER THE MUSICAL, where she is portraying "The Queen of Hearts".

HANNIBAL: Tell me a little bit about your journey into the arts.

JOHNSON: I think it was a natural progression for me. I started singing before I could talk, at least that's what my mom says! I was always drawn to music and I started voice lessons when I was 8 years old and I sang in church, but my real introduction to the theatre didn't come until I was in high school. I had done little regional shows, like Christmas shows. I was in a production of JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT. I was a kid in it. I just walked on and off in one of the party scenes [laughs] It didn't really register that this was something people were doing for a living. I thought it was just something fun I got to do. Then in high school, I did a production of LES MISERABLES, where I played Fantine. That's when I got really serious about wanting to pursue theatre in college. That's what brought me to New York. I went to NYU and booked my first show right out of college, which was the LES MISERABLES 25th Anniversary Tour. So I had this kind of full circle moment to kind of start off my career and I have been really blessed to be working ever since.

HANNIBAL: I love that full circle moment! So, then tell me, how on earth did you play Eponine and Fantine in the same day?!

JOHNSON: It's funny because my first Broadway show was MOTOWN THE MUSICAL. I was a swing for 8 ensemble tracks (roles) and an understudy for Diana Ross, so going from 9 tracks to two really was nothing! I was contracted to play Eponine, but before I was bumped up to that role, I had understudied Fantine, so they kind of kept that in my back pocket, saying, "you're never really gonna do this, we have other understudies, but can we keep you as an emergency?" Normally principals don't cover other principal tracks. So, then I walk in one day and my stage manager somes into my dressing room and says, "So, uh...do you...uh...want to play Fantine this morning? One of the understudies is out. I walked out of my Eponine dressing room and into the Fantine dressing room next door and thought, "all right. We're doing this. Let's do it!"

HANNIBAL: I can't imagine! Maybe in my younger days [laughs}

JOHNSON: [laughs ]I'm a pretty optimistic person, but I think we limit ourselves to what we think is possible because we have never had to rise to the occasion. I do think the same thing about myself all the time...if I ever needed to cover more than one track again, let alone nine tracks, I couldn't do it. But the truth is, I feel as soon as you're presented with something, there's something inside of you that just kind of sparks into motion and you just do it.

HANNIBAL: Tell me a little bit about your experience with WICKED. Obviously it was a big deal. It would be great if it wasn't a big deal anymore, but it is, which is kind of bonkers. What was your experience like. Did you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders?

JOHNSON: I would kind of link it to what you just said. It's crazy that we are still having to celebrate this kind of thing. But now that my time in WICKED is over, I'm trying to build this new platform or rather use the platform I now have to speak about. I think it's important to celebrate the firsts and the wins, especially when it is something historic or something that is breaking a precedent. I think it's important to distinguish between things that are breaking a precedent, therefore opening doors for everyone. We don't need to point out every, little thing that's different or we are just going to continue separating ourselves even more. I think as a society in general, we have to be careful that we are not just continually pointing out our differences instead of celebrating the work. That's something that I'm interested in seeing how it unfolds and I'm interested in being part of that conversation.

HANNIBAL: Beautifully said. Thank you for that! Tell me about MAD HATTER THE MUSICAL. Was this something you had worked on previously or is it a brand new project for you?

JOHNSON: We did a reading of it in, I think, December of 2021 in New York City. It was really just the music, not too much of the story, but it was a chance to get industry people to hear the music. It was my first introduction to this character and the musical world of the show, so to kind of get an understanding of what they were trying to achieve was great. When they told me they were doing a larger reading, an orchestrating reading, in Montreal, I was like, "yup, yup, YES!" The music is really beautiful. It's a retelling of the Mad Hatter that I feel we haven't seen before. I'm always interested in these kinds of old tales and the side characters. I'm interested in why we assume the worst of them. They probably have a backstory. I think about Cinderella's stepmother all the time. She probably had a rough life and is just trying to do the best for her kids. There is more to every story. This is a really cool retelling of the "mad" Hatter's story and what made him "mad" or what we see as madness with the labels we put on people. I play the Queen of Hearts. One thing I'm really excited about is bringing a bit of heart [laughs] to a character that we have only ever seen as evil, just out to get Alice. I'm excited to get to know the show a lot better in this process.

HANNIBAL: It sounds amazing. I'm excited to see it. Congratulations on all your success. You'll have to change your hashtag from #BrittneyTheGood to #BrittneyTheHeart!

JOHNSON: [laughs}

The world premiere and concert version of MAD HATTER THE MUSICAL presented by The Orchestre symphonique de Longueuil and its conductor Alexandre Da Costa, plays for one performance only on Sunday, April 16, 2023 at 3PM in Place des Arts Théâtre Maisonneuve. Tickets run from from $49.00 to $150.00 and can be purchased HERE

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