BWW Interviews: Canadians on Broadway - Tony LePage

This year is shaping up to be the year of the Canucks on Broadway, with Canadian representation running at an all time high on the Great White Way.  There’s the critically acclaimed production of Stratford Shakespeare Festival’s Jesus Christ Superstar (with no less than 20 Canadians in the cast), as well as Hamilton girl Caissie Levy returning to Broadway in Ghost, and Canadian Stafford Arima helming the new musical Carrie.  Of course, there’s also the gang over at Rock of Ages, which currently boasts four Canadian cast members who were part of the Toronto production.  One of those cast members is Tony LePage, who understudies all eight of the male roles in the show.

Tony LePage had a lengthy career in Canada as well as experience performing in the UK and Australia, but he always had Broadway dreams.  He rocketed to stardom on the Toronto theatre scene when he starred as Jack Kelly in the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Ben Elton musical the Boys in the Photograph. Shortly thereafter he was cast in the Canadian production of Rock of Ages.

When Rock of Ages closed, Tony was one of the lucky Canucks asked down to NYC to join the Broadway cast.  Along with his wife Natalie, he embarked on the exciting journey that has resulted in him calling the Big Apple home for the last year.  True to his Canadian roots, he is a consummate gentleman and all around great guy, who was kind enough to take a few minutes to talk with BWW about what the transition to Broadway has been like for him, and why he hopes to continue to call NYC ‘home’:

Congratulations on a year on the Great White Way! Do you remember your first Broadway experience?

I do! It was Cats and it was on a high school trip many years ago.  We actually saw three shows on that trip – Cats, The Phantom and Les Miserables.  Hard to believe The Phantom is still running and into its 26^th year.  I remember I absolutely fell in love with the city and the idea of Broadway after that trip, and that’s when I decided that ultimately I wanted to be here at some point in my career.

Is it everything you expected?

It’s wonderful.  I’m so happy and feel like I’m exactly where I am supposed to be. I’m having a fantastic time in the production, the show is really great and I love all the people that I’m working with.  I think what I would like more than anything else would be for it to have a really long run.

So what is a typical day like in the life of a Canadian on Broadway?

New York is such an alive city, it’s incredible and you never know what’s going to happen from day to day.  I get up in the morning and I have a coffee date with my wife Natalie and then the two of us will go out for a walk in Central Park.  We love walking in the Park – it’s really beautiful, especially with Spring coming.  And then we will check out shows to see if there are any that have a matinee on my off day that we could check out because we love seeing shows.  Often I will have understudy rehearsal from 1 to 5 as well – since I cover eight tracks in the show I’m called into those a lot.  And then when we have a nighttime show you have to be at the theatre for 7:30 and you go right into the show. 

You cover all eight male tracks, that must be a daunting task!

Actually, it’s not as daunting as I would have thought.  I remember when I first found out I would be doing it a lot of people said that to me, but once I got comfortable with the roles it didn’t seem so scary.  I think the most important thing is just to give it your all, and have a good knowledge of all the tracks so that you are never that guy who is just phoning it in.  That’s what I strive for whenever I go on.

Can you pick a favourite? Which one do you most look forward to doing?

I think the one I’m having the most fun with right now is the Mayor, but they’re all great to play.

What’s been the biggest difference between when you did Rock of Ages in Toronto and doing it on Broadway?

I think the size of the theatre makes a big difference.  In Toronto we played at The Royal Alexandra which was a dream come true, but it also seats about 1500 people.  The Helen Hayes is closer to 600, so when you walk in I think you really feel like you’re walking right into the bar.  It gives the audience a different experience of the production because you feel like you are a part of it.  It’s intimate and cozy and we have a rocking good time.

How did you find out that you were going to be in the Broadway production?

It was pretty incredible actually.  We had found out we were closing in Toronto and everyone was really disappointed, we loved the show and had a great company and it would have been wonderful to run longer.  The morning after we had our closing party I got a call from my agent, who asked if I was sitting down – and then told me to pack my bags because I was joining the Broadway company. I remember my wife and I just sat there jumping up and down and crying.  It was completely surreal because it represented the culmination of all of my hard work and dreams since I was younger – I’ve always wanted to be on Broadway so for it to happen with this show that I love and that I started in Canada was great.

The whole process was a bit of a whirlwind, Natalie and I went down to NYC right away and went through the insane process of finding an apartment in Manhattan.  It’s a whole other world when you get prepared to live there, but now we are very settled and really see it as our home.  We have a great spot on the Upper West Side that feels a bit removed from everything, but at the same time I love knowing that within a few minutes I can be at the heart of everything in Times Square.

If someone is coming to visit you and they’ve never been to NYC before, what are the top 5 things you’re going to suggest that they do?

1. Rock of Ages! Obviously, I’m going to tell people to come see the show.  We’ve got a great production and I think everyone should see it.  We just because the 88^th longest running show on Broadway which is really exciting, and we want that number to keep climbing.
2. Bus Tours: They have these amazing bus tours that will take you all over the city, from Brooklyn and the Bronx to Lower Manhattan.  They’re incredible because they’re reasonably fast and you get to see everything.  It’s a great way to explore.
3. Central Park: We really love Central Park.  It’s so beautiful and there’s so much to see and do.  It’s one of those incredible places where you can just walk for hours and never be bored because there’s always something to see and do.  Especially in the Spring and Summer, the park comes alive.
4. Food: Check out some places to eat.  We have the most incredible food in NYC, anything you could ever want you can get.  Just google whatever you feel like and put the word ‘NYC’ beside it and there it is.
5. Rock of Ages again! *laughs* Or check out any show.  See and experience something. One of the great things about NYC is that we often get these productions that seem to almost spring up out of nowhere and have amazing stars taking on roles in plays that you  haven’t seen in a long time, giving them new life.  For example, Philip Seymour Hoffman is doing a limited engagement of Death of a Salesman right now and my wife was raving about it.  That’s the type of thing that you often don’t get to see as a tourist because they’re such short runs, but when you live here you get the chance to check them out and it’s incredible.

There’s been a bit of an influx recently in the number of Canadians on Broadway – is that something you notice as someone who’s been down there for awhile? Do you get the chance to support your fellow Canucks?

There are a lot more of us now and it’s great! I got to go and see Jesus Christ Superstar the other day and I was so thrilled for all my friends in the cast. It’s wonderful to see an almost entirely Canadian production transplanted down here like that and the show is doing really well.  I hope a lot of people come and see it.

Before heading down to Broadway you did a lot of theatre across Canada.  If you could choose one production you were a part of that you think would have had a great life on Broadway, what would it be?

I worked on a great musical with Ben Elton and Andrew Lloyd Webber called The Boys in the Photograph that I think would have had a great life down here.  I played the lead role in that, a character called John Kelly and it was something that I was really able to sink my teeth into and had an incredible time doing.  The music was so beautiful and it had a great story and truthfully I was a bit surprised it didn’t have life after Toronto.  That being said, you really never know.  It took quite a few years from when that show began in the UK (where it was called The Beautiful Game) and when it came to Canada – so we may still see it on Broadway!

What’s next for you?

Honestly, right now I don’t have a specific role in my sights.  I’m so happy with what I’m doing in Rock of Ages, I love the production and I love the cast and I just want to be able to continue doing what I’m doing.  I can honestly say that I’m content and happy in the exact place I am in my life – I have my beautiful wife here with me in NYC and we feel so at home.  My dream would be for this to continue for as long as possible, because it’s a wonderful thing to get to achieve a dream.

When and Where?

Rock of Ages

The Helen Hayes Theatre

Tickets can be purchased in person at the box office, by phone at (800) 432-7250 or online at www.rockofagesmusical.com

To post a comment, you must register and login.