Interview: SUNSET BOULEVARD's Mandy Gonzalez is Bringing All of Herself to Norma Desmond

Mandy Gonzalez is a powerhouse of Broadway and beyond, known for her dynamic performances, commanding voice, and inspiring resilience. A Drama Desk and OBIE Award winner, Gonzalez is known for her performances as Angelica Schuyler in Hamilton, as the original Nina Rosario in Lin-Manuel Miranda's In The Heights, and more. She is currently guest starring in the iconic role of Norma Desmond in Jamie Lloyd’s Broadway production of Sunset Boulevard.

BroadwayWorld spoke with Gonzalez about how she approaches the complex character of Norma, celebrating being cancer-free, her health and vocal routines, the joy of connecting with fans through her Fearless Squad movement, and much more. Read the full interview here! 

"Sunset Boulevard" is an iconic musical, and Norma Desmond is a legendary character. How did you approach bringing your own interpretation to this complex role?

I met with Jamie Lloyd after I was offered the gig, and he really encouraged me to bring myself to the project. There is a very fine line within this production of, ‘Is it Norma, or is it Mandy?’ in certain moments. And I think with this type of character you have to bring all of yourself. And my story, being in this business for almost 25 years, it has a lot to say.

I think every performance is like you have to give everything about yourself, every vulnerable place, you have to go there. And it’s exhausting and thrilling at the same time. And also, vocally, working with the musical director Alan Williams, and the choreographer Fabian [Aloise], it was really a big cohesive process to work with that entire creative team where they all just said, “Yes, does that feel good to you? Does this work on you?” Things were changed so they fit who I am. And I thought that that was really incredible. Sometimes you don’t get that.

I’ve been very fortunate in my career, when I do play a role, whether it’s a role that I am taking over, or a role that, with this, I’m guest starring in, where I’ve worked with a creative team that is just so open and willing to say "Yes, and." They encourage you to bring everything to the project.

What aspects of Norma resonate most with you?

I think being in this business, and being a woman who is 46, and having been through so much, having a child and all of these things, and still wanting to do this thing that I absolutely love, and sometimes as you go along the doors get closed in certain ways. And I think it’s the fight, and the way that she is a survivor, the way that she rises above, no matter what, for herself. I think that that resonates with me.

You celebrated five years cancer-free on your opening night in Sunset Boulevard. How has that milestone shaped your outlook on performing and life in general?

I think when you’re faced with a cancer diagnoses, it can do nothing but change you, in the way that it makes you see life through a different lens. And that’s what I absolutely love about doing this project. It’s interesting because I do it once a week, I’m guest starring, but really, I feel like every time I’m on it’s like an opening night. And I feel so alive, and there’s just a celebration within that, that I think after you go through something that’s life and death, you look for those kind of moments that make you just be in the moment and realize how incredible it is.

Your voice is known for its strength and versatility. Can you share some of your favorite vocal and physical routines that help you stay in peak performance shape?

It doesn’t matter whether you do eight shows a week, or I’m doing one show a week, the training is still the same. To be on Broadway is very similar to being an athlete, you have to maintain and train throughout the run. And so, when I did get the job, I started working with my vocal coach who has been with me since I was about 16 years old. Her name is Wendy Carr, and she’s absolutely incredible. So, she’s given me such a base for my voice, and so, even if I don’t meet with her every week, I can train with my lesson tapes.

And then I started working with my acting coach, and I began to train, I started to go to the gym. This Norma is very physical, and I’m doing a lot of things that I’ve never done before, like the tango, and summersaults, and all these different things! And it’s like, when you are a guest star, you get one shot, one time a week, and you have to hit it! Usually, my show, ‘Tuesdays with Norma with Mandy’, I’m starting the week with everybody, so I’m there, and I have to bring a certain level and be part of the company, be a part of that level they’ve been in on from the week before. 

I’ve been so lucky as well with two incredible assistant directors on this show, and an assistant dance captain. We meet every Tuesday at a certain time before the show, and I walk through the entire show, and I do all the choreography, I get everything under my belt, and then I feel like, ‘Okay, I’m ready.’ I don’t want to have any mess ups happen that could have been prevented. People that are coming to that show pay the same price that they would on any other day, and I want to give them the best show possible.

I’m also an avid reader- I write as well- but I’m an avid reader, and I love research. I love biographies. And when I met with Jamie Lloyd it was really up to me, he really trusts in the actor to figure it out and do their process. So, a lot of my process was reading biographies of women that have done this part before. I started with Gloria Swanson, I read her biography, and it was so eye-opening to see her life was so similar to Norma Desmond. She started when she was 15 years old, and she got married when I think she was 16, she went through it in this business. And I think that the more you’re a part of this business, you have your story to tell. I have my story, Nicole has her story, Caroline [Bowman] has her story. It’s a really incredible thing to see.

Do you have a favorite song in the show?

Absolutely! I love As If We Never Said Goodbye, that’s my favorite song. One of the greatest of all time, I’ve heard everybody sing it, and the fact that I get to put my own stamp on it in an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, it’s just a freaking dream. My first shows to see were The Phantom of the Opera in Los Angeles, and on a school trip we went and saw Sunset Boulevard, so it’s total full circle, it couldn’t be more of a dream.

You were just talking about being an avid reader, and a writer too, with Fearless Squad, you’ve created a movement that fosters inclusivity and positivity. How has that influenced your approach to connecting with fans?

I think it has given me so much. I love and care for, so deeply, this community, and the people that surround it. And I think that I had a lot of young people, people in general, writing to me about feelings that they didn’t belong, and feelings of loneliness, and I’ve been so blessed in my own life to have my own Fearless Squad that I said, “Hey, if you need a Fearless Squad, you can be a part of mine, who’s with me?” And I had no idea that thousands of people would want that.

But, I think that that’s something we all want, a place to belong, I think that’s something that Norma wants in her own way. And so, I feel so lucky to be that Fearless Squad leader that stands with so many people and stands behind so many people in our community. For some reason I feel like that’s where I was meant to be.

I remember when I was younger and I decided to do this, I just wanted to do something that means something to somebody else. And I’ve been so fortunate to be able to do that with my life. And I have so many people that wait for me at the stage door, whether that be at Sunset or my concerts, or whatever I do, and they say, “Oh my gosh, when you sing this, it got me through this hard time in my life.” And it means everything to me.

Do you have anything else you’d like to share?

I would just say, come see ‘Tuesdays With Norma’! This is an incredible company, and it’s an incredible show, and I feel so blessed to be a part of it in any possible way, and I want to tell people, young people especially, that are looking to the arts and this life, I was somebody that would watch the Tony Awards, that was my intro to Broadway, that’s what I wanted to do. And to say that a life in the arts is possible to all of them. And sometimes it looks like it looks where you’re in the spotlight, but sometimes it can be not in the spotlight, it can be writing, it can be stage management, company management, there are so many fields to go into where you can make a living, and I want to encourage those that are going for it to do it.