0:01

Hello, they're friends. It's your Broadway buddy,

0:03

Ben Cameron, and you are listening to play

0:05

Bill presents The Broadway Cast. The

0:07

Broadway Cast is a weekly talk show that brings

0:09

the pages of Playbill to life and delivers

0:11

it directly to the theater fans around the world. Every

0:14

episode will feature breaking Broadway news and exclusive

0:16

stories from notable Broadway personalities.

0:19

Additionally, The Broadway Cast gives a voice

0:21

to fans like they've never had before. We

0:24

are kicking off our second season

0:26

in a very magical way. It's

0:28

all Disney on Broadway today, my friends,

0:31

as we welcome from a Laddin tell Young

0:33

Caro, Lindsay from News's and Mary Poppins

0:36

herself, Miss Ashley Brown. But

0:38

before we get into the Disney magic,

0:41

let's check in with someone who knows more about Broadway

0:43

than just about anybody. She's seen her features editor at

0:45

play Bill with our Playbill Pulse, Ruthie

0:47

Fierberg. Hi. Then, Hi, Ruthie,

0:49

it's good to see you. It's so good to see We

0:52

like it when we're able to actually be here together in

0:54

and touch and discuss and definitely

0:57

yeah, tell us what's going on. What's the pulse telling

0:59

us mean, there has been so much news

1:01

just in the past week, let alone during

1:04

our hiatus. Um. The biggest

1:06

news of course is Hello Dolly,

1:08

Bernadette Peters. I'm

1:11

in for it, back where she belongs.

1:13

As they say, Um, Bernardette Peters

1:15

is going to take over the role for Bette Midler

1:18

beginning January,

1:21

and alongside her, Mr

1:23

Victor Garber taking over

1:26

for David Hyde Pierce. It's another embarrassment

1:28

of riches. They're actually going to

1:30

go dark for a week after Bet

1:33

finishes on January, and then they

1:35

will begin new

1:37

performances January. At

1:41

that point, Bernardette's going to do all

1:43

eight shows. She's a war horse.

1:45

So if you're going to see Donna, your last chance

1:47

is January nine. But Gavin

1:50

Creole and Kate Baldwin Tony

1:52

Winner and Tony Nominee respectively for

1:54

the show, are extending very

1:57

exciting, and Taylor Trench

1:59

is leaving to go into Dear Evan Hanson, so

2:02

Charlie Stemp from the UK is going

2:04

to come in. Yeah.

2:06

And speaking of Dear Evan Hanson, they

2:09

have just announced tour dates. Oh

2:11

my gosh, I just heard the collective screams

2:13

of tween girls all over the country, right,

2:15

I mean not just tween girls. Right, this musical

2:18

is resonating with tons of people. So they're going

2:20

to kick off Denver October,

2:23

which is where Frozen is right

2:25

now. Um, coming to Broadway this spring,

2:28

so that's exciting, Dear of Enhanson news,

2:30

Speaking of the spring, Carousel

2:33

is coming spring, and

2:36

we already knew that Jesse Mueller and Joshua

2:39

Henry were headlining, but now we

2:41

have a theater and an

2:43

opening date. So it is going

2:45

into the Imperial and it's

2:48

going to officially open April twelve, but performances

2:50

are beginning as early as February.

2:54

Miss Betsy Wolf has joined the cast

2:56

as well. As Yes,

2:58

she's fantastic. She's in Maatris right now

3:01

and so exciting to see her.

3:03

Star continued to rise. Um,

3:05

Alexander Jim and Yanni, who is on the tour

3:07

of Hamilton's right now, is coming in and Margaret

3:09

Colin coming back to Broadway.

3:12

She hasn't been on Broadway since I think, so

3:15

that's really exciting. Um.

3:17

Of course there's always Hamilton's news,

3:19

So here's the ham update. The

3:21

Pulse wouldn't beat at all without Hamilton's, I know, so

3:24

London Hamilton's no longer

3:26

beginning November one, now starting

3:28

previous December six, within official opening

3:31

December twenty one, due to the renovations

3:33

that are happening at that theater. So if

3:35

you were looking to go around holiday time, be

3:38

very careful about when you have

3:41

purchased your tickets. Nobody wants to show

3:43

up in London prepared to see how I know, I

3:45

know, I guess you have to go see Harry Potter. Then would

3:49

not be a crying shame. I know, terrible, terrible

3:51

news. That's all really big and excited. It's

3:53

all really exciting stuff. I'm going to leave you

3:55

with this thought. Tickets go

3:58

on sale for Mean Girl on

4:00

Broadway when when?

4:02

October three? Mean

4:05

Girls day? So tickets go on sale

4:07

October three for the Broadway

4:10

production of Mean Girls. It's opening in

4:12

d C in October as well, and

4:14

then the Broadway production is coming to the August Wilson

4:16

Theater this March with

4:18

an opening of April eight. That

4:21

is so Regina George to already have a Broadway

4:23

theater lined up before she opens out of town. She's

4:26

plastics, she really is. That's

4:28

our playbill, paulse It's always great to see Ruthie.

4:30

Can't wait to talk to you next time. Absolutely glad

4:32

to be here. Thanks, and now, my friends,

4:35

let's get on with our season to premiere

4:37

show. Give my

4:40

regards to brawl Away Lay

4:45

Off Broadway. But

4:48

a kid in the middle of nowhere who's sitting there living for

4:50

Tony performances, singing and flipping along with the

4:52

Pippants and Wickets and kikiS, Matilda's and mormonses.

4:55

So we might reassure that kid. And there's something

4:57

to smur that chid, because I promise you all

4:59

of us off tonight we were that

5:01

kid. Feel

5:04

free to applaud wildly device.

5:10

We're so thrilled to be back. We had an amazing first

5:12

season. We are back today with

5:14

nothing but joy because today it's all

5:16

about Disney. Disney

5:19

on Broadway to happier words I think

5:21

have never been spoken. I'd

5:23

like to quickly say hello to our panel sitting

5:26

immediately to my left. Recently

5:28

having played Glinda and

5:31

Wicked on Broadway. People know her

5:33

as Katherine Plummer in the original probably cast

5:35

of News. He's Carol Lindsay is here. Carol,

5:39

Hi, Hi, thanks for having us. I'm so happy

5:41

that you're here. News has become

5:44

such a phenomenon on so many levels,

5:46

and now as a film that keeps

5:48

coming back even into the theaters.

5:54

I mean that's bigger than movie House. Yeah, I mean to

5:56

me, because you can just have it while you're having your

5:59

dinner, like with your lean

6:01

cuisine. Yeah,

6:03

at least that's what I'm trying to do for your pizza.

6:05

Hut. I don't know, but yeah,

6:07

no, it's so crazy. I mean news he wasn't even supposed

6:10

to come to Broadway, and now you know that's

6:12

true. Yes, it was supposed to. It

6:14

was just intended to um

6:17

for licensing because there were a lot of

6:19

illegal productions of News He's including

6:21

my high school, um, my

6:26

middle school. So it's so cool, I mean, it's all

6:28

it's a series of unexpected

6:30

surprises, that's news ees, And it's

6:32

so cool that everybody gets to see it now

6:35

on their couch, which is where

6:37

everybody wants to let

6:40

right on our couch, seated next to Carol Lindsay. He

6:42

currently stars as Aladdin in Aladdin

6:45

on Broadway. He's also appeared in Wicked,

6:47

in Transit, Flower Drums on Godspell,

6:49

Rent to name just a few. Here,

6:52

Hey, gang telling me how's

6:55

it been. You're in the Latin. Oh gosh, it's

6:57

a blast. I've been in the show for about three

6:59

months now, and it's it's the most

7:01

fun I've ever had on a stage. It's

7:04

it's a two and a half hour like theme

7:06

park, right, That's what it feels like to me. It feels like such

7:08

a fun ride to be on all night. And it's

7:11

one of those things where I never quite leave the stage,

7:13

so I blink and I feel like, oh, it's it's over, like

7:15

we're done. Oh my gosh, that was a blast, you know

7:18

it was. It's it's really really fun. How long did

7:20

you know you were going in before you could

7:22

tell people? Oh gosh, I knew for quite

7:24

some time. But I was still

7:26

doing in transit at the time, and it was

7:29

kind of one of those stories that I tell my students

7:31

too, because I sometimes I teach as well,

7:33

and I say, you know, you never kind of know when you're actually

7:35

auditioning for a job. So they had called

7:37

me into audition for the national tour

7:40

and they said, Telly, we know you're doing in transit, so we

7:42

know you're not available to do the national tour of Aladdin.

7:44

But it's so hard to get Casey Nikolau

7:46

and Tom Schumacher in the same room together.

7:48

You know, these two theater titans, right that

7:50

have busy, busy schedules. They said, we'll come

7:52

in and we'll see you, and I don't know, maybe you'll be Aladdin

7:54

like a year or two years from now, like

7:57

you know, they just want to have you on a list of people they're

7:59

interested to see you. I said, great, awesome. So

8:01

I walked in and they were like they said, they were like, hey, Telly,

8:03

congrats on in Transit. We know you start rehearsals in a couple of

8:05

weeks. And I was like, yeah, awesome, and they

8:08

were like, well, let's see what you got. And then miraculously,

8:10

somehow, they were like, well, we actually

8:13

were interested in having you replace Adam

8:15

Jacobs, who is actually gonna be leading the national tour on Broadway.

8:18

And I was like what, which was a total

8:20

surprise, and they said, we know you have in Transit, so you

8:22

know it's cool just locked in

8:24

the room before you knew. I didn't know. I didn't

8:26

know that I was actually auditioning for the show

8:28

on Broadway. At the time. I had no idea. I thought I was auditioning

8:31

for a job, I don't know, somewhere many

8:33

maybe a year down the line or something, or two years and maybe

8:35

another call back another you know, I just had

8:37

no idea, so you just you never know.

8:39

I guess that's the lesson to be had, is you know, kind

8:41

of put your best foot forward at all times, you know, yeah, for

8:43

sure. And rounding out our

8:45

panel today, she is the luminous

8:48

original Mary Poppins.

8:50

This is Ashley Brown is where moly,

8:53

moly, I'm so thrilled to meet you. I'm a fan of yours

8:55

for a long time, and I don't think we've had a chance to actually

8:58

sit down and say, hello, how

9:00

has that impacted your life being being

9:02

Mary Poppins. It's beyond you

9:04

know, it's it's kind of you know, Julie Andrews was always

9:06

my Mary Poppins, and I've had so many kids who

9:08

had never seen the movie, who saw the show and it's

9:10

like, I'm the Mary Poppins. So I still, I

9:12

mean, they're a little shocked on my accent um

9:15

that I'm not really her, but um,

9:17

but it's been an amazing ride and I still,

9:20

you know, hold her so close to my heart and it's

9:22

just it's been an amazing ride. It changed my life.

9:24

And do you have you have a kid? I do. I have

9:26

a baby, a sixteen month o little girl named

9:29

Emmiline, and she's going to grow up knowing

9:31

that mommy was Mary Poppins. I know it's

9:33

funny because there's like little pictures and I have a little

9:35

things framed and she's like, Mamma,

9:37

mama. I'm like, oh my gosh, it's already

9:39

happening. Right before we dive deeper

9:42

into getting to know a little bit more about your experiences

9:45

with Disney on Broadway and your careers in

9:47

general, we like to have a little fun here at the Broadway

9:49

Past and we'd like to play a little

9:51

game called you Can't Stop the Beat, and

9:54

it's very easy to play. We start like this.

9:57

We're gonna start a little bit of a rhythm,

9:59

very simple. M oh.

10:03

I feel like I'm back in acting school. I feel

10:07

the Lord. I don't have a filter. This

10:11

is Disney. If

10:13

you want to go for a double clap, you're feeling daring.

10:16

I won't be angry for

10:20

the double claps. So we're

10:23

gonna go round robin around the panel,

10:25

and I'm going to ask you all to name we've lost

10:28

the many Disney princesses as

10:31

you can wait, just one at a time, like

10:33

I don't just keep going? Yeah, I mean unless

10:35

you're feeling very inspired. God,

10:38

I think you should start Karash help me? When do I

10:40

say it? On the six? Here

10:42

we go? Jasmine

10:44

Good, Mulan

10:47

Excellent, snow White.

10:52

Oh oh, you don't play?

10:53

You don't, And

10:57

I'll tell you why I don't play.

10:59

I'll tell you why I don't play. Danny

11:02

over here has forbidden me to play

11:04

because he's afraid I will crush you. You

11:06

should play. It's Disney, I'll play.

11:08

Okay, out of princesses, am

11:12

the training? Here we go? Can we can

11:14

we start over? Like? Yeah,

11:16

here we go, princesses, gosh five, six,

11:19

Here we go. You can repeat you

11:22

all edited, But

11:26

if I start, I'm going to steal

11:28

your thilps. Okay, okay, Mulan,

11:34

Bell, Jasmine, snow

11:37

White, Rapunzel, Tiana,

11:40

Cinderella good.

11:45

First is

11:52

this is the This is more nerve wracking to performing.

11:56

Right. My hands are sweating and

12:00

we're just getting started. Oh

12:03

yes, all right, next one, there's princes

12:06

Disney Princes. Oh no,

12:08

no oh gosh, six

12:11

seven eight All

12:15

Stars, Gosh, I'm always last

12:18

stealing Laddin, Prince Eric,

12:21

Prince Charming, Hans.

12:30

But he really proves himself, doesn't mean he really

12:33

comes prince at heart? Yeah,

12:36

alright, we have one more

12:38

rounds and I think you're like this one best

12:42

over there.

12:44

I am so nervous when

12:47

you all see the look in their eyes. They're all leather,

12:54

leather time for

12:58

Disney villains.

13:01

Got very quiet. I need to think.

13:03

Okay, okay, take a moment and actor prepares

13:07

six seven n O

13:11

Maleficent ms Andrew ja

13:15

Ursula Ursula

13:20

because she's so bad.

13:24

I think she might be my favorite. She's the bass of them all.

13:26

Have you heard the rumor of with the live action the

13:28

Murmaid they were talking to uh, Harvey

13:31

Fierstein's did that. There

13:34

was a whole tweet thing about it, which that's

13:36

what I yes, all that would

13:38

be amazing. I

13:42

can't wait to see his cleavage again. The

13:46

world has been saying that, the

13:49

world has been saying it, they've been demanding

13:51

it. Um, let's start the very big into my friends.

13:54

You're all very accomplished actors, not only

13:56

in Disney musicals, but Broad Bay and beyond.

13:58

What were your first inspirations.

14:00

What were the first shows you saw that

14:03

you said that I want to do that, I

14:05

can do that. I don't know

14:07

if it was I can do that, it was I want

14:09

to do that. I think ever in our careers

14:11

we ever really go I can do that. Yeah.

14:16

Yeah. Um. I remember seeing

14:19

rag Time when it came through Rochester

14:21

EXCEP from Rochester and we had, you know, all the tours

14:23

go through there. I'm so sorry for that auditorium

14:26

to they're changing it. Yeah,

14:28

yeah, yeah, so that's very exciting. Um.

14:30

But I remember seeing Ragtime and watching

14:33

that and just I had to

14:35

sit there for a moment because I had to absorb

14:37

what I just saw. I mean, it's so moving

14:39

and I just saw it recently A gun Quick had some

14:41

friends in it, and it's still like the same

14:43

impact on me. It's such a good show.

14:46

And yeah, I just remember wanting to be able to

14:48

tell a story like that and inspire somebody

14:50

the way I was inspired by them.

14:52

That was the first moment that I really was

14:54

beautiful and yes, timelessly.

14:57

Yeah really it was one of the best scores. Yes,

15:00

yeah, for me, it was. Um, you know, this

15:03

wasn't the first Broadway show I saw, but it was I

15:05

think it was like the third Broadway show I saw. It was Rent,

15:07

actually the original the original company of Rent,

15:09

and I remember like the first show I saw it was Cats, which

15:12

I was like, everybody's a cat, so I couldn't really tell what they

15:14

looked like underneath. And

15:16

then the second show I saw it was Crazy for You, and

15:18

I actually didn't. I was like, it was an

15:20

amazing show and I loved it. It It was kind of one of those

15:22

amazing old fashioned musicals. But I didn't see anybody

15:24

that looked like me on stage. I didn't,

15:27

you know. And then all of a sudden I saw Rent, and I was

15:29

like, as a New Yorker, I was like, all

15:31

those people on stage, I've seen all of

15:33

those people walking down the street. They looked like me, you

15:35

know, black, white, Asian, Latino,

15:38

brown, gay, straight, everything, it was. Everything

15:40

was represented on that stage, and I was like, I

15:42

can see myself doing that, and they're telling this New

15:44

York story and I was like I could do this. And that

15:46

was back in ninety six. Fast for ten years.

15:49

It's two thousand and six, and I'm actually like on

15:52

this on the stage doing that show, which

15:55

that is actually a surreal moment, like huge.

15:58

I think it was kind of the show of my generation.

16:01

And I remembered like, back in the day, this is not

16:03

good, don't do this. But back in the day, we had cassette

16:05

bootlegs of shows, like before before

16:08

the cast album came out, you what you were on like

16:10

America Online, and you would go on chatboards and you'd

16:12

be like, who has you? Go in the chatrens and go

16:14

who has a bootleg of Rent? Who

16:16

in talking to Rent? Four? Right right

16:19

right? And so I so I had this. I had a

16:21

bootleg of Rent. And I remembered

16:23

like being in my put in rehearsal

16:26

for Rent on Broadway in two thousand and six, and I was like, I'm

16:28

in my own bootleg, Like I'm I'm

16:30

in my bootleg, Like that was the first thought

16:32

that I thought to my brain. That crazy. I

16:35

think that may be the goal for all of us. If we could

16:37

all end up in our own bootlegs. We've

16:39

done it, right. I actually in I

16:42

was obsessed. I had to sneak out of my house to

16:45

watch Rent perform on the Tony Awards,

16:47

and I remember thinking I grew up in Mormon Utah,

16:51

so I had to sneak out for that one, and I remember being

16:53

like, this is unlike anything I've ever seen.

16:55

Yeah, for surely

16:59

started. I loved movie musicals

17:01

like Carousel, Oklahoma, Mary Poppins,

17:03

all those I watched, like

17:06

the VHS Thank You and

17:09

over and be kind rewind for

17:12

for our millennial friends once again.

17:14

And VHS is a very big cassette

17:17

like object that you would have to

17:20

from and you can't leave it in

17:22

the sun and Bundy.

17:24

But I started with that, and I would always have like, no

17:26

every word, every lyric have dances

17:29

that I made my family sit there, which I'm sure we're great,

17:32

so're awesome. But my very first show originally

17:34

from golf Fries, Florida, smalltown or Pensacola,

17:37

and at that time we didn't get any tours, and

17:39

so my parents took me to Atlanta, Georgia,

17:41

and randomly enough, kind of like your rent situation,

17:44

I saw Beauty and the Beast and I had

17:46

sung a lot at that point. I was probably in

17:49

middle school, and I had sung in my church

17:51

and a children's course, but

17:54

it was that moment I was like, oh my gosh, I have to be

17:56

her. But and I was like, I have

17:58

to do this. I was like, it all kind of came together because

18:00

no one of my family's in theater like at all.

18:03

So I'm like, oh, I can like do this, do this, like

18:05

not just saying at church. And

18:07

I just remember being like, oh my gosh, but she's so

18:09

short. And I was already five seven and like seventh

18:11

grade, and I was like, oh gosh, I'll never be

18:14

the little princess. We'll cut

18:16

to like, you know, fifteen years later,

18:18

ten years later, I was the fifteenth

18:21

bell That's how Mad my Broadway debut and

18:23

number fifteen one of a kind

18:26

um and it was

18:28

just one of those really surreal yes, honey,

18:30

it was one of those really surreal moments. I remember telling

18:32

the director who put me in being like, well, he

18:35

was like, have you ever seen the show? I was like, well, I saw when I was thirteen.

18:37

He goes, well, don't tell the cast because half of them were

18:39

in the show then at that time. And

18:41

so I ended up like sharing the stage with some of the

18:43

people who I saw,

18:45

and I told them that after we

18:47

became friends, so they weren't like you young and get out

18:49

of here, you know. But it was a very

18:52

like full circle moments. But don't you love

18:54

those moments when you when you get into the

18:56

business and you can look around and say, I'm working

18:58

with these people, but yeah, I knew before

19:00

they had any idea who I was, you

19:02

know exactly. So going into

19:05

that, into the Disney side of it, what were

19:07

your first Disney memories? The

19:10

Beast? Yeah, I'm obsessed with

19:12

Bell, Like still it's a little weird

19:14

in my thirties, but I was

19:16

obsessed with her. Um yeah,

19:19

I remember seeing that on Broadway

19:21

and um, just being like, that's what

19:23

I want to do. I want to I want to beat Bell and being

19:25

the Beast. And then when I moved here, that's when it closed,

19:29

Like

19:33

I just turned around and go back to Roger Um.

19:36

But yeah, but then, you know, and then I got to do Newsies,

19:38

which is a different kind of princess and

19:41

kind of already in her own right. So um,

19:43

yeah, I remember seeing Bell and

19:45

also watching the movie when I was little, because she's

19:48

different than everybody else, and I was kind of different

19:50

than everybody else, and you know, it was

19:52

celebrated in her she like, you

19:55

know, her father was like, you're unique, and

19:57

that's what makes you special. And I

19:59

don't know. Hearing those words was really important to

20:01

me as a little girl. And you know, even though

20:03

I didn't fit in with the popular crowd,

20:06

like I had something special, maybe like bell,

20:08

So that was important. That's a powerful message.

20:11

I think the kind of you find throughout

20:13

Disney projects a lot. What

20:15

was your first I remember very clearly.

20:17

It was actually Mary Poppins. It was, you

20:19

know, Mary Poppins was something that was shown on television,

20:22

you know, once a year during the holidays. You

20:24

know, Mary Poppins sound of music. They were always,

20:26

you know, always on. I felt like Julie Andrews

20:28

was kind of my entree into music as

20:30

well, just as a little kid, like not even knowing what music

20:32

theater is or anything. And I remembered the

20:35

magic of Mary Poppinson, seeing

20:38

Mary pop seeing Julie Andrews and Dick Van I

20:40

dance with cartoons. That

20:43

was so magic that the

20:45

penguins and the I mean that was like the chalk

20:47

drawings that then came to life. I just like

20:49

it blew me away as a little kid, like I

20:51

could watch it over and over and over again, and I

20:53

knew every word to Mary Poppins, you know, as a little

20:56

kid, I just did not even knowing what happened. But I didn't

20:58

every word because I watched so many times. But I

21:00

know that I like, I like it. Yeah,

21:02

I think that's so. It was really the movie

21:04

of Mary Poppins. Yeah, can you say it

21:06

backwards? Tell oh, I wish no

21:09

not anymore. If

21:11

you can see the look on Ashley's

21:13

face right now, she's like, well, you know who

21:15

knows it backwards? Me? I do.

21:17

I'll never forget but that

21:20

and then the dance of Supercowl will always be

21:22

in my body, like I will always remember

21:24

it. I think I'll be eighty being like, look at right, you

21:27

know I got it. Coody

21:30

Lie Beit silly gar filly Creepers one

21:33

more time for Yeah, Sue Coody Lie

21:35

Exit silly gar filly creepus. Do

21:38

you remember the theography to at all the Honey

21:41

s U p U?

21:44

Yeah, look at you. I had to do it.

21:46

We watched

21:49

you over because

21:52

you have you You've done the Poppins North

21:54

Carolina. You do last summer

21:56

and it was like summer stock. I

21:58

mean you learn it in a week and a half. Eric would all

22:01

directed, really, which was so

22:03

fun, so about you were great? Well,

22:06

it was like that dance.

22:08

I did that every single night. It's so hard,

22:11

so hard a listeners.

22:13

By the way, Eric would All is this cast director

22:15

who is our angel, who put

22:18

me, who put me in a Laddin right

22:20

and also Poppins Broadway

22:22

to Yeah so crazy. Yeah,

22:24

he's the best, He's It was so awesome doing

22:26

that with him. It's so cool. Yeah that

22:29

that dance is no joke. Yea yeah,

22:33

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23:11

Take me through. Once you get to New York

23:13

City and you've been inspired by these early, these

23:16

early performances, you've seen or Disney movies

23:18

or Julie Andrews. What was

23:20

your journey once you got to New York City to the

23:22

Broadway stage. Um?

23:25

Well, I went to the Conservatory

23:27

Music in Cincinnati and I bought my one way

23:29

ticket with a lot of prayers, and

23:32

it was kind of crazy, like I was not expecting

23:34

things to happen so quickly. And

23:37

my senior showcase tera Reuben, who also works

23:39

with Air would all obviously UM

23:42

called me on my cell phone after my very

23:44

first showcase and was like, so we're putting this new show

23:46

together, called on the record that we're in

23:48

our final callback week. Was my first

23:50

show was my first Disney show. Um,

23:52

we're in final callbacks and I think you'd be great

23:55

for it. And I was like what, Like I still had to

23:57

do my second showcase, and I was like this is nuts. Of course,

23:59

I didn't say anything because my class would have been like, hey you,

24:03

and so I was like, okay. So here I am sleeping

24:05

on a friend's couch in the East Village. I'm like

24:07

out of a suitcase and I show

24:09

up and I sing. I was so nervous, and I

24:11

sang um journey

24:14

to the Past randomly from me in a stagia because that's what

24:16

I saying in my showcase. So it's like that's the first thing

24:18

in my book, you know, my sixty bars, um,

24:20

because that's when they still want to only hear sixty bars from

24:22

me. And and so I went in

24:25

and I kept going in and in and in, because of course

24:27

I first went in with like a pencil skirt and a smoky

24:29

eye and tear. Reubin was like, honey,

24:32

this ain't business casual anymore. I was like, okay,

24:34

I'll come in as a human because

24:37

I was giving you like pose like

24:41

showcase, remember

24:47

um. And so anyways, long story

24:50

long, that's kind of how it started for me. Is

24:52

I did the workshop and with Rebecca

24:54

Luker, and I was like, oh my gosh, I was literally

24:56

listening to your CD like last week in college,

24:58

and like here I am. So it was like two weeks

25:00

out of school and it

25:03

was just been the most amazing ride since. And

25:05

it just kind of but I've always

25:07

kind of been really aware

25:09

that that doesn't always happen and just like really

25:12

really grateful and just along for the

25:14

ride and just like how it all kind of

25:16

happened and panned out. I'm just so thankful.

25:19

It just was just the thought

25:21

like if my showcase was a week later, they

25:23

would have already cast it. They were in final callbacks,

25:26

and you know, it's just those kind of moments

25:28

where it's like, yeah,

25:30

meant to be, you know. I was. That's

25:32

how I met you. Actually was I met you? And

25:34

when you were on tour with on the record

25:36

in Boston, I was visiting my best friend who was in the

25:39

show, who was who was in

25:41

the show with you? And I was like, who is that girl?

25:44

She's amazing, She's she's that changing

25:46

When you saying changing me, it was like this mind blowing.

25:49

I was like, oh, my gosh, she's she stops the show

25:51

in the eleven o'clock number, you know. And I remember I was like,

25:53

I gotta meet her. And so that's

25:55

how we met. Actually was on the road on the

25:57

record Boston. My gosh, I lovely

25:59

remember that. Yeah, it was it was you were amazing. Yeah,

26:01

I'm an actually fan. I've seen I've

26:03

seen her in all her Disney

26:10

Yes, it's so sweet. Tell

26:13

me what about you getting off the plane. Well,

26:15

you know, so I'm born and raised in New York, so this is my hometown,

26:18

my parents still live in Brooklyn, So you know,

26:20

I yeah, I went away. I'll

26:22

just go do it, right, I want to wait on im,

26:26

right. But I went about to Pittsburgh

26:30

to Carnegie Mellon University, and

26:32

um, it was actually, you know, I I kind of

26:34

had a very fortunate experience to my first Broadway

26:36

show happened the fall right after I

26:39

graduated as well. I kind of went

26:41

to Showcase also knowing that I had a Broadway show

26:44

coming that fall, which was the revival of Flower Drum

26:46

Song on Broadway, starring the

26:49

Disney Princess of all Disney princesses, Las

26:51

Longa, not just one Disney voice

26:53

but two and um, you know, just

26:56

a funny story about Leah. Like you know, Flower Drum

26:58

Song open and closed in four months. We didn't

27:00

do very well on Broadway for many reasons,

27:02

not because the show wasn't good, but you know, there were

27:04

a lot of blizzards that year. I mean, I have a very

27:07

I have a very vivid memory that year of

27:10

there was one of those blizzards and hairspray

27:12

was across the street at the Neil Simon. We're at the Virginia,

27:14

and we didn't cancel our show but they

27:16

did. So here we are at half hour in

27:19

a blizzard, knowing that there's probably more people backstage

27:21

than out in the audience, and we're

27:24

putting on our costumes and we see the Hairspay kids.

27:26

Their show is canceled and they're doing snow Angels in the snow

27:28

banks outside as we peek out the window, and

27:30

I was like, well, here we go. And it was on those days

27:32

and also there was a big musician strike you know that

27:35

year as well, so you know, on those days where

27:37

we didn't have much of an audience actually to

27:39

cheer ourselves up, we go Leayaut were like, we're

27:41

just going to close our eyes. Can you do it? Can you do it for us?

27:43

And she'd sing a whole New World for us. She

27:45

would actually just to

27:48

cheer us up and you would close you OUs be like, oh

27:50

my gosh, like like you feel like you're transported

27:53

to another Like so we totally we totally

27:55

pimped lay out for her. Disney voice skills

27:58

were like just she was

28:00

like, yes, people

28:03

need,

28:06

We're ready to do the show. For the twenty five people that

28:08

made it through the blizzard till I show,

28:10

those people are like and you've had

28:13

you now with Allegiance as well, with her, she's

28:16

become she's become like my big sister,

28:18

really, my Broadway big sister. I call her, you know, we still call

28:20

each other, you know, sis and bro. And even

28:22

though we're not blood waited, but it feels

28:24

like we are, you know, because I feel like once you've been

28:27

through theater, once you've been through kind of

28:29

putting up an original music together, you're

28:31

you're bonded. Nothing will bond

28:33

putting something on stage for sure.

28:37

Um, well I'm from Rochester, New York, so

28:42

with my mom um. But funny story,

28:45

Uh, well, first I was supposed to come to Broadway

28:47

with them Lone Star Love. Do you guys remember that?

28:50

I do remember Lone Star Love. Wasn't

28:52

that like the Yeah,

28:55

And I was playing the San Page and it was like

28:58

a couple of months after college and was so

29:00

excited and we're starting in Fifth Avenue

29:02

Theater and then coming to the Blasco

29:04

Theater and our marquee was up and everything. A

29:07

lot of stuff went down. I don't it's

29:09

like not Disney appropriate.

29:12

Um, and it didn't

29:14

come to Broadway. Yeah, you should just look it up. Look

29:16

up Randy Quaid Lone Star Love anyway, blah

29:18

bah blah. That was a sad story and it didn't end up coming

29:20

Broadway. But that's okay. But when I

29:22

first moved to New York, I worked

29:24

at David Busters and Time Style. It

29:26

was a horrible, horrible decision.

29:29

Don't do it, um

29:32

anyway. But the spot where we would take our

29:34

break, um, it was

29:37

the door that were like you would stand

29:39

outside and it looked at the Neederlander

29:41

Theater where Rent was playing, and I

29:43

would look at it and be like, why

29:46

am I here? But you were

29:48

performing on Broadway. I was working

29:50

at David Busters trying to payper

29:52

my rent and and

29:55

uh and then like several years later,

29:58

that theater is where I made my Broadway debut. Yeah

30:03

yeah, And it's I'm glad, like I don't want

30:05

it. I didn't want my story to be any other way.

30:08

Like I'm glad I got to work at David Busters. I'm glad

30:10

I got to go work at another restaurant because I couldn't handle

30:12

it anymore at David Busters in Times Square.

30:14

Not a great decision, but it's it's I

30:16

mean you, it makes you appreciate these moments so much

30:18

more. And I mean, you dream about it so much

30:21

and it's just so cool. I

30:23

remember vividly looking at that marquee

30:25

and being like, I'm so

30:27

sick of serving cocktails, and then

30:30

I just want to dance. I just want to dance.

30:34

But I like to bring that up though, because I think part

30:36

of the experience of being an actor for

30:38

most actors in New York City is

30:41

how do you get through life in between

30:43

the big gigs? Yeah? Have you had

30:45

to David Busters? Have you ever tell you had

30:48

a couple of restaurants? Also, I

30:50

have a great job. Actually I also teach on the

30:52

side, so I actually really enjoy that. And actually,

30:54

for me, I find that it makes me a better art.

30:58

Yeah, it makes me better because I kind of have to practice.

31:00

But I preached to my students all the time. So or sometimes

31:02

you say something, You're like, oh, oh, I should be doing

31:04

that. That was true, that is yes, that's good.

31:06

I should also try to do stuff as I

31:08

try, as I try to encourage my students to have

31:10

confidence in themselves, I'm like, all right, I should

31:13

also do that myself, you know what I

31:15

mean? So um So I also enjoyed doing that,

31:17

but I remembered, you know, when I was on my breaks

31:19

from college, I was, you know, I tempt that was

31:21

also my thing. I did like data entry and temping

31:26

type the computer and everything on

31:28

a computer. But yeah, that

31:30

was kind of my my gig. Did you ever

31:32

have to do survival gig? I

31:35

didn't. I kind of, you

31:37

know, in between gigs, I kind of, you

31:39

know, started my concert career, which I've

31:41

been doing since Iff had the baby and kind of in

31:43

between jobs. And you know, I've just been

31:45

traveling doing my solo show with different symphonies

31:48

around the country and I love it because

31:50

it took me a while because I was playing

31:52

these iconic like Belle and Mary Poppins, and

31:54

I kind of wanted to go see how Ashley

31:56

is on stage. I kind of needed to find

31:58

myself on stage as I was playing these

32:02

such iconic people, and I wanted to go out there without

32:04

costs and without wigs, without this is how you should

32:06

sound, this is how you shouldn't sound. And I just kind of wanted

32:08

to just find who I was on

32:10

stage, Like the cabaret seemed like totally

32:13

freaked me out, and and

32:15

so I just kind of needed to go away and do that. And that's kind

32:17

of what I've been doing. And but early on, like

32:19

I said, like it just I was not

32:21

I was expected to go work at Banana Republic, you

32:23

know, like you know, retail,

32:27

and I'd be like, honey, you need to go get your own enchilada.

32:30

I wouldn't be a good waitress, you know. I

32:33

mean, I was terrible.

32:38

I would have been so bad. So I think we're like

32:41

retail would have been my but I didn't have to.

32:43

And that's why I'm saying. I know that sounds so gross

32:45

and annoying, but that's why I'm just

32:47

always just so grateful. And I like

32:49

this though. What have you found as different

32:51

about playing these iconic, beautiful Disney

32:54

roles and being you on stage and

32:56

being Ashley Brown? It's so different

32:58

because I feel I just it

33:00

made my get to know myself because everything

33:02

happened so soon, Like I didn't even know how a grocery shop

33:05

by myself yet, and here I am like leading a show, you

33:07

know what I mean, where you're just like charge,

33:11

I was still by gallons of things and crying

33:13

halfway home, like I didn't need this much night

33:15

coke but um,

33:17

and so I guess it just really I

33:20

got to know myself better as a person,

33:22

and I feel like I'm able to you

33:25

know, I felt like I started auditioning

33:27

better and everything just because I felt

33:29

like I didn't have that how

33:32

grounded I am now. I always have been

33:34

comfortable with who I am and off stage, but

33:36

like when you put me on stage and they're just like improv

33:38

and be like, I don't know me. I don't know what you

33:40

know, and I would just like you would guard yourself. And I

33:42

feel like that the concert stuff, I can sing homewan, I

33:45

can say what I want, when I want,

33:47

how I want, and now I can do like I

33:49

felt like more comfortable, like I have something to

33:51

share if I do a fifty four. Like when they first

33:53

asked me, I'm like, I don't know what story to

33:55

tell. I don't know, and so I had to

33:57

go away and kind of like I don't want to bring

33:59

them through my resume, you know. I wanted to like

34:01

really share something about myself that somebody didn't

34:04

know, which is always hard in those kind of scenes,

34:06

you know, where you're like I still have to sing and

34:08

like, you know, make it all makes sense. And

34:10

and so I feel that it has really

34:12

helped me just through it all and has perspective

34:15

of like eight shows a week versus

34:17

like a weekend and having some time to

34:20

kind of not be exhausted. You

34:22

know. It's like kind of because I did eight shows a week

34:24

for about six years straight with no break,

34:27

like going showed either I was in rehearsal or

34:29

doing it shows weak. So I got to a point where I

34:31

was like, I don't want to not love this because

34:33

I love it so much and I still do. And

34:36

you know, and what would you say, Ashley, is the

34:38

key to that? How do you maintain that

34:40

kind of longevity? Eight shows a week

34:43

is a is a all order. So I mean

34:45

everybody here can attest it's it's

34:47

really tough, but it's the most

34:49

magical gift, you know, but it takes so much discipline

34:53

and in sleep and

34:55

you know, and food, and it takes a

34:57

lot. Like you can't go out with your friends when

34:59

every body like I missed on birthday's, weddings,

35:02

births of my niece and nephews, and

35:05

you know, it's just But at the same time, I'm not saying

35:07

what was me. I'm just saying, those are the things that

35:09

you know. Yeah,

35:12

Like I hate to use the word sacrifice because that sounds

35:14

negative, but I'm it is, you know, to really

35:17

do the job you want to do, even when

35:19

it comes to Sunday night and you like kind of want

35:21

to die, like you, there's

35:23

people still paying the same amount and you are still

35:25

you and you still have to go out there, and

35:28

so it's just kind of making those decisions. But at

35:30

the same time to find balance. It took me a long

35:32

time to find balance. It was probably

35:34

like mid my Mary Poppins contract where

35:36

I was like, you know what, I'm going to be tired on

35:38

Sunday because I need a glass of long with my friend, you

35:40

know what I mean. It's like you kind of have to have a trade off,

35:43

you know, and so you can It's

35:46

not healthy to always work and it's not healthy

35:48

to always play. So you kind of just have to find that

35:51

you have a yeah, and it's

35:53

not easy because we use our voices and you can't

35:55

really go have a glass of wine in silence voices

35:57

and bodies to yeah, like you you really

35:59

do need to. I mean, it's crazy go to the gym

36:02

every morning after wreat you have to be in shape. You

36:04

have to get seven hours, eight hours or something. There's

36:06

no way, and you know all of us with lives, you know, Ashley

36:09

with a baby, that's all. I've done eight shows a

36:11

week since I've had the baby, So pray for me. It's

36:13

it's it's tricky, you know, you

36:16

know, It's I always, I always, I

36:18

always think of myself as being

36:20

in the seat of the audience member

36:23

and going gosh, like I you

36:25

know, if I was in that seat, I would want

36:27

the performers on stage to be giving me there,

36:30

you know, even though it's a Sunday night and maybe retired. I

36:32

I want them to be giving me their best show

36:35

as close as their proximity to their Tuesday

36:37

show as they can give me. And I think about

36:39

that, I go, it's you know, it's probably it's my eighth show

36:41

the week, and probably my I don't know, like hundredth

36:44

show of Aladdin or something. But it's

36:47

their first time seeing it, and I owe

36:49

that to them. They might never come back again and see

36:51

this again, and this is somebody's first time

36:54

or the first time the theater, first Broadway show, or whatever

36:56

it is. So I owe that to them,

36:59

you know. And I owe that to the little fan

37:01

and me that was sitting in Broadway theaters, and

37:03

so I that's a reminder that I give myself every

37:06

night, especially when I'm tired, and we do, we do get

37:08

tired. We're not robots, like, we're all

37:10

human, you know, we you know, we we

37:12

definitely like we don't have perfect shows.

37:14

Like no, I don't feel like that even exists. There's

37:16

no such thing as a perfect show. Every night you kind

37:19

of walk off and go, I wish you know, I

37:21

mean, like, and I'll work on that tomorrow night.

37:23

So giving you're giving hundreds

37:25

of what we can do at the moment, you know, and

37:28

I feel like that's the best we can do. Yeah.

37:30

Yeah, I think the

37:32

hard thing for our families, I think to understand

37:35

is like you don't get off. You don't get

37:37

time off for holidays, and

37:39

that was the weekends, what weekend, but

37:42

you get Christmas

37:47

and I have to explain I'm like this, we're there, Christmas

37:50

present, We're there, Hanaker present. Were

37:52

you work when everyone else is not? Nights

37:55

weekend. That's a hard thing to adjust

37:57

to, I think, you know, because you want to visit your family,

37:59

but you have the exact same opposite schedule

38:01

of them if they're not in the business um,

38:04

but yeah, I think maintaining the

38:06

eight show a week. I think it's it's it's

38:08

the perspective and like knowing the

38:11

alternative, and I think knowing that,

38:13

you know, I could be um

38:15

catering right now, but I get to be on Broadway

38:18

right now, like having a little perspective

38:20

and realizing how lucky we are to be where

38:22

we are, and how hard we worked and how

38:24

much we've dreamed about this for so long. I remember

38:26

journaling in my little journal, like when I was

38:29

eight years old, saying I want to be Belle

38:31

and Beauty and the beats. I'm proud.

38:33

I mean, I get to do a sort of version

38:35

of that, but you know, and thinking

38:37

about those moments and being like I am

38:40

doing that, Like I get to do that, So

38:42

buck up. There

38:45

are there are New York. There are thousands

38:48

and thousands of people who would kill to be doing what

38:50

we do perfect right,

38:53

like somehow, somehow, like the three of

38:55

us luked it and

38:57

like we were in the right place at the right time, and like we

39:00

we we we had the skills at that moment,

39:03

and we looked a certain way at that moment that all

39:05

of a sudden, we're doing these Roles. Right, so

39:07

that Sunday Night ninth show. Thinking

39:11

about that is it's that's

39:13

the adrenaline and that's the drive.

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vacation ever. I'm

40:07

crazy about on stage mishaps.

40:11

I love theater because it's live. I

40:14

love theater because it's unpredictable.

40:17

Um and especially in Disney shows

40:19

where magic is so much a part of it. Tell

40:22

me about the moments that you that

40:24

went whoops stage?

40:28

I think so, I think are

40:31

the spectacle was the boys. It was the

40:33

boys. So we didn't really have a lot of like

40:35

the big I mean, we had those towers which

40:37

were you know that, but they generally worked, they

40:40

did what they were supposed to. UM, but sometimes

40:42

I didn't. Uh With

40:45

King of New York, there's that big tap number

40:47

and Catherine supposed to like show that she can

40:49

keep up with the boys. And then some and

40:52

this was I think during previews and I

40:55

Brendan Stimpson throws me the broom

40:57

and I'm supposed to like catch it and throw

40:59

it, act and do this feerce tap move

41:01

and show them that I'm better than them. Well,

41:04

I'm not good at catching things and good

41:06

of throwing things. So I went

41:08

to catch the broom from him, and I'm supposed

41:10

to like this, and I whacked it

41:13

and it hit Mark Hummel our director,

41:15

music director, conductor on the head,

41:18

I'm so sorry,

41:21

broke fourth wall like he's in the play.

41:23

I'm so sorry. And then he was conducting

41:26

with the broom threw it up at

41:28

me at the end and I was like, I'm

41:30

so sorry. The whole the whole song

41:32

was terrible. And then there's Wicked

41:34

with the bubble. There's a lot of those, but

41:37

gives give us a bubble. Well, the bubble

41:39

sometimes would not work, um, which

41:42

is always really fun. So there's a non bubble

41:44

show that you have planned that that

41:46

we learned from the Wait a minute.

41:48

I was in for three and a half years and I

41:50

and I don't know about don't wait. I did too. I

41:52

don't know about I

41:55

did the tour. So going

41:57

through touring houses

42:00

sometimes like depending on what the yeah,

42:04

it was pretty quick turnaround, so sometimes

42:06

very few, very few moments I have to say

42:09

um, but sometimes that would

42:11

happen. So the dance captains had to teach you what

42:13

the no bubble show would be, just in case you

42:18

walk as

42:20

all the Ausiens. The Ausiens

42:23

go like this, can I do this? Please

42:26

do and

42:30

you're just like, my

42:35

gosh, that's amazing. Yeah, it's it's

42:37

not great. But but so

42:40

this is the end of the show. Um, you

42:42

know how she ends the show

42:44

in the bubble and everything's

42:46

all great. Um, well the bubble is supposed to come

42:48

down and then she leaves and then everybody does their bows,

42:51

so um, the curtain comes in

42:53

and then had Carpenter screams to me, Kara,

42:56

you're going to stay up there for bows, and I

42:58

screamed, I'm scared of heights. I

43:01

was like to dropped there for a while before

43:03

the show even starts. Yes, yeah,

43:05

yeah, yeah, So this is the end of the show. It's

43:07

like, we got through the whole thing. So

43:09

then she I'm up there for bows and

43:13

I'm presenting everybody. I was like, and

43:16

then I'm up into the bubble

43:19

and the bubbles bowed like this, and

43:22

then also you're supposed to hug the alphaba.

43:24

It's like part of the bow. So we went like

43:26

this little

43:29

piece sign and then they had I was stuck

43:31

up there, and not only that, everybody got to go

43:33

to their dinner because it was a two show day, it was

43:35

a matinee and they had inched me down.

43:39

I was like, and

43:41

then they unclipped me. I jumped into the head carpenter's

43:43

arms. Remember one

43:47

time, one time in Wicked, where I

43:49

will not spoil the magic, but at

43:51

the end of act one, Alphaba does fly,

43:54

And there was one time she was not able to fly,

43:58

but a lot of people run out from behind her

44:00

and look up at her and scream, look at her, she's wicked,

44:03

which is very interesting thing to do when she's

44:05

not, because you have to crouch down above you. So

44:08

we had fifteen ensemble members

44:10

laying flat on our stomachs, trying

44:13

to be as low as possible, pointing

44:15

at her like this, Oh my gosh, look

44:17

at her, she's wicked. Yeah,

44:20

get her, you can, she's

44:24

there. I think it was. Actually I think it was

44:26

so Shauna Bean and you better believe.

44:29

No, you better, you better believe nobody's

44:32

washed as many windows

44:34

Shanna being in that moment giving

44:36

it to you. Yeah, telling you well,

44:39

I had, I had, I had an

44:41

aladded mishap which

44:44

happened to me recently, and it was all my fault.

44:46

Um, I'm

44:49

just gonna claim. I'm just gonna claim, and I'm also going

44:51

to claim that I'm still fairly new to the show,

44:53

like I've been only in the show under three months,

44:56

So so so you know,

44:58

there's the of course, the amazing magic carpet

45:00

ride that happens in the middle of the second act, and it is spectacular

45:04

and and you know, and you

45:06

know, Jasmine, I we're really flying in the

45:08

air. We're very high up in the air. So there is there

45:10

is a safety mechanism where where

45:13

we are fastened in there is like a like a seatbelt

45:15

sort of thing just that just keeps us safe, right, magical

45:17

seatbelt. It's a magical seat belt that but but

45:20

you know the probably safety rules. We have

45:22

to be in there, and we there, it's

45:24

choreographed while we're singing that we have

45:26

to clip and unclip ourselves just to make sure we're

45:28

safe. It never feels unsafe, but it's just

45:30

like a union safety thing. Right.

45:33

So I'm I'm looking at Jasmine,

45:35

you know, I'm lovingly and

45:37

I'm acting so hard with her.

45:40

And it gets to the part

45:42

a whole new world. That's

45:45

where it will be, That's where I'm

45:47

supposed to one clip. I didn't,

45:49

So all of a sudden, it's time to get off the carpet,

45:53

get off and help her off. I

45:55

realized in that moment, I haven't

45:57

unhooked myself, so I

45:59

stopped singing. The whole show comes to a screeching

46:01

halt. I unhook

46:04

you here, a loud click, hook

46:07

you and me. At least

46:09

it was at

46:11

least I had the knowledge to not actually

46:13

get up. But it was because I was so in the moment.

46:16

I was looking at Courtney Read's eyes, and I was I

46:18

was following those moments. I

46:21

just forgot to unhook myself

46:23

from the areas. I would have dragged

46:26

the whole thing. That

46:29

dragging, I

46:31

would have destroyed the Actually,

46:36

oh honey, I mean we could do.

46:41

I flew over the audience hand me. But

46:44

what I love about and mishaps

46:47

is like people love watching other

46:49

people recover, whether you're an actor,

46:51

whether you're on the street watching somebody fall. I'm like, I

46:53

always want people do not follow on me. You will have zero

46:55

support. Like I

46:58

find people following is funny. It's

47:00

the recovery. Some people walk it

47:02

off or run it off it's hilarious, or some

47:05

people like get up really fast but didn't like nobody saw.

47:07

I'm like amazing. Yeah,

47:10

And so like on stage when you're doing a show eight

47:12

times a week, like if anybody even like trips

47:14

like a little skip. It's like you

47:16

know, and so I feel like

47:19

I always kind of looked forward to these,

47:21

but like, of course when it's you, it's

47:23

like a little different because you're like, well,

47:26

there was a lot of things. Um, considering

47:28

how many times I flew like I really didn't

47:30

have many issues and we had like

47:32

plan Z. You know, I was over the audience.

47:35

It's like the stakes are high, and so

47:37

I never I knew like all the different steps

47:40

if things were to go wrong, And because

47:42

I did it so often, I could tell by

47:45

like one little click, I'm like, ain't going

47:47

today, or like you know, but

47:49

I also but there was this one time where

47:52

I was. It was during previous so we're still working out the

47:54

kinks, and um we

47:57

were. I was, I went up stage right off

47:59

stage, and then I flew across stage left.

48:01

Once I got to stage left, my wire switched and I flew

48:04

all over the audience. And in the new am

48:06

they still have Mary's Bridge, Mary Bridge.

48:08

They built a bridge where I would land and somebody

48:11

was connected to a wall, one of the crew and

48:13

would bring me in, snap the gate behind me, and I'd run

48:15

down getting the elevator, change,

48:17

take my brace off and like pretend I wasn't

48:19

winded for my bow, and I

48:21

was like, you know, there

48:24

was one time I upstage right and

48:26

I was going and then all of a sudden, I

48:28

kind of started tipping forward. And I don't have

48:30

shoulder straps like Gavin did, who played

48:33

Burt, and so I was a little like if I fall

48:35

for like, this is a n ish. And

48:37

so I saw the crew like

48:40

because everybody's trying to keep it magical. But what started

48:42

happening is the crew. Drew.

48:45

I'll never forget. Drew had my one

48:47

of my legs because I was starting to tip, and so

48:49

because he was like, I was kind of like holding

48:51

my umbrella, my feet were like and

48:55

so I kind of started and like one I had

48:57

like eight layers of skirt, thank you Bob

48:59

Browley of all Wall, and

49:01

each layer like slowly kept going over

49:04

my head. And then all you saw was like Mary's bloomers

49:06

like and boots just like hey girl, and

49:09

literally I was like this far like maybe

49:11

like a foot from the first row, and

49:13

like this little girl was like and

49:17

I was like my skirls like Connie, it's fine.

49:21

And then they had to bring out a forklift, which always

49:24

makes you feel petite, and

49:26

nothing makes you feel more petite than telling

49:28

you because they had to bring

49:31

it over because they couldn't get high enough to unhook

49:33

me from the wires. So it's like all of a sudden,

49:35

I was like, no, no, no, no, no no, like

49:37

this whole over to you. I'm supposed to be flying key change

49:40

and it's like and

49:43

then they had to unhook me, and I was like,

49:46

because you know, as the actor who's stuck, you have to

49:48

make the audience feel safe because they're nervous for you.

49:51

Even though I was gagging inside

49:53

and like slightly thought I was gonna die, I

49:55

couldn't let them know because like I have

49:58

to like take care of them. It's oh,

50:00

And I was fine, but like it was

50:02

kind of embarrassing me. There was and there was times

50:04

because I had to go up like thirty stairs a show.

50:06

This was my other favorite, and one

50:09

time I just busted right that. I remember

50:11

looking at the carpet going like, how are you going to handle

50:13

this? Because and then the Jane and the Michael piled

50:15

up behind me and the whole audience went way

50:17

down the stairs from the house. Yeah, I

50:20

was going up the stairs and so like face

50:22

plant, and literally my first thought was

50:24

like, Oh my gosh, what am I gonna

50:26

do? And literally the whole audience like and

50:29

I was like, oh, at least they care about me. At least they weren't like,

50:31

yeah, Mary's down. But I

50:33

literally stood and I said, I said practically

50:35

and I went back up the stairs brilliant.

50:37

But I was like, I think

50:41

that as an audience member. But I mean, my wig

50:43

was everywhere. I had bleeding forehead,

50:46

nose, and ship. And I was wondering because I

50:48

didn't know because at a Rugburn all three places

50:50

and all they Jane and Michael like they had

50:53

we did to sing a reprise and they were just kind of like

50:57

kids don't lie. And I was like, miss Ashley, you're bleeding.

50:59

I'm like where And I was like, oh,

51:03

it's a very different play all of a sudden, Um,

51:06

what are the expectations when you play these kind of

51:08

iconic roles. Disney is such a part of everyone's

51:10

hearts. What are the expectations?

51:13

How do you bring yourself into the

51:15

character when it's something that people

51:17

know so well and care so deeply about, you

51:19

know, I think it's it's I think the job

51:22

for us is to bring ourselves to the

51:24

role. But what always told myself is everybody's

51:27

coming in loving Mary Poppins, period.

51:29

So if I can do my job and

51:32

make them leave loving her just as much but

51:34

finding new things with her, then I've

51:36

succeeded, you know, Because you come in

51:38

with people loving this. That's a lot of pressure.

51:42

It is stressful. But at the same time, I feel like with

51:45

all three of our shows, you know, it's

51:47

they're also it's its own things.

51:49

Well, it's not the movie, but not the movie,

51:51

and the same thing with a Lad and it's not exactly

51:53

the movie, the same thing with News. So I feel like,

51:55

you know, because of that, there is a license and a freedom

51:58

to go. You know, we are we are in a theater

52:00

together, you know, having a sharedge. It's

52:02

not it's not the movie. It's not you know, and if

52:04

you wanted to see the movie, you could pop your go home and

52:06

pop ther VHS in and you would

52:08

get that experience. But this is going to be a new experience,

52:11

and I think that's kind of fun

52:13

for us as artists to be like, yes, this

52:15

is what you loved, but here's some new things that you never

52:17

thought about. These characters and do you find that from

52:19

being fans of these characters too. As

52:21

an actor, do you find go, oh yeah,

52:24

oh yeah, so much more than I even knew?

52:26

Maybe, yeah, absolutely. And I think

52:28

also we'll never be as as good

52:30

as their imagination, you know, we'll never

52:32

be that. So it is you know, we have to

52:34

just bring ourselves to it. And also the great thing

52:36

is that they can relate to it even more because these

52:39

are humans. It's not a cartoon. It's

52:41

these are human beings that are

52:43

telling the story and making it real for them.

52:45

And it's almost like you can really see

52:47

yourself in it even more. Um

52:49

So, yeah, I think it's it's so cool to be able

52:52

to bring it to life and um and

52:54

I think people are surprised when they see it, you

52:56

know, like coming to you know, watching their

52:58

vhs of Aladdin or Whateverry Poppins

53:00

and then coming to see it um on the

53:02

stage, and like how much more is brought

53:04

to it. And there's more music, there's more seeing

53:06

work, there's it's different, so you

53:08

can't you can't compare it. Yeah, it's just it's

53:11

just different mediums. You know. It's like that there's there's

53:13

an animated film and then there's like an evening of theater.

53:15

I mean, and I feel like we I think all three of our

53:17

shows do that really well. And I think

53:19

that's what in Disney shows what's very

53:21

challenging is to make these characters human.

53:24

You know that war cartoons are because

53:27

I knew when I was auditioning for Poppins.

53:29

I'm like, I knew I couldn't

53:31

be Julie Andrews being Mary Poppins, Like

53:33

I had to go be my Mary Poppins. And I think that's

53:35

what we all kind of. It's that hurdle to

53:38

get over of how do you humanize this

53:40

person, this character and

53:42

with yourself versus trying to be what we all

53:44

know being her, you know what I mean, Because you're

53:46

not. That's not a successful round. You'll never know, You'll

53:48

never You'll never be that. I'll never be Julian, I'll

53:51

never be that. Yeah, And

53:53

stage during has become such a thing, and these

53:56

are shows that listed a lot of fanaticism.

53:59

I think UM would have been kind

54:01

of the most extreme or memorable

54:04

fan momenture. I've started to respond

54:06

to Aladdin now, like when people and

54:08

I've started actually on the street.

54:11

Yeah, I mean, You're like, I actually like it's

54:15

not like Telly anymore, you know what I mean. It's like

54:17

I feel like they've you know, so it's

54:19

so bizarre, like it's you have

54:22

to respond to that night they

54:25

start like yeah, it's totally It's like you're

54:27

like, yes, yes, here, I am so

54:30

funny. The stage door. I

54:32

mean, I had never staged

54:35

door growing up. I didn't even know there was an option. So

54:37

I'm like mad that I didn't know that we've

54:40

been there. Yes, oh my god, yes

54:42

yes I would have um, but it

54:44

was so I mean, News the Fancies

54:46

are the reason that News came to

54:48

Broadway. The fancies like

54:51

that, it's like that, it's like the families Very

54:56

Manilow's fans are fail. Yeah,

55:00

it's so funny anyway, So they're

55:02

the reason that we came to Broadway. And they showed

55:04

up at the stage door, and it was

55:07

it was intense and I had never seen it felt like

55:09

we were like in sync or just

55:12

I remember sitting in the theater and and

55:14

and feeling like I was at a rock concert. We

55:17

actually was so over the top

55:19

and extreme. And I mean when I

55:21

watched, I did the same thing.

55:24

Yeah, yeah,

55:27

us it was so cool and I

55:29

think that also comes from the fact that News he was such a

55:31

like a cult. It was really was like

55:34

it was one of those things that I remembered like and

55:36

it was like the underdog, Yeah you know them.

55:38

Yeah, so it was crazy,

55:41

it was awesome. I'm sure it was like

55:43

like as a Disney fan. News was like the one that like

55:45

for the diehard Disney fans. We were like people

55:48

wanted that I've

55:53

got some barrel turns in me? Yeah

55:57

yeah, five six ready absolutely

56:01

not um.

56:04

Sadly, we are running out of time,

56:06

but I want to make sure that our listeners know where

56:08

they can find you and where they can check you out

56:11

doing what you do so well. Carol

56:13

Lindsay going into Beautiful on Broadway

56:16

coming up next week. That's amazing. Congratulations

56:18

Kara, and of course you can see Kelly

56:21

as a Laddin and Aladdin. Actually, where can they Where

56:23

can the people find and stop you? I'm with the Chicago

56:26

Symphony, the Midst of Symphony, Seattle

56:28

Symphony, New York Pops all

56:30

before January. Amazing

56:35

Google me.

56:38

Thank you guys so much again, and thank you all for listening.

56:40

Make sure you follow us on social media at the

56:42

Broadway cast. This is your Broadway buddy Ben

56:44

Cameron said, have a great

56:46

show. Yeah,

56:50

thank you, thank you. I can't

56:52

get enough of the Broadway Cast. We'll make sure you're

56:54

following us on social media on all

56:56

platforms at the Broadway Cast and

56:58

also find us on YouTube at YouTube

57:01

dot com slash the Broadway Cast

57:04

join us next week as we welcome

57:06

the Gentleman of Waitress.

57:08

That's Drew Gelling, Will Swenson and Chris

57:11

Fitzgerald. You don't want to miss it. It's

57:13

going to be delicious. How's that

57:15

for a man pie.