Chatting with the cast of Off Broadway On Stage

Last night, I was invited to speak to some of the cast from Angelwalk Theatre's Off Broadway, On Stage.   It was an extra special night, at the Toronto Centre for the Arts, as the touring cast of Memphis was also in the building and many of them were heading out to dinner at Baton Rouge.  It was a lively wait at the stage door.

But the real excitement was happening in the Studio Theatre.  I arrived a few minutes early and got to hear the cast of Off Broadway... rehearsing their closing number.  It was great to get a sneak preview.

After their final rehearsal I sat down with, (from left)  Will, Jennifer Natasha, Clara, and Dave.  Mike "Nug" Nahrgang, (pictured second from left) was sadly not available.  The cast spoke candidly about their, "intense," as Clara put it, rehearsal process, as well as their joy in working together with some dream musical material.

This cast of six has packed over twenty song from more than eighteen Off-Broadway productions into a brisk eighty minute show.  And all with only two weeks of rehearsals.

"The intensity of it," Dave said, came from the nature of a revue. You can't think of it as, "just a concert. We're digging into the material a lot more than in other productions. We have explored everything, dance acting... a lot of solid work."
Jennifer added that, "the songs have to stand on their own, because they aren't in the context of the original show."
 "It is all about telling the story of the song, and creating links between the pieces. Anthony, [Bastianon the show's musical director] and Denise, [Oucharek, the musical staging director ] have taken the time to find those links between the pieces," said Clara. "It is really wonderful."

There is also the heavier subject matter Off-Broadway tends to produce.  Not to mention the kick ass songs, you almost never get to sing in a show.  Will told me that he appreciated working with the deeper more complex music that Off-Broadway had to offer. "The show is eighty five minutes.  And we fit a lot in.  And because the subject matter of Off-Broadway tends to be more intense, it is really a marathon."

When I asked what the difference was doing a revue and doing a musical Natasha jumped in, "In a musical you get time to study your character, for this revue, playing many characters, you don't have that." The secret to keeping an audience engaged without characters to draw them in?   The creative construction by Anthony Bastianon,  and Dennis Oucharek.

I also got the sense from the cast that they genuinely enjoyed working together.  Clara said, "each of the cast members is so unique and different.  It has been really a great opportunity to blend new songs, meeting a great cast and working with this rich material, everyone brings something very special to the show."

And finally I asked what everyones' favourite number in the show was.  "I get to sing my favourite song, so for me that is the best," said Jennifer in reference to the well know classic from, Tick, Tick... Boom  "Come to Your Senses,"  which brought the house down just before the finale.

It was a really enjoyable evening of songs, some of which I knew and some of which I had never heard.  I particularly liked one of Clara's numbers I wasn't familiar with, " I'll Be Here" from Ordinary Days. 

If you are looking for an entertaining night out this weekend be sure and see Off Broadway On Stage.  And as "Nug," who's humorous interludes provided pleasant reprieve said, with a show like this, "you can see a night of theatre, buy the cast drinks and still pay the sitter." Click here for show and ticket information.  Off Broadway On Stage runs until the 11th of December.