Tell us about the romance at the heart ofMack And Mabel.
It’s definitely a complicated one. On one side you have Mabel, who wears her heart on her sleeve, and on the other side you have Mack, who’s very closed-off emotionally. Mabel chooses to pursue this relationship with Mack even though she knows from the start that it won’t be what she truly wants. But I guess it’s that age-old story about always wanting the thing you can’t have.
Did you ever harbour dreams as a youngster of growing up to perform in a show set in Hollywood’s golden age?
I absolutely love that era of music! I didn’t know much about Mack And Mabel beforehand, only that it has an amazing score by Jerry Herman (‘I Won’t Send Roses’, ‘Wherever He Ain’t’, ‘Time Heals Everything’, ‘Look What Happened To Mabel’). It’s very exciting to get to sing those amazing songs – who doesn’t love a big old-school belt number! Add some super exciting old-school tap dancing and you’ve got something pretty special.
Mack And Mabel was nominated for eight Tony Awards when it first opened. Is it difficult to bring a new flavour to such a well-known show?
It’s a big challenge, but with our director Trevor Ashley and choreographer Cameron Mitchell leading the way, I think this production will hit all the right notes. The show itself comes so beautifully off the page, so I think that we’re being as true to that as possible, but we’re also finding a great balance of adding new interpretations and clever ways of restaging classic numbers.
You’ve been on the musical theatre scene for several years now. How strong is musical theatre in Australia today?
I feel musical theatre is getting a little bit more popular in Australia, especially with the increasing amount of shows that are being produced and the great talent that we are producing here. I don’t think it will ever be competing directly with the football, but we’re building a very dedicated following.
What’s on your schedule for 2017?
This is the first time in a while I have no idea what I’m doing next, but I guess that’s part of the fun of this industry. Some months you have absolutely nothing then all of a sudden something pops up.
[Mack And Mabel photo by Kurt Sneddon]
Mack And Mabel runsFriday November 18 – Sunday December 18 at Hayes Theatre Co..
