Walter Russell III: I Want to Be an EGOT

At the age of 13, Walter Russell III has already had the kind of career many aspiring actors would dream of having. He has played Simba in touring company of The Lion King. He was Char’es Baby in the Metropolitan Opera production of Terence Blanchard‘s opera Fire Shut Up in My Bones. He’s just finished playing Little Michael in MJ The Musical. Not that his run in that show is over. When Russell rejoins the company next week he’ll be playing Little Marlon.

I’ve seen him in Fire Shut Up In My Bones and MJ The Musical. He’s enormously talented.

Russell is on a two-week break from MJ The Musical so he can play the role of Young Lola in the Hollywood Bowl production of the musical Kinky Boots from July 8th – July 10th. Not bad for a thirteen-year-old, is it?

So how does this young man approach roles that involve molestation (Fire Shut Up In My Bones), depict an enormously popular worldwide superstar like Michael Jackson (even if the show overlooks most of the controversy surrounding him) and now the younger version of a drag queen?

These were just a few of the things I discussed with Russell who wants to be an EGOT (winner of an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award). What follows are excerpts from our conversation that have been edited for length and clarity.

How much do you look at what Wayne Brady is doing in his performance to try to figure out how you can be a believable younger version of who his character grows up to be?

So to be the younger version of Wayne Brady it’s just so amazing. And when I’m acting, I normally play younger versions of these people, so I try to practice their actions and like the way they express and like their movements a lot. 

What do you what do you think this show has to say to people your age?

I think to just be yourself and express it as much as possible, especially during like this time. I think this is a very important show, especially during Pride Month.

Tell me about the boots and the experience of being in them. 

It gives me height, which I love. And it’s just mainly about stretching like the heels and the knees and it’s mainly balance. When it comes to wearing the heels, it’s just practice, practice, practice right now.

You’ve got Jerry Mitchell, who’s the director choreographer since day one of this show. You also have Wayne Brady, who’s been in the show before. Jake Shears has been in the show before. What advice are you getting from them? What are you learning from them about this show and the role of young Lola?

I mainly have been following Wayne Brady’s lead when it comes to this role and how this character expresses in a certain form and how a lot of people express themselves and play in different forms as well. And then coming back to that to myself and also expressing myself as how I want to be. And it might be different. It might be the same, but it’s mainly just the process of switching myself into a different character.

Unlike other shows you’ve done, this whole production gets put together in two weeks and is done. What’s that process like for you? 

For me it’s mainly just thinking straight and really focusing on what I have to do during this time. So when it came to MJ and Fire, we had a bit more time. It was like a month at least. And I had more of a chance to discover the role. When it comes to Kinky Boots, it’s fictional so I have a little bit more freedom. But it’s more focusing on this play and to just get it done and be ready.

What’s the difference for you when you’re playing a real person versus a character that’s been created solely for the show? 

When it comes to playing a fictional character, I do have more a little bit more freedom than playing someone who is a nonfiction character. When it comes to playing real people we have to study them and practice their emotions. When it comes to fiction, it’s kind of like something that I could choose.

Fire Shut Up In My Bones is really intense material. You can make an argument that there is intense material in MJ just by virtue of the controversy around who you are portraying in the show. How do you, at your age, process all of this stuff that you’re being asked to do? 

Normally before I do the show I sit down with a parent or guardian and just think about what do you think about it and talk about it. And that it’s just a play, it’s not real. But the events have been real. I think it’s very serious, but it’s also very emotional and very important.

Are there any of the characters that you’ve played the most like you? 

Oh, probably the most like me has been MJ, but when I was younger, Simba has been like the closest to me.

I’m sure you were happy for Myles Frost when he got the Tony Award. (Best Actor in a Musical for MJ)

I was ecstatic. There is a video of us like going crazy about it. I wanted him to win. But of course, there was some doubt because there were these huge stars: Billy Crystal, Hugh Jackman. So him winning, it was just surreal and it was so exciting.

When I saw you in the show, I saw his understudy, Aramie Payton, who I thought was amazing. I couldn’t imagine Myles being any better than that because I thought the understudy was so good.

I know. That’s what I love. He was amazing to me. And that’s just the understudy. The level that they’re both on is just so good and I’m just so happy that I’m able to work with them.

When you look at what Myles has been able to accomplish or what Will Liverman (Fire) has been able to accomplish, or, you look at Wayne and Jake in this show, what do you see in them that you would like your career to be?

I’m only taking the little things from all those people and put them into my experience and what like level I want to reach.

Where do you want to go from here?

I want to be an EGOT.

So where do you start? What’s the first one to get and how are you going to do it? 

Just, of course, originating a role and just something that I love to do. What I want to do is getting a Tony first. So hopefully that does happen.

And where does opera fit into this?

Hopefully it’s in the Grammy selections because Porgy and Bess did win. So hopefully [Fire] will go into that.

Have they made a recording of Fire? You’ve been in the studio or was it from Live in HD?

Yes. It was a live deal. It was very is very exciting. They had to put mikes on me I think three times. It was just very fun knowing that I’ll be able to be on the opera album.

Do you want to do more opera? 

I do.

There’s nothing you don’t want to do, is there?

No, not really. 

So what’s next is going back into M.J… 

Yeah and hopefully just more Broadway shows and more TV shows or just more movies in general.

One last question for you. When you do Kinky Boots at the Hollywood Bowl you’ll be in front of more people that can fit into a Broadway house for an entire week. And that’s just in one show. What do you have to do as a young actor to just be in the moment and do the show and have fun and not worry about however many people might be there? 

So you know there’s a fourth wall. I think of it as no wall. It’s just the center and back. And it’s mainly just keeping my mind on the show and not what everyone else is thinking outside.

Photo: Walter Russell III (Photo courtesy his Facebook page)