Salina is the drag persona of Jason De Puy. De Puy is someone I first met while he was in college working on his degree in musical theater. He did book a few gigs: two runs as Don in local productions of A Chorus Line and also a role in Celebration Theater’s production of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. The opportunity to do drag soon appealed to De Puy, though he was a bit reluctant, and thus Salina was born.

Salina is one of the cagelles in La Cage Aux Folles. That is the ensemble of queens who perform at the nightclub owned by George (Cheyenne Jackson) and Albin (Kevin Cahoon). The musical, written by Jerry Herman and Harvey Fierstein and inspired the film The Birdcage , tells the story of George’s son (Ryan J. Haddad) who has invited his girlfriend’s very conservative politician father and his wife over for dinner. In order to not destroy his shot at marrying his girlfriend, he wants all signs of homosexuality and drag queens removed, including Albin, from the dinner and their home.

A few days before opening, I spoke with Salina about her path to this show, the significance it has for her and whether being on stage in this musical is as scary as being on the runway facing down criticism from RuPaul, Michelle Visage and the judges. What follows are excerpts from our conversation that have been edited for length and clarity. To see the full interview, please go to our YouTube channel.

Q: When I first met you, you were going to drama school in Los Angeles. This was 11 plus years ago. I remember our having conversations about how much musical theater meant to you and how you wanted to really pursue that. What does it mean to you, this many years later, to be part of this production of La Cage Aux Folles? 

It’s a dream I forgot about because I started doing drag about ten years ago and that kind of took over. Drag became my own version of theater for myself. I got to self-produce, create and play any role that I wanted. Drag Race, of course, happened. The universe has brought me back into this realm of musical theater. It feels so wild to be back in the musical theater world in this way, combining drag at the same time. So it’s kind of like full circle.

For people who only know you as Salina, this truly was the dream. 

Ultimately, it really was. Being a part of this production of La Cage definitely awakened that dream in me and has opened up ideas of new dreams for me. This is actually a road I can walk down again. I’m thinking about that because people at the Pasadena Playhouse told me we’ve worked with Alaska [Thunderf*ck] before [Head Over Heels]. I was like, Whoa. Alaska’s trajectory literally brought her to Pasadena Playhouse and now she’s off-Broadway in New York City with her own musical [DRAG: The Musical at New World Stages]. The possibilities are endless, you know? 

What makes this production of La Cage compelling for you?

I absolutely am honored to be working with [director] Sam Pinkelton and Ani Taj, the choreographer. Them together are creating such a beautiful, joyful, fun, quirky rendition of the show that we’ve never seen before. Since Drag Race I’ve gotten to travel the world and visit many different drag scenes in the country and beyond. What they’re doing with this is really getting to the core of what the show is about and presenting it in a very real way that’s true to what drag is. 

You are being billed as Salina in instead of your real name. Is Salina any part of this show? Like, for instance, are we going to see Salina’s identity as part of what you bring as a cagelle?

My character’s name is Bitelle and it’s definitely inspired by Salina. Salina will be on that stage and you’ll see her pop out because there’s no denying the crazy personality that I am when I’m dressed up.

What do you think La Cage has to say about the world we live in today?

It’s wild because we had Tuesday/Election Day off from rehearsals. Wednesday we came back with the news of who had won and we are all so exhausted from rehearsing and from the chaos of the world. To have been there together with each other on that Wednesday after the election results and then to do the show; the show flourished in a very interesting way because it became a lot more real to our experience. Something shifted. Art reflects life and imitates life. Here we are putting on a production that is so much fun and so much joy, so much love, so much like chosen family, real family, love and community.

La Cage is, for me, is my version of how I would love America to be. Not even drag queens, glitter and glam, it’s more just the love and joy that we’ve created in the show is how I wish we were in the country.

Cheyenne Jackson has always been impressive in each show I’ve seen. What’s been your experience of working with him?

When I was in college and I was 18 years old they said pick a leading man on Broadway right now that you would love to model your career on. I had picked this photo of Cheyenne in his blue booty shorts and skates from Xanadu. This guy is talented, gorgeous and what I want to be like. Here I am, 20 years later, in a show with him, and it’s been so cool. He’s the sweetest and most talented and most sincere.

His take on George, the father in the show, is so funny because he’s also a father, a husband and has two kids. I used to make protein shakes for him at my gym I used to work at. Watching his father journey in real life now translated into the show where he is the ultimate father of the Cagelles…he is daddy.

Is his is still a career you’d like to see Salina have or you as Jason have? 

Yes. Part of me had let go of the musical theater dreams because I’m a drag queen performing in drag bars. But drag queens, especially from RuPaul’s Drag Race, have shown us there is endless possibility for where we will show up. Alaska is on her way there. There’s no reason why I couldn’t be there. I would love to say if there’s ever a musical of To Wong Foo, to play Chichi Rodriguez would be a dream role. I don’t know if anyone’s writing it, but that would be the perfect role for me.

If you were asked to finish the sentence, I am what I am and what I am is… What would you say?

An illusion.

Yes, but that’s the lyric.

I think I am what I am. And I’m present right now. I’m in my body. I’m experiencing what needs to be experienced. I’m showing up and I’m stepping up to the plate. As scared as I am, I’m excited. And I’m here, as Cynthia Erivo sang.

You threw a little Color Purple there. Is it more daunting getting on stage in front of an audience to do this than it is to get on stage in front of the judges at RuPaul’s Drag Race? 

They’re two very different worlds, of course. Here we’re rehearsing every single day to create a work of art. And on Drag Race you have one shot on that runway to show off something you made in two days. You’re just walking the runway in an outfit. Here I’m getting to explore and showcase every aspect of my talents from drag to my singing, my dancing and my acting. I’m very much more excited right now in this moment.

This is a bit of a RuPaul question. But if you could go back to when you had the first inklings of this is what I want to do to where you are today, if Salina today could give you advice, what would it be?

I think it would be trust the process. When I graduated musical theater college, my final performance song was Today for You, Tomorrow for Me, which is sung by Angel in Rent – who presents as the drag queen. At that time, I never thought I would be a drag queen. I did not want to be a drag queen. I was trying to be Cheyenne Jackson. To have gone today for you, tomorrow for me, as my final song, somehow the universe knew where I was headed before I did.

And look at me today. So I would say just trust the process. Step into those heels, honey. I resisted the heels for a long time. I would quit drag and go back and quit drag and go back because I’m like, no, I’m a boy who performs this way. But like, no, honey, you’re a queen, be a queen.

To watch the full interview with Salina EsTitties, please go here.

La Cage Aux Folles continues at the Pasadena Playhouse through December 15th.

Main Photo: Rhoyle Ivy King, Salina EsTitties, Sun Jade Reid and Kay Bebe Queue in La Cage Aux Folles (Photo by Jeff Lorch/Courtesy Pasadena Playhouse)

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Margherita is an Olivier-Award winner (the British equivalent of the Tony Awards) for her performance in Zorro: The Musical. She made her Broadway debut as Mrs. Wormwood in Tim Minchin‘s musical Matilda. She previously appeared in Pasadena Playhouse’s You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman.

The show opens on December 14th and joining Margherita in the show are MaryAnn Hu, George Salazar, Jason Michael Snow and, perhaps, you (see below.) The Pasadena Playhouse Holiday Spectacular is directed by Sam Pinkleton (Head Over Heels at the Pasadena Playhouse and choreographer of Stephen Sondheim‘s final musical, Here We Are) who co-created the show with Randy Blair. The show runs through December 23rd.

But what it is? That was where I started my conversation recently with Margherita. What follows are excerpts from that interview that have been edited for length and clarity. To see the full interview, please go to our YouTube channel. (You don’t want to miss this one…it’s a hoot.)

Q: It seems as though all the details about this show are being carefully kept under lock and key. I know that Sam Pinkleton is the co-creator and director and that the four of you are in the show. Given how little I know and the public knows about this show, how much did you know when you were first approached by the Pasadena Playhouse about being part of their holiday spectacular? 

Not a thing. When the artistic director, Danny Feldman, reached out to me he said, Holiday show. Sam Pinkleton, who I had wanted to work with forever. And it may or may not be this way, but he said the concept right now is curtain up. You on an empty stage. And I said, in. Then I knew the three other actors – who were phenomenal. That was enough for me to say yes. We really didn’t know anything until the first day of rehearsal. 

You probably know a lot more now since you’re ten days away from opening.

Correct. We know a lot more now. We’re still keeping a lot of it a secret. I can tell you that spectacular is a loosely used term for this show. But it is hysterical. It is heartwarming and is probably not what you think it’s going to be.

There was only one thing that disturbed me knowing that Sam Pinkleton, you and George and others are involved in this show. The website says it is appropriate for children six years and older. I was hoping there would be at least a one in front of the six.

That actually was very surprising to all of us involved. I will tell you, though, in rehearsal there should be a designated person just to be like, “you can’t say that.” But it is family friendly. That was unexpected for me. Holiday shows and adult content for me kind of go hand-in-hand. So I was shocked. 

I am expecting everything and the kitchen sink thrown in on a very low budget.

That is exactly what you’re going to get. What they told me I’m allowed to say is that it’s about a holiday spectacular that is coming from another town that has been playing an out-of-town tryout [and is] coming to the Playhouse. There are four people involved that are the creative team of this holiday spectacular that may or may not arrive on time for the opening night at Pasadena Playhouse. So what does that mean when a 65-person plus animals flying everything doesn’t arrive in time? What do those four people then have to put on in place of that? 

That concept sounds like it would be it would be fairly structured and scripted, but it also seems like it affords all four of you tremendous freedom. Does it? 

Completely. It is very structured. But there is a lot of freedom in it and that’s what makes it so fun. I can’t keep a straight face when I’m supposed to. There is a lot of audience interaction and opportunity for the audience to get involved. Each night a different local group, whether it be a choir or a marching band or a dance troupe, every night we’re highlighting a local Los Angeles group. But there’s plenty of room for hijinks. 

What are the challenges for you as a performer in a show like this? You only have 14 performances.

The hard thing for me is I am portraying the director of this piece. I’m kind of the cat wrangler for the whole thing. So I have very clear points as to where we need to go and what needs to happen. The hardest thing for me is not wanting to get carried away. I need to keep things going. That’s a tough job for me because if something’s funny, I want it to go on forever. 

Those first few shows are going to be very telling and very fun because I think that’s when we really find out what is going to happen. I think by the end of it we’ll probably be pros at it.

But I actually prefer not knowing what’s going to happen because that’s really where all the great nuggets from.

Are you able to channel all the many directors with whom you’ve worked into this character?

Correct. And I really hope they don’t recognize themselves in it. Everyone that we have worked with or have stories about informs these characters. There’s a director, a stage manager, a costume supervisor and a crew member. So all of these people that we love and adore, we’re kind of lampooning. It’s very Waiting for Guffman. We’re skewering other major city’s holiday spectaculars, with all the major sets and everything.

You haven’t been working with Sam Pinkleton for that long, but will Sam find his way into this show as well? 

Sam is this entire show. He is the most genius. For years people have said, “You guys must know each other. You must have worked together.” And we haven’t. This was the perfect introduction for us both to work together. Now I don’t want to ever work with anyone else. He is all over this.

Holiday shows, if I’m thinking about the ones that happen in other cities, one of them has a row of long legs. There is the absolutely inevitable appearance of Santa Claus. They usually revolve around the same 12 or 14 holiday songs that we all know and love. Can you assure me that we are not going to be subjected to the very same songs that are in every show everywhere around the world? 

I can absolutely assure you that you are going to get a version of all of those things, of the long legs and the snow falling and the Santa appearance, but you will not be hearing those same songs. What Sam and Randy did was they pulled some deep cuts that are incredible. If you do hear a couple of those same old chestnuts, I guarantee they have never done been done like this before. You’re not going to be subjected to the same, I don’t want to say tired, but the same old holiday spectacular. But if for some reason you wanted to see a chorus line of reindeer, you may get that. It just may not be how you think it’s going to be. 

How important do you think it is, for the theater community, for there to be shows that can only be done once instead of this desire for everything to be part of a bigger machine?

I think it is so important. The one thing that disappointed me about Broadway was how corporate it was. I understand it. I understand people have to make money. It’s so special to create something just once in a capsule. Not everything has to transfer. Not every off-Broadway show has to go to Broadway. There are special things about shows that just exist, for a certain amount of time, that people at the top of their game create because we have to keep doing that. Otherwise we will just be stuck with stagnant shows that tour for years and years and years and never change. We have to keep pushing the boundaries.

Speaking of Broadway, I do have to ask you one question about Matilda. The mere mention of When I Grow Up can bring me to tears. How do you get through a thousand performances without that song impacting you? Or can you? 

It’s pretty well documented how much I love that show and how grateful I was to be a part of it. The way that my track was, I could watch Revolting Children every single night from the back of the house because I made an entrance. And I did watch it every single night for over a thousand performances. Had I been able to see When I Grow Up, I don’t think I would have been able to go on after it.

We had a bunch of pre-checks for the shows, for the kids, the sets and the swing track was part of it. I would always watch it and just ball, even just in rehearsal. What Tim wrote and that whole team that set-designed, that moment of the swings is so incredible.

I cried often and the most I cried was when I knew some of these kids were leaving and it was their last time on the swings. It was something that I dreaded every few months when the kids got too big. I was a blubbering mess the whole time.

I don’t think I’ll ever do a show like that again. I’m so, so grateful that it took me so long to get to Broadway. It was just incredible.

I lose it every time the adults take over the swings.

I finally got to do it. On the final day they let me on the swings and there’s the picture of my face like that. The best moment.

We’re living in in a troubled world. I think it’s safe to say trip theaters are having troubles getting people back in. We’re all having huge problems getting together. If you could have one wish for the holiday season for 2023 going into 2024, what would it be? What would you like to see this holiday season bring that is different than previous holiday seasons?

Peace is the obvious answer. We’re just more divided now than ever. Finding a way to coexist. Finding a way to let people be who they are. Live your life and let someone else live theirs. It’s all of that. But for sure, peace, because it’s really feels like the world is on fire.

After 14 performances as well as several weeks of the holidays around you, infiltrating every moment of your waking day, are you planning on celebrating the holidays by doing anything but the holidays? 

We run until the 23rd and I’ll probably just be sleeping through the holidays. I always celebrate with with my family up north. So I think I’m going to make my husband drive and I’ll conk out with my dog in the back. I’ll celebrate, but be exhausted. I’m sure I’ll be exhausted.

To watch the full interview with Lesli Margherita, please go here.

Main Photo: Lesli Margherita and George Salazar in Pasadena Playhouse Holiday Spectacular (Photo by Jeff Lorch/Courtesy Pasadena Playhouse)

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#1: The Return of Live Performances

There isn’t any one show that could top the fact that we were able to finally return to the glorious experience of live performance in theaters, concert halls, outdoor venues and more. As great as streaming programming, it could never replace the centuries old practice of communal celebration of life through plays, musicals, concerts and dance.

Yes there were new rules to get accustomed to. Some required masks, others didn’t. Proof of vaccination became required (and that’s a good thing in my book). The first time I returned to a theatre and found my seats was the best possible therapy for my soul. If you read Cultural Attaché I’m sure you feel the same way.

#2: Fire Shut Up In My Bones – Metropolitan Opera

While I wasn’t able to see Terence Blanchard‘s powerful and moving opera in person, I did take advantage of the Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD series to see a live transmission from New York. Blanchard and librettist Kasi Lemmons have taken the memoir by Charles M. Blow and created an opera that is going to be performed around the world.

So rich is the storytelling, so brilliantly was the production directed by James Robinson and Camille A. Brown (who also choreographed), so spectacular was the singing, Fire Shut Up In My Bones was easily the single most impressive performance of the year.

Hopefully the Met will add additional showings of Fire Shut Up In My Bones via their Live in HD series or make it available for streaming online.

The opera will be performed at Lyric Opera of Chicago beginning on March 24th of this year. For more details and to get tickets, please go here.

#3: Caroline, or Change – Roundabout Theatre Company at Studio 54

I’ve been a fan of this Jeanine Tesori/Tony Kushner musical since I saw the first production (twice) in New York at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre in 2004. I loved the show so much I saw it a third time when it came to the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles later the same year.

Color me pre-disposed to like this revival. What surprised me most was that even though this Michael Longhurst production was more lavishly produced than the original, it never lost one bit of its heart. Hugely contributing to the emotional wallop of this show was Sharon D. Clarke’s towering performance as Caroline. She’s definitely going to receive a Tony Award nomination and deserves to win for her remarkable work.

Caissie Levy, Kevin S. McAllister, Harper Miles and N’Kenge all made incredible impressions. Plus it’s always great to see Chip Zien on stage – I’ve been a fan of his since Into the Woods.

If you are in New York or going this week, you still have time to catch this amazing production before it’s last performance on January 9th. For tickets go here.

#4: Santa Fe Opera 2021 Season – Santa Fe Opera

I had never attended a production at Santa Fe Opera prior to this summer. I don’t intend to miss any seasons going forward. This is a truly magical place to see opera. This summer found a smaller line-up than in non-COVID years, but the four consecutive nights in early August were a great introduction to this wonderful tradition.

On tap this year were The Marriage of Figaro, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Benjamin Britten), the world premiere of The Lord of Cries (John Corigliano and Mark Adamo) and Eugene Onegin. My personal favorite was Britten’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s play.

Each night, however, had plenty of joys to be found: whether it was my second time seeing Anthony Roth Costanzo in a opera (the first being Ahknahten), revisiting the joys to be found in Tchaikovsky’s brooding opera, enjoying the staging of Mozart’s classic opera or experiencing the tailgating experience that is de rigueur before each performance.

I’m excited about this summer’s season as my favorite opera, Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, is being performed at Santa Fe Opera for the first time.

#5: West Side Story

I was completely skeptical about what Steven Spielberg would do with one of my favorite musicals. That he had Tony Kushner working with him gave me some optimism. Try as I could to wrangle details from colleagues who were working on the film, I was completely unable to glean any information about what kind of updating and changes were being made.

When I saw the movie on opening weekend I was thrilled to discover that my concerns had all been for naught. Simply put, I think this is a vastly superior film than its Oscar-winning predecessor. I’ve always found this Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents musical emotional (let’s face it, it’s Romeo and Juliet), but seeing it so close on the heels of Sondheim’s passing probably intensified my emotional response.

Sondheim said how excited he was for audiences to see what had been done to West Side Story. I know he wasn’t a fan of the original film – feeling it was too close in presentation to the stage version – so I had my fingers crossed he was right. And he was. If you haven’t seen the film yet, do so. It’s the kind of film that must be seen on a big screen with terrific sound.

#6: Head Over Heels – Pasadena Playhouse

If you had asked me what the odds were that a jukebox musical using the songs of The Go-Go’s would be a show I would see at all, let alone twice, I would have given you huge odds against that happening. And I would have lost my shirt! What Sam Pinkleton and Jenny Koons did with this production was create the best party of the year.

Alaska 5000, Lea DeLaria, Yurel Echezarreta, Freddie, Tiffany Mann, George Salazar, Emily Skeggs and Shanice Williams put their hearts and souls into this story of family, acceptance and love. The all-female band rocked the house.

Both times I saw the show I opted for the on-stage/standing room seats and I wouldn’t have had it any other way. At the first performance Lea DeLaria made a comment during the show about my pants. For the second performance I had a better idea where to position myself to have an even better time than I did at the first performance.

This was a party I never wanted to end.

#7: desert in – Boston Lyric Opera

This streaming opera/mini-series is definitely not your parent’s opera. It is guided by its own rules as it tells the story of a unique group of strangers (or are they) who congregate at a seedy motel.

The music was composed by Michael Abels, Vijay Iyer, Nathalie Joachim, Nico Muhly, Emma O’Halloran, Ellen Reid, Wang Lu and Shelley Washington. The libretto was written by christopher oscar peña.

Appearing in desert in are mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard (for whom the project was written), soprano Talise Trevigne, Tony-nominated performer Justin Vivian Bond (Kiki & Herb Alive on Broadway), actors Carlis Shane Clark, Alexander Flores, Anthony Michael Lopez, Jon Orsini, Ricco Ross and Raviv Ullman with vocal performances by tenor Neal Ferreira, Tony Award-winner Jesus Garcia (La Bohème), baritone Edward Nelson, tenor Alan Pingarrón, soprano Brianna J. Robinson, mezzo-soprano Emma Sorenson and bass-baritone Davóne Tines.

The project was directed by James Darrah who also oversaw the Close Quarters season of films from Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra; directed a production of Les Enfants Terribles for Long Beach Opera (that took place in a parking lot) and, underachiever that he is, also directed The Lord of Cries at Santa Fe Opera.

You can still stream desert in. Go here for details.

#8: Cécile McLorin Salvant – The Ford

Without a new album to promote jazz vocalist Salvant took to the stage at The Ford in Los Angeles for a concert with Sullivan Fortner that was nothing short of pure joy. She and Fortner have such a musical bond that she can make up the setlist on the spot and he’s ready to dive right in to dazzle the audience. As they did on this late September evening.

The only problem with seeing Salvant perform is you can never get enough. Truly. Rare is the performer who can so thoroughly enrapture an audience with their skill the way Salvant can.

That should come as no surprise for an artist who has won three consecutive Grammy Awards for her three most recent albums. Her newest album, Ghost Songs, is being released by Nonesuch Records in March. No doubt the next Grammy Awards season will find Salvant’s latest album on their list of nominees.

#9: Billy Porter: Unprotected

Porter’s memoir was released in the fall and it is one of the most inspirational and entertaining memoirs I’ve ever read. He’s a Tony Award (Kinky Boots), Emmy Award (Pose) and Grammy Award (also Kinky Boots) winning performer. He’s also been setting the fashion world on fire with his inventive and creative looks on runways from the Academy Awards to the Met Gala in New York. Let’s just say he knows how to make an entrance.

In Unprotected Porter details the many obstacles put in his way through challenges at home to being subjected to harsh criticism from his church to casting directors who thought he was too much. Though it all he remains steadfast in his individualism and his talent. It’s a lesson we can all use. As he says in his memoir, “My art is my calling, my purpose, dare I say my ministry.” I, for one, found a lot to learn from his ministry.

Gay men and women are not the only audience for Porter’s ministry. The life lessons he endured and his response to them is precisely the nourishment our souls need today. You can also clearly hear Porter’s voice in the book. So engaging and entertaining is his book I read it in one sitting. I found it impossible to put down. I think you will, too.

#10: Ledisi Sings Nina Simone – Hollywood Bowl

Anyone who is brave enough to tackle material made famous by the incomparable Simone either has a lot of guts or a lot of talent. Ledisi proved she had both in this memorable concert at the Hollywood Bowl in July (which she performed elsewhere as well.)

Ledisi wisely chose not to emulate her idol. Instead she made each song her own while still retaining a sense of what Simone’s original recordings offered. She released a seven-track record, Ledisi Sings Nina Simone, but added more songs to her concert. It was particularly interesting to her performance of Ne Me Quitte Pas and then hear it performed by Cynthia Erivo less than a week later at the same venue. Who sang it better? Let each who saw both shows answer that question.

Runners up: Vijay Iyer’s latest album Uneasy; Veronica Swift for her album This Bitter Earth; The Band’s Visit touring production at The Dolby Theatre in Hollywood; Jason Moran solo piano performance as part of LeRoy Downs’ Just Jazz series; Springsteen on Broadway; MasterVoices’ Myths and Hymns and Cynthia Erivo singing Don’t Rain on My Parade at the Hollywood Bowl.

Here’s hoping there’s even more to see and hear in 2022. What’s on your list? Leave your choices in the comments section below.

Happy New Year!

The post Top 10 of 2021 appeared first on Cultural Attaché.

Pinkleton and Jenny Koons (the other half of the creative team) have put together a show that feels both of the moment and just what we need in this moment. Anyone who knows such songs as We Got the Beat, Vacation and Our Lips Are Sealed already knows how buoyant they are. To experience those hit songs as part of an audience given a chance to be on the stage with the cast is a gift after so much time during the pandemic wondering when the isolation might end.

Halfway through rehearsals I spoke with Koons and Pinkleton about taking on a significantly revised version of a musical that, frankly, failed on Broadway. Their journey began when they saw Head Over Heels in New York.

“We saw Head Over Heels together in New York on Broadway,” Koons says, “and had a great time and really fell in love with the joy of it and the way that the Go-Go’s music had been integrated.” It should be noted that the storyline is based on Arcadia by Sir Philip Sidney which was published in the late 16th century.

As much as they both enjoyed the musical, it wasn’t the type of show they usually do. The two have collaborated on Burn All Night at American Repertory Theatre and a new production of the Elizabeth Swados musical Runaways in New York.

“The way that it was presented on Broadway, which was very much a proscenium musical with two acts, was not necessarily how either of us works,” Pinkleton revealed. That wasn’t the kind of show the Pasadena Playhouse had in mind either.

Koons says, “When the Playhouse approached us about imagining this in a different form as a party – people on the floor, everyone dancing to the beat – it felt like a question of can we take what we loved about the experience we had and make it amplified even more. So it was less about how do you reduce something and more about how we take what we love and make those things even louder in real life.”

As both Pinkleton and Koons began their exploration as to the best way to answer that question, it became apparent that they were doing more than just a production of a pre-existing show.

“It feels like a gift that we are coming at this with fresh eyes; making new musicals is really hard and really ugly,” said Pinkleton. “I feel like we’re having the process of making something new, even if the script in the show is kind of a given.”

Along with the team at the Pasadena Playhouse, there was a reason they wanted to do something different with Head Over Heels.

“In this moment of twenty twenty one,” Koons says of their thinking, “what is the story that we’re all telling as we come back together. I think how we’ve approached this, from looking at it with the Playhouse, was as an invitation back. Welcome home. Welcome back! What does it mean to be gathering again in person.”

It’s an invitation that for anyone and everyone – whether your knew The Go-Go’s music or the story in the show.

Pinkleton explains. “Welcome back to people who just happen to be walking down the street. Welcome back to people who would never expect to come into a theater. I don’t think that that’s something we’re imposing on this show. I actually think that’s the heartbeat of the show. I think there’s a queerness and an openness and a curiosity – the show is about that. It’s the story of people who go on a journey to discover that everything they needed, they had the whole time.”

What Koons and Pinkleton did so well with the show was to assemble a cast where anyone who sees the show will find themselves represented on stage. The cast includes Alaska 5000 (best known from RuPaul’s Drag Race season 5 and the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars season 2); Yurel Echazarreta (a member of the Broadway cast of Head Over Heels); recording and drag artist Freddie; Lea DeLaria (jazz singer and star of Orange Is the New Black); Tiffany Mann (Be More Chill and Waitress on Broadway); George Salazar (Pasadena Playhouse’s Little Shop of Horrors); Emily Skeggs (Fun Home on Broadway) and Shanice Williams (The Wiz on NBC).

That was precisely the point offers Koons.

“The goal has been to create something unique for the performers and artists that we gather. I feel like we’re constantly on our toes for how we really shape this to them. We made a joke in the first week that it’s like the Queer Avengers. How do we make sure that all eight and that the humans we have gathered feel able to be there for ourselves in a way that can invite audience members to do the same.”

They two directors also made sure that their vision was shared by the cast they hired Koons offered.

“With the performers that we have gathered this feels very much like a shared mission. Yes, we’re doing a show, we’re doing it in the midst of a crazy moment in time. And all of us are coming to this with the spirit of an open invitation that really is for everyone.”

As much as you might enjoy the show, Pinkleton believes it’s something more that will be part of the experience of seeing Head Over Heels.

“The thing we’ve been missing the most is bodies,” he says, “living, breathing humans. So nothing is going to be more spectacular than the humans. And that’s true for the performers, and that’s true for the audience.”

As someone who experienced the show on the stage with the show happening all around me, I can vouch that the greatest joy came from dancing, celebrating and enjoying this shared space with so many wonderful people.

To watch the complete interview with Jenny Koons and Sam Pinkleton, please go to our YouTube channel here.

Head Over Heels continues at the Pasadena Playhouse through December 12th. For tickets go here.

Main Photo: Lea DeLaria, Alaska 5000, Shanice Williams and George Salazar in Head Over Heels (Photo by Jeff Lorch/All photos courtesy Pasadena Playhouse)

The post Koons & Pinkleton Turn “Head Over Heels” On Its Head appeared first on Cultural Attaché.

In a bold move destined to say that the past nearly two years of challenges need to make way for some fun, the Pasadena Playhouse is presenting a radically re-thought version of the Broadway musical Head Over Heels which uses The Go-Go’s music. Co-directors/co-choreographers Jenny Koons and Sam Pinkleton have created a production that’s meant to be a party celebrating each and every one of us.

That spirit of having fun was fully on display when I was invited to attend a preview of the work-in-progress. Three songs were performed out of costume and unamplified. Then it was time to talk to the cast: Alaska 5000 (best known from RuPaul’s Drag Race season 5 and the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars season 2); Yurel Echazarreta (a member of the Broadway cast of Head Over Heels); recording and drag artist Freddie; Lea DeLaria (jazz singer and star of Orange Is the New Black); Tiffany Mann (Be More Chill and Waitress on Broadway); George Salazar (Pasadena Playhouse’s Little Shop of Horrors); Emily Skeggs (Fun Home on Broadway) and Shanice Williams (The Wiz on NBC).

What follows are highlights from my conversations with the cast who made it clear that this show is going to be a party for everyone with dancing by the audience (many of whom have the ability to be on stage) strongly encouraged. As a company they all feel that the show’s themes of inclusivity will be more accepted than it was when Head Over Heels first opened.

George Salazar: I saw the original Broadway company of the original production of Head Over Heels, and I was head over heels in love with that show. 

Alaska 5000: I know Head Over Heels was on Broadway a really short time ago, and so much has changed in our conversation. Now everyone has pronouns after their names in their email. This show is like on the forefront of that. I’m glad we’re doing it right now. 

Yurel Echazarreta: There’s just so much more awareness and even language that we have created. [We’ve] become more aware of the inclusivity and the diversity within humans. I think if the show on Broadway would have happened now it would have been with more cultural awareness. The show helps us chart where we are today. Everything has a time and space and place, and that show helped to get us to where we are here. Now [we’re] able to celebrate an elevated movement even more now.

George Salazar: We as a society and as an industry, we’re really sitting in front of a mirror for a year and a half, questioning – myself included – questioning choices that we’ve made. So this show is a celebration of differences and the celebration of unity among this family, the royal family, they’re so broken and separated. Over the course of this play they see past differences and they work together. By the end there’s this beautiful, renewed love that permeates through this space and I think the audience is really going to feel that.

Tiffany Mann: I think that we have no choice but to sit and first examine ourselves without distraction and in examining ourselves, we realize there are other humans among us and they want to be accepted. And I think in 2021, we have a lower tolerance for people who don’t walk that walk and create lasting human hearts among each other.

Emily Skeggs: I think it’s an understatement to say the world has experienced a seismic shift in a lot of things. What was really exciting to me is there’s this recognition in the world for us to be happy, what kinds of stories where we’re showcasing in the theater and who comes to the theater to experience it and who gets to see themselves.

Freddie: So much has happened in the past year. I think the time is right. I think that people need a sense of community. People are needing a sense of belonging and a space to come together and really feel celebrated. And this is that space. So it’s more than just a show and it’s a celebration of life.

Lea DeLaria: think The Go-Go’s music can tell any kind of story. I knew them as a punk band. I think their contribution to culture is just big. They deserve to be in the Hall of Fame. They deserve to have a great big fun jukebox musical with their music. 

Tiffany Mann: It’s a part of the heartbeat of this culture of American music.You know the music. As soon as it comes on, you don’t even may not even know that you know the lyrics, but you may find yourself singing along the same such feel good music.

Shanice Williams: The music is timeless. I did not grow up listening to it, but when I hear it it makes me want to dance.

Emily Skeggs: [We’re] inviting the audience to join us in the celebration of who we are.

Freddie: I think queer liberation is about everyone feeling like they are worthy of being celebrated. No matter how you show up, you’re beautiful, you’re amazing, you’re perfect.

Tiffany Mann: Whether you agree with every part of the escape, we all agree that we need more than just a break from all the things that are going on outside of us. I just would invite whoever, regardless of your opinions and your beliefs, to just immerse yourself in the world and you will see a little bit of yourself and everybody else.

George Salazar: I want to welcome audience members who feel like they stick out like a sore thumb. Come here and stick out like a sore thumb with all of us. 

Lea DeLaria: We’ve provided [the audience] a dance floor. I want them to become crazy. I want them to jump up and down on that dance floor like we used to get to The Go-Go’s in the 80s. I just I want them to jump up and down and have a time of their life because this is a celebration for all of us. I think we’re all thrilled to be here. 

Check back later this week for our interview with Jenny Koons and Sam Pinkleton.

Head Over Heels is now playing at the Pasadena Playhouse through December 12th.

Main photo: Alaska 5000 and Lea DeLaria in Head Over Heels (All photos by Jeff Lorch/Courtesy Pasadena Playhouse)

The post The “Head Over Heels” Cast Invites You to Their Party appeared first on Cultural Attaché.