What
surprised you most over the filmmaking process, in terms of what you
might have gone in thinking about the story you were going to tell or
how the auditions were going to play out?
For me personally, the
most surprising thing -- not coming from a Broadway background -- I couldn’t
believe seeing 3,000 people standing in a line winding around a
building, knowing that there were only, with understudies, 20 or so
parts available. The math, right out of the gate, was bizarre to me. I
was like, "Wow, there’s this many spots, and this many people." The vibe
was just so passionate, and whatever it means to need to act, to dance,
to perform on Broadway, it’s just such a powerful thing. And to see the
sacrifice that people were willing to make, knowing that such a very
small percentage of this group was going to be cast in a role, and all
those other people who aren’t going to get a part are going to get up
the next day and spend their pennies that they have on dance teachers
and acting coaches and trying to better themselves in the hopes of
getting work. What I learned is that even if you get cast on Broadway,
those actors don’t make a whole lot of money, so really, I know it
sounds clichéd and on-point, but like the song says, it’s “What I Did
for Love.” They’re doing what they have to do. Michael Bennett
dedicated the show “to anyone who has ever danced in a chorus or
marched in step ... anywhere.” That resonated so strongly throughout that
process. Now, whenever I meet someone who’s a Broadway dancer or a
Broadway singer, I’m just, “Hats off.”