Interview with Actor Jonah Platt

Actor Jonah Platt is a young man of many talents that include acting, singing, writing and directing. He is currently preparing to play the Lythgoe Family Panto of Beauty and the Beast to open Decmeber 13 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium.

Tell us about the role you are playing in the Panto of Beauty and the Beast.

I'm playing the Beast! He's the angry, hairy one.

How are rehearsals going? Have you ever done Panto before?

We haven't started yet, but I'm excited to get going. I've never done Panto before, but I've done a ton of improv so I'm excited to get to interact with our terrific audiences.

What do you think makes Panto different and so special during the holiday season?

It's a familiar story, it's fun for the whole family, it's got contemporary music hits everyone loves, plus a little holiday magic. Sounds like a perfect recipe to me.

How did your production of Dog Sees God turn out? 

It turned out better than we could've hoped! We sold out our entire run at the Hollywood Fringe and were awarded a Fringe Encore (meaning, we had been such a commercial and critical hit, that Fringe wanted us to do more shows!) We ended up extending our run and doing a whole additional slew of shows, all of which were also sold out. The playwright himself, Bert Royal, came to see us and said it was one of the most "exquisite" productions he'd ever seen. 

Was this your first direction? Talk about your young cast and your challenges.

I've directed in various forms all kinds of things throughout my life, most recently the musical improv show One Night Stand, in which I also performed. We performed across the country and sold out multiple Edinburgh Fringe Festivals. I absolutely loved working with my young actors on Dog Sees God -- they were so talented and so passionate about the material and bringing it to a wider audience. They trusted me a ton, which made my job a lot easier. I'd say our greatest challenges were teaching these actors what's expected of them at a truly professional level in terms of preparedness, promptness, pitching in to help the company, etc. They all have so much experience performing in schools and community theaters, all at a high level, but most had never really taken part in a fully independent professional production. But they all learned and grew immensely and I'm so proud of all of them and the work we did! Several of our actors are up for local BroadwayWorld Awards, and I myself was nominated for Best Director If you want to vote for me, I'd love that!

I'll see what I can do! Tell us a bit about doing Bare.

Bare is a really special piece of material that means a lot to so many people. Getting to be part of the Bare family, as "Jason" in the Los Angeles revival, is such an honor. A lot of talented performers have been through the Bare revolving door, and I'm just glad I got to bring Jason to life in my own way, and to hopefully touch some people with the amazing story. Plus, my Bare crew are still some of my closest LA theater friends - it's a very special connection. It really opened up a whole new world of LA theater for me.

What is the role you've enjoyed the most?  Why?

I have to go with 'Woof" in HAIR (at the Hollywood Bowl). It was just the most special 10 days of my life. Doing a show that's all about The Tribe, in the most intensive rehearsal period, with such an incredibly talented group of performers, in front of my hometown and crowds of 18,000 people, singing about letting the sun shine in and bringing to life this incredible piece of theater that still resonates 40+ years after it's creation... it was so liberating, so fulfilling. Plus, I met my now wife doing it! She was the assistant choreographer and dance captain. She walked down the aisle at our wedding to an arrangement I wrote of "I Believe in Love". How's that for special!

That's special! Do you have a favorite show of all time (doesn't have to be one you've done)? 

It changes a lot! I'm pretty partial to Sunday in the Park with George and West Side Story. More recently, I'm a big fan of Fun Home and of course Dear Evan Hansen! As a composer/lyricist myself, it's hard to choose just one favorite. There are elements I like from so many! 

What about a favorite composer?

My ideal hybrid composer would have the innovation and emotional storytelling of Stephen Sondheim, the complex accessibility of Stephen Schwartz, the lush unpredictability of Adam Guettel, the simple beauty of Richard Rogers, and the contemporary groove of Jason Robert Brown.

That's a great answer. Is there a role you are yearning to play?

One word: Hedwig.

What's up next for you?

I'm going to be doing a concert or two in the first quarter of 2018, in Baltimore, New York and Los Angeles. Additionally, the musical I'm co-writing, The Giver, will be having its second reading early in '18 as well. But no acting gigs lined up yet...

For more information about what Jonah is up to/appearances/shenanigans, follow him on Twitter & Instagram @JonahPlatt, and sign up for his mailing list at www.JonahPlatt.com to stay in the loop!

And of course, go to the Panto of Beauty and the Beast at the Pasadena Civic opening December 13.

For tix and info visit:

https://www.ticketmaster.com/lythgoe-family-pantos-beauty-and-the-pasadena-civic-pasadena-ca/venueartist/90157/2394451#!

2017 Interview with Actress Peri Gilpin

Actress Peri Gilpin, best known as Roz on the now classic TV series Frasier, is currently preparing to open at the Pasadena Playhouse in a radio play of Miracle on 34th Street December 15. She took time out of her busy schedule to talk about her role in the play, her director Cameron Watson... and of course, Frasier.



LET'S TALK ABOUT MIRACLE ON 34th STREET AND YOUR ROLE IN IT.

I am playing Doris Walker in a Radio Play version of the 1947 film. The way the story was told has always struck me as very original. It’s almost like a commercial for a sermon about a commercial for a department store. But, because it never denies that about itself it stays relevant, rooted in authenticity, and honest. It also feels so American. Doris is a very buttoned -up single Mom. She works as an “EXPERT P.R." person for Macy’s department store. This working, single mom with a high powered job doesn’t feel anachronistic if you are familiar with Katharine Hepburn or Maureen O’Hara, the original Doris Walker, movies, but by more recent standards, she does feel unusual. She has very, very, strong opinions about parenting. There is no ex-husband or father to her daughter in the picture at all. No emotional life. Emotions are silly. And life is pragmatic and on schedule! She seems perfectly capable of juggling all of the responsibilities of parenting alone, excelling at a very creative and demanding job, being put together like a Vogue model, keeping her home immaculate, getting dinner on the table and keeping her daughter neat as a pin, adorable, respectful, reliable and thoughtful. The fact that this woman is doing all of this on her own, (even given talented art, scenic, costumes, hair and make up departments) somehow, is what exonerates her from being despised as an overbearing mother, determined to control and dictate her daughter's every thought. Especially her thoughts about SANTA CLAUS! Doris wants to protect her daughter and we can see that in her actions.

IS THIS ROLE CHALLENGING OR DO YOU RELATE READILY TO THE MOTHER OF THAT LITTLE GIRL?

I relate in big way to this character as the mother of two thirteen year old twin girls! But that is pretty much where Doris and I part. I struggle with the basics of parenting. When I am working, my parenting skills get even sloppier and I wouldn’t presume to ever tell my kids what to think. Though I can be persuasive if I have strong feelings about something, I would never go so far as to tell them whether or not to believe in Santa Claus. Of course I want to protect my kids from anything negative or anyone who might cause a negative experience for them (even though I know I can’t). I also have a fantastic partner in my husband, who is always there for all of us and is the best dad I’ve ever met. That is the fundamental difference between Doris Walker and me. I have empathy for her. Raising kids alone has to be the hardest job in the world.

WHAT IS THE MESSAGE OF THE PLAY IN YOUR OPINION?

The message is about Faith. Faith in love. Faith in yourself. Faith in others. Faith in the future. Faith in the things you want. Faith means believing in something even though you can’t see it, hear it, touch it, smell it or taste it but you can feel it. Faith in what you feel. Faith in Faith.

TELL US ABOUT YOUR DIRECTOR AND CAST.

Well, the director, Cameron Watson, is like family. He is one of my oldest and dearest friends. The cool thing is, he is my kids’ Godfather and I know how he feels about Christmas, the Holidays, the Season and Santa. He is a fantastic director. I’m lucky to get to return with him to Pasadena Playhouse. The last time we were here we did AS BEES IN HONEY DROWN together. So this is meaningful in many ways. Beth Grant and Jim Rash and Larry Poindexter are old friends and Alfred Molina, whose performances in too many movies to name, I’ll try… Enchanted April, Not Without My Daughter, An Education are always revelatory, and he made me laugh so hard once backstage at a benefit I have willed this.

WHAT ROLE DO YOU REALLY WANT TO PLAY ONSTAGE OR ON FILM OR TV? WHY THIS PARTICULAR ONE?

I have never been able to answer this question. Whatever it is, I’m looking forward to it. And thank you for asking because I do believe in putting it out there!

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE CHARACTER YOU HAVE PLAYED? A FAVORITE PLAYWRIGHT? WHY THESE CHOICES?

Well, I have to say I loved playing Roz Doyle on "Frasier". It is so amazing to me when I watch it now how much the character is written like a very good friend of mine. None of the writers knew her, but I always thought of her when I was making choices. I used to say it often. But Roz was very much a woman of her time. So, we all knew people like Roz in those days. I hope that women like her never again seem out of the ordinary. Extraordinary women are the norm and extraordinarily written female characters should be the norm! I recently played Mrs. Page from THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR at a benefit for a Shakespeare Theatre here in Los Angeles and rediscovered that Shakespeare is my first love and will always be my favorite. Endless feels.

IS THERE ANY TALK OF A "FRASIER" REUNION? DO YOU THINK THE SHOW MIGHT COME BACK LIKE WILL AND GRACE? WOULD YOU WANT IT TO? TALK A BIT ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCES ON THAT WONDERFUL SHOW.

It’s always a pleasure to talk about "Frasier" because it was so much fun in every way. Every member of the "Frasier" world was a character in their own right. There was over 5000 years of combined experience, there were second generation comedy writers and the first generation was there too and there were writers there who went almost as far back in TV as you can go. The creators of the show cut their teeth on some of the iconic shows of the 70s...And that isn’t a reference to age, but to experience and wisdom and knowing what plays. There were young whippersnappers there too experimenting and trying to keep up and hoping to "hit one out of the park" and succeeding and also feeling like losers because they were young and inexperienced. Just the way it ought to be and the way it always is. And it was that way in every single department. There has always been talk of a "Frasier" Reunion, even when we were doing the show. As on every show! And there has always been a certainty that there will never be one. As much as every one involved would love it and probably wishes it could be.

Miracle on 34^th Street will play from December 14, 2017 - December 23, 2017. For tix and more info, visit:

www.pasadenaplayhouse.org