The Ensemblist Broadway Musicals & Plays

The first episode of Smash is aptly named, “Pilot.” The episode premiered on February 6th, 2012. It was written by the show’s creator Theresa Rebeck, and directed by Michael Mayer. The pilot premiered to an audience of 11.44 million people! This episode featured seven songs, three of which were original songs written by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman: “Never Give All the Heart,” “The National Pastime,” and the show’s anthem “Let Me Be Your Star.” The other four were covers of “Somewhere Over The Rainbow,” “I Wanna Be Loved By You,” “Beautiful,” and “Happy Birthday, Mr. President.” 
We fade in on a girl with a hunger for fame and a face and a name to remember. That face is Katharine McPhee and that name is Karen Cartwright. She’s singing “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” in an audition.
A team of writers Tom Levitt and Julia Houston are tipped off to a subject for a new musical by their assistant Ellis. Ellis says “I think (Marilyn Monroe) would make a good musical.” Julia is intrigued by Marilyn as a subject, saying “There’s just something about (Marilyn). How much she loved and wanted to be loved.” So the team gets to work on a demo, bringing in Ivy Smith to record the song.
Ivy is currently an ensemblist in Tom Levitt’s Broadway production Heaven on Earth, but she confides to him that “You know I love the show. I love you.” Tom: “The ensemble not so much.” Ivy: “I just want a part.”
After THREE commercial breaks, we meet Anjelica Houston as Eileen Rand, who wants the project and wants to connect them with a hot-tempered director Derek Wills. They all agree to set aside their differences, in part due to a specularly staged number on spec called “The National Pastime.” 
Karen turns a remarkable audition for Marilyn, singing Smash’s first pop cover: “Beautiful” by Christina Aguleria. Derek is intrigued enough to invite Karen over to his apartment under the pretence of a private coaching session. She keeps Derek at arm’s length , and the episode ends with both Karen and Ivy vying to “Let Me Be Your Star.”
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On January 5, 2020, Broadway will dim the lights on one of its most delicious confections: Waitress. During its more than four years and 1,544 regular performances on Broadway, The Ensemblist has shared many stories from its talented company. We share with you today two completely new stories from to podcast as well as some of our favorite Waitress audio from the past year.
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In our recent episodes about Touring Broadway, actors Josh Burrage and Sabrina Imamura shared with us some of the joys and struggles of touring with A Bronx Tale, Newsies and Hamilton. But while they each have significant experience in the road, one thing neither of them were able to speak to was going on the road as a parent. 

That’s why I found this Mama’s Talkin Loud so intriguing. Mama’s Talkin Loud is a new parenting podcast hosted two of the co-founders of Broadway Baby Mamas, Cara Cooper and Jessica Rush. In addition to being mothers of young kids, each has also been on Broadway this season: Cooper in The Prom and Rush in Dear Evan Hansen and Tina: The Tina Turner Musical.
In this recent episode of Mama’s Talkin Loud, Rush and Cooper spike to Becky Gulsvig and Megan McGinnis, both of whom recently finished touring with Come From Away with young children. Between their discussions of travel days and searching for nannies, I found it a fascinating conversation. Which is why I wanted to share it with you all. 
It’s a perfect companion piece to our Touring Broadway mini-series, which is why I’m so grateful Jessica and Cara are allowing us to share it in our feed today. Here’s their conversation...
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First National Tours are one of the most important calling cards for the Broadway community. Staged in New York City to cross the country, these facsimiles of Broadway shows bring the experience of attending a Mainstem musical to theatrelovers across the country. But how similar are these touring productions to their Broadway counterparts? And what’s the experience for performers who pick up their lives to travel the country in one of the casts?
Sabrina Imamura opened the first national tour of Hamilton in early 2017. Performing in the show’s ensemble took her along the West coast for about a year and a half before Broadway called, where she’s been in the show’s Mainstem ensemble since mid-2018. I asked her into the studio to tell about how performing in two productions differed, both onstage and off. Here’s our conversation...
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We are in the midst of an unprecedented time right now. As artists, We thrive on human interaction, community, and togetherness. With all of that stripped away, it has been difficult for many of us to find ways to be creative. To find ways to have hope that the theatre industry will rise again. This industry we love so much has its ups and downs, its difficult struggles, and its moments of pure joy. I spoke with three talented ensemblists, and more importantly, excellent humans, about what they miss most about one night in the grind of an 8 show week. Taurean Everett recounts his time at The Cher Show, Keely Beirne about her time in the late Frozen on Broadway, and Camden Gonzales remembers life on the road with Hamilton.
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First National Tours are one of the most important calling cards for the Broadway community. Staged in New York City to cross the country, these facsimiles of Broadway shows bring the experience of attending a Mainstem musical to theatrelovers across the country. But how similar are these touring productions to their Broadway counterparts? And what’s the experience for performers who pick up their lives to travel the country in one of the casts?
Joshua Michael Burrage has performed with not one, but two first national tours: Newsies and A Bronx Tale The Musical. In between, he made his Broadway debut in the recent revival of Cats. I asked him into the studio to talk about those two tours, and how those experiences differed from performing on the Great White Way. Here’s our conversation...
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