Hi, everyone. It's me with Rebecca Luker come to her garden come to her garden
First we'll show everyone that you may be soprano, but you got some sass
I got some sass leather cuff. I don't know what that is.
And leather underwear, but she can't show it to you. What do I want to say. Ok so first of all Rebecca Luker
I have a thousand things to say. Rebecca has the nerve to be branching out and not just doing Broadway musicals which pisses me off because
Every time people leave they never ever come back. However. I will say brava first of all the new film
You're doing is by the amazing conductor David Chase. What's it called? No stupid David Chase okay? What's the film?
It's called Not Fade Away. David Chase the Sopranos guy
whatever okay, so brava on the film
I will also say she's doing an amazing act
with Howard McGillan aren't you like a whole trio
Howard McGillan and Ted Spurling put it together, wrote it
He's sort of the the lead leading musical director
Leading player
He's playing
It's his show, and we're it's the three of us.
It's at the Carlyle
I say brava to that
And I'm of course married to Danny Burstein who literally is I feel like the actor's version of a gypsy
He just goes from show to show to show that it's just non-stop
performing okay, so wait when you guys did you guys meet? did we all meet sorta together at the same time?
We were all on the show the Barry Manilow show
no we met before that in Time and Again, but close!
in the Barry Manilow show!
We started dating during the Barry Manilow
Aha. I knew I saw sparks there. It is um okay
So here's what I want to say um there's a big fat anniversary of Phantom coming up
And you are the matinee Evita? I mean matinee Christine
I started off as the understudy then I moved up to alternate Christine and then I became the main Christine
so you were the understudy you were just one of the chicks?
I was in the chorus my first and only chorus part I
guess which is I guess great
you paid your dues.
I did, but it was very lucky too
when you were the matinee
What did that mean, the alternate?
Uh the alternate meant I did about three shows a week or two shows a week
I forget which it was
Don't you find it kind of ludicrous that show that Christine only does six shows a week
Yeah, but it was a dream job to do six shows a week
I almost felt human uh I guess eight is the killer
well it's not but but it's better to do six you know
it's deliciously relaxed, huh?
It's much better
now were you when you did Think Of Me were you one of those Christines that actually did on pointe?
I did I did
on pointe
Christine literally used to do it on point, and then what happened
They finally got some Christine with flat feet and they were like and it's cut
and now she's now she's on Demi Pointe which
I wish I wasn't that way.
How did you learn how to? Did you know how to on pointe beforehand?
I didn't I sort of taught myself.
How do you get used to go on pointe?
I was so stupid, but I you know I then I took a few classes, and I just made myself learn to do it
It's only like 32 bars, but
it you would kill my gans,
It did kill me it killed me. I had blisters
I had the girls...the trina's taught me how to take care of my feet and put you know
oh the lamb's wool
Not the lamb's...well, is that what it is. Yeah?
Yeah, the bunheads yeah
Bunheads taught me to put lamb's wool
And how to you know tape my toes and how to take care of my shoes and feet. it was so fun
It was like a- it's like a fantasy because I never took dance class when I was a kid and I always wanted to
So it was my way of making up for that. You know never
Literally dancing on point. Okay, so
What I- I always talk about mistakes on stage when on paper mache shoes and Phantom of the Opera was involved in
something. okay, so go, so
Davis Gaines had just joining the cast he was our
And by the way Davis Gaines, not to brag when I did Oliver when I was 11 years old
I was the milkmaid- milk boy and he was- so I started his career continue
wow okay
Just saying
anyway mmm. Yeah, so Davis was our new Raoul. We had just rehearsed
maybe a week or so we were on stage doing that beautiful duet All I Ask of You and
He started walking towards me, and I thought he had changed the blocking and he kept walking past me. I thought oh, this is interesting
We'll just you know go with this and he kept walking past me into the stage left wing and never came back
wait but it's a duet.
it's a duet so
in a way
It's easy to do an Andrew Lloyd Webber duet with one person because you know it's very interchangeable and everything, but I was so
upset that he had just left the stage I kept walking around doing a you know
1800s fashion show or something going you know Raoul where are you?
He was in the wings throwing up in a bucket, and he never came back
He never came back
never came back on stage so I sort of mumbled some
line that was supposed to be his and I ran down the hole in the floor really fast and just
did you finish the song?
I sort of finished the song but with a lot of orchestral playing and no singing
But did you create a third person like Christine, that's all I ask of me? like what happened?
How did you finish it?
I just I just sang some some of one of his lines
But made it about me and then sang the last line and then ran down the staircase in the floor fast.
So you're responsible for Barbara Streisand stealing the song and making it a solo?
she made it into a solo because she saw you
Oh yeah, so I have an inspiration. I have an inspirational story for actors. There's so many actors. I know that have gotten signature roles
And then had to fight for them and Rebecca Luker is one of them, so Rebecca Luker
you heard that Music Man was being revived
and you were like Marian Paroo, perfect role for me. I'm an amazing actress amazing singer. I'm blonde
I'm in. So what happened? your agent said
Absolutely. What happened?
well first of all I didn't think all those things. I had done the role in college
And it was one of my absolutely favorite shows of all time
I thought I was the right age, it was the right time for me, and I thought if I don't go in now
I'm never gonna do this role, not on Broadway anyway
So I called my agent to say I'd like to get in and he said they don't want to see you
Because they just want somebody new and they just don't- they just don't think you're right for it, right for Marian
What is not right about you for the role? The role is supposed to be
over 30, was supposed to have been around for a little while. Soprano, good actress, what was not right about you?
I don't know and you know what I feel kind of weird telling this story because I don't think Stroman had anything to do with
this and I adore her so I feel a little bit weird so Stroman this isn't about you
But I think the producers, I think the producers wanted somebody fresh, and she just she went along with them
And I don't blame her, but anyway what happened was I told my agent to get me in anyway
I said, please get me in I don't care if they don't want to see me
I just want to go in. So he did get me in he called and said just- she wants to come in
Why don't you just see her you know because we were all old friends and we went back a long way and so they
They let me in as a favor
No first of all to go to an audition where you know the people don't want to see you
That would- you weren't like, the whole time being like I wasn't invited to this party, like I was a lot of times in elementary school
I would just want to, well, I was a little that way
But I decided to put that behind me and just have a great time and I just I wore pants not a lot of makeup
came in you know with my backpack on and everything cuz I thought what do I have to lose?
But I did I did work on it very hard worked on the scenes really hard. I knew the music, I would do ok
Why the pants choice?
I think because I just wanted to be casual and comfortable as I did the scene and dresses sometimes don't
Make me- I'm not comfortable in dresses
By the way sweatpants are kinda pushing it
Overalls are even pushing it. No I looked nice I just was wearing dress pants
and then you got a callback
And I got a callback
I think I surprised... surprised them with some of my choices, maybe and she Stro called me back and kept calling me back
I had about three callbacks before I got it
got the part and Tony nomination so all you actors out there
Where you hear like? They don't want to see me, if you think the role's right for you,
You literally have to push for it. Tony nomination!
No it doesn't always work out that way I was...but it was- it was lucky this time. You know
That's right! Okay, so I'm obsessed with Rebecca's amazing singing voice
And I want to do one of the songs from Music Man
Which also to me is one of the best songs written because it's so about a romance
But not like "I want to meet someone tall dark and handsome"
It's about like an actual mature romance like this is what I want in a partner. I just think the lyrics are so amazing
and what's with your beautiful beautiful high a flat did you ever want to just end it and go
Just like those matinee days.
Yes, there were those days
It's such a killer
but I mean that this song really grew on me
And I and I it became my favorite song you know in the show.
There are like no songs like this on Broadway right now
There are no high soprano songs
It's unusual. Yeah, it's some dramatic with sweet kind of beautiful
my white knight, not a Lancelot, not an angel with wings, just someone to love me who is not ashamed of a few nice things
my white knight, let me walk with him while the others ride by, walk and love him
till I die
amazing lungs! so good! still got it!