Episode Transcript
[00:00:01] Speaker A: Last month, Amsterdam High School senior leannalise Oviedo Roman was awarded the High School Musical Theater award for top performer after portraying Euderice in Hadestown Teen Edition.
Amsterdam High School garnered two additional backstage excellence and best musical, Tier C thrilling High School musical teacher and director Christopher Stefani with the top honor. Leann Elise is currently in New York City at the Juilliard School for 10 days of mentorship, auditions, and competition, culminating with the June 23 National High School musical theater award show called the Jimmies with this year's host, Josh Groban at Broadway's Minskoff Theater.
Leann Elise took my breath away when I had the opportunity to see her and the entire cast performed during dress rehearsal.
Her own performance at Proctor's, followed by the entire cast prior to the final best musical award, showed a full house that each award was richly deserved.
We start with Christer Stefani talking about the decision to choose Hadestown Teen Edition for this year's musical, followed by him talking about his talented cast. And then we close out fittingly with the rising star leann Elise Oviedo Roman as she tells us her story.
So thank you so much for giving me this opportunity and stealing away from one of your last days.
[00:01:31] Speaker B: My last day.
[00:01:32] Speaker A: The last day. The last day at Amsterdam High School.
So I'm with Annalise.
Oh, you gotta help me with an. I'm sorry, what's. How do I.
I was so happy. I got Annalise down, and I'm like, oviedo. Oviedo. How do you.
[00:01:49] Speaker C: So you say the whole name?
[00:01:50] Speaker B: Leona. Lis.
[00:01:51] Speaker A: There's an L. There is, yeah.
Leannelis.
[00:01:54] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:01:55] Speaker A: Ovia.
[00:01:56] Speaker B: Oviello. Yeah.
[00:01:57] Speaker A: Oviello.
[00:01:58] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:01:58] Speaker A: Roman.
And the wonderful Christopher Stefani. Thank you. Director here at Greater Amsterdam High School. Greater Amsterdam School District.
[00:02:09] Speaker C: Yeah. Amsterdam High School.
[00:02:10] Speaker A: Amsterdam. It's Amsterdam High School. That's what we call it. We call it Amsterdam High School.
And I'm catching you hours before you depart as this year's the High School Musical Theater Award.
Top actor, female.
We changed everything. We no longer use actress. We no longer. So there's two awards. You're one of two.
Top performer. Top performer. That's right. We changed the name of that, too.
Sponsored in part partner with the Daily Gazette. So that was exciting and without a doubt, I had to see you again.
I had to see you again.
I'm gonna tell a story for the podcast, and everybody I know that I've talked to about the theater awards has heard this story. So if you heard it, skip ahead.
You were the final dress rehearsal I caught for our partnership with proctors. So you're my 14th dress rehearsal of the 21 participants in high School Musical Theater Awards. Because the map is large, I couldn't get to all 21. And dates are tough because there's a tight window in those dress rehearsals. Yeah, I was floored. I was absolutely floored by the entire ensemble, the choreography.
I was in the dark with the directing staff, and I've got goosebumps.
You're 14.
I'm not the harshest critic. I'm not the easiest critic, but I saw a lot of plays. I know what I like.
You guys brought it in dress where anything and everything can go wrong.
And your performance and the rest of the cast just stars upon stars upon star. I mean, if we were able to give three stars, like in hockey, for theater, we needed more stars for your cast.
And I told Christopher that. He goes, thank you so much. Thank you so much. It's great to hear. I'm like, I'm gonna see you at the awards. He's like, I hope so. I hope so. I saw you during a quick intermission. I said, I'm gonna see you in May. And I go, I hope so. I hope so. Sure enough, we see each other in May, High School Musical Awards. And then ensemble wins.
And then I caught you at intermission, and I said, you're not done. You are not done.
And then, fortunately, you came out as part of the five top five with your solo with the group and things like that. And sure enough, back to back, you win tier C, top award, place goes bananas. I was with two young ladies who I talked to an administrator. I said, amsterdam's not done. I'm telling you right now, Amsterdam.
Both women turn around and said, you said it.
[00:04:53] Speaker C: You said it.
[00:04:54] Speaker A: And then you come up, and then you get the award. And I'm screaming. My wife's screaming, because she first time she saw you was at proctors, and she's like, oh, my God. Oh, my God. And so that's why I'm here. I'm here to talk about you.
So I'm going to defer to Chris just for a moment so you could unblush. Okay, What's. What's this ride been like from deciding on Hadestown Teen Edition with this group, putting the performances together and then seeing it all come together? Because you are the coach.
Your team is only what's in the cabinet. Those ingredients are handed to you. You can't go out and get them. This is your kids.
What's this trip Been like, you know.
[00:05:44] Speaker C: You started off right. It's been a ride, and it's been a ride that, like, we just keep going. Right.
It's been. The greatest gift is.
I mean, the thing that I'm so excited for and have been so proud of with this production is we've been working really hard, not just with this show, but with all the other productions we've been doing the last few years. And we've just been honing and getting better. And I feel like we're. The students are getting the recognition that they've been working for. And it's like, wow. We loved. Hey Sound. This was amazing. And I was like, good, I hope you come see the other stuff because they're doing great work and they deserve your attention. And when Hadestown became available last year, one of the things that we do as a cast is, you know, the students I provide in the club, I provide them options for the show every year.
So for plays and musicals, I give them about two to three options. And then I have a small executive board of students, and they decide what they're going to do. It's based on my recommendations.
Hadestown was not a hard sell as soon because it came out very available.
And I said, hey, look, if this is something we want to do, then we need to act on it. And then, you know, can't say anything about it if. If we get the rights and. Because it couldn't have fully announced it until October, but for me, it was just sitting on knowing we were doing that. We happened to be going to a field trip last year to go see Hadestown on Broadway. And I knew when we went to go see it last year that we were doing it, but no one else did.
So I'm. And I had already seen the show, but I was seeing with the eyes of, like, I was seeing it from a whole different perspective of thinking about what were you going to do, what. What, you know, what could we do? All those. All those fun things.
But then it's just like that anticipation and going through the audition process and do we have all the pieces in play? You're right. Because, you know, these kids, we. They were so excited. And once. Once we got through auditions, we got through it. We got into the work in January.
[00:08:01] Speaker A: They just, they.
[00:08:04] Speaker C: They gave it their all and we just worked. And, you know, they realized how special this opportunity was that we would be one of the first schools to have a good.
We'd be one of the first schools to have a good crack at it and that, you know, I said, hey, you know, sometimes when I do presentations to the students, I go, hey, here's pictures of a bunch of different productions and this is how other people have done it. And this is the things that we could do, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I said, hey, I'm showing you the Broadway production photos because there isn't any.
[00:08:39] Speaker A: Or other photos.
[00:08:41] Speaker C: There aren't any other photos. So that means we get to make our mark and whatever that is. And however we take inspiration on that. And so that's so exciting and exhilarating. And so they took it on and we have such wonderful. And the other thing is great.
And I was so happy that we rewarded backstage excellence because that connects not just all the students, even actors on stage, they're all a part of the whole technical process. So we all had a decision and discussion about what the set was going to be like and how do we make it our own thing. How do we not just simply, you know, the. The definite. The definite.
A lot of people get attracted to immediately taking stuff that they see on Broadway and trying to adapt it. But, like, how do you either feel inspired by what you see or. And make it your own? And so we were constantly thinking about that and trying to be representative of what the show is like and, you know, do. Do our own voice. That's the thing I always say to them. I said, no matter what we do, this is going to be Amsterdam's and that belongs here. And you have a very important story to tell and more people need to know about that.
[00:09:53] Speaker A: How much, how much, how hard is this decision? Because when you see Hadestown, I've only seen it twice now at the high school level. That's it. I can't imagine on Broadway, I think I'd have to be sedated or something like that, because, you know, I don't think I could. I'd be shaking, I'd be in tears, I'd be crying, I'd be shaking. Yeah. Because to me. And so often at times, good news, bad news, music impacts me, like physically impacts me. The emotion comes out physically. Besides. Yes, internally.
[00:10:25] Speaker C: I was just talking with a colleague about this yesterday of how, like, you.
[00:10:28] Speaker A: Need an all star team to pull off Hadestown.
[00:10:31] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:10:31] Speaker A: This is not. And I don't want to knock county because I love the production of Mary Poppins. There are plays out there that you get.
It's the small school basketball. You get one or two stars and you can go all the way to the state final.
You get those two key voices, players, actors, actresses that can carry an ensemble.
No, not with Hadestown.
You need, it's gotta be a stacked deck.
You can't go in, pardon the phrase, half assed. Yeah, you can't.
Did you automatically go like, I've got the, I've got it.
[00:11:09] Speaker C: So you know, and I say this to all the students and I mean it purely because I, I say this to the students and I mean it purely because I, I want to create an environment of being fair and open and inclusive and all those things. So I make it very clear that I don't do any pre casting, I don't do any sort of, okay, this person is definitely going to be it. But I do say, hey, when I pick a show, I do, you know, I go, okay, if I were just to go and say a character, are there people who I could just rat off? If I had no new people, do I think we could potentially do it?
And that's all I need. I don't need to have that chiseled out. I don't need to have that iron out. I just need to go, okay, of all this, all the things in the cabinet here, could we pull it off?
And I definitely always like two things I thought we could. The one I was really concerned about actually was Orpheus.
Because Orpheus is a ridiculously high part.
A high part for, for a young, typical male singer.
But again, being into the occlusive nature, I was not against casting of a different gender or non binary. It did not matter to me. It mattered to me who could make that role sing literally.
And so for that I had some idea, but I really wasn't sure. And that definitely kept me anxious at night. But the idea of doing that show was too strong. I was like, nope, not enough for me to be scared, I trust.
And that has to do with the students and their work ethic and their ability and their desire. And that's built up over time that I trust that it will work out.
And very fortunately it did.
[00:13:08] Speaker A: Again, by not typecasting Orpheus, an incredibly strong performance, again my, you know, seeing everyone and then seeing you again at high school musicals and then with the ensemble performance as one of the top Cs, you know, top in your category.
You know, my wife was just enthralled that Orpheus was not cast, you know, as a male part solely, you know, because of a male part and things like that. But again, everybody delivered. After your performance with my wife, they got away.
I like, we have, I show up, I read a script, I took photos for a month and a Half. I said, I'm. I'm spectating now with fingers crossed.
And it just.
[00:13:59] Speaker B: It.
[00:13:59] Speaker A: It delivered. And again, Pat Taus at proctors.
[00:14:02] Speaker C: That was. That experience was crazy. I've. I've. There've been some sneaky vids I've seen of line of the proctors, but I remember my feeling of what. I've watched so many recordings of that moment, and I just remember being like, I. My staff at this point knows, like, my. Like, tell of me where I'm like, I'll just, like, grab somebody and I go. I'm like, just stay with me for a minute. Because, like, they came out and I was so happy. Proctors was amazing. First off. They were so.
I just sound silly because that's what their school is called. They were so collaborative and they were so willing and to go for anything. And there was a bunch of crazy, like, we.
[00:14:43] Speaker A: Because we.
[00:14:43] Speaker C: I mean, the thing was, is we came a couple years ago, we did into the woods, and I was so happy to be there. And then we just. We took a year off, and then we decided to come back for Hadestown. And I said, okay. I know I had, like, an idea of, like, if we go back, I know the things I want to do differently from our performance aspect. So I was like, we're bringing it all as much as I can.
So they allowed us to come through the house and have all these wheelie things, and I tried to do as much as what we did here, there, and they were amazing, and I am so grateful for them.
But when the kids stormed out through the house, I was in the back. I was a mess.
I was just.
Is incredible. And to feel the energy and the space and just. It's what we love about fear. It's that connective. It's that, like, rock star concert energy, but it's that containment. It's so exciting. And it's like if you lit a match, the whole place would just explode. Like, that's that kinetic energy that you just crave for. And that piece.
If you embrace that potentiality in that musical, it'll deliver for you.
[00:15:54] Speaker A: He set the bar high for you.
He set the bar high for you.
Talking about this. So we're gonna pivot.
I'm so sorry.
[00:16:03] Speaker B: Talk so much.
[00:16:04] Speaker A: No, you're fine. You're fine.
This is why we do this. This is why we do this. This is why podcasts are great. Because we get it. We get it all. Yeah, we get it all.
[00:16:15] Speaker C: I'm gonna go run upstairs because I have a class.
[00:16:18] Speaker A: All right.
[00:16:18] Speaker C: Are you okay?
[00:16:19] Speaker B: I'm okay.
[00:16:19] Speaker C: Okay. All right.
[00:16:21] Speaker A: My star.
[00:16:24] Speaker B: Hello.
[00:16:25] Speaker A: How are you?
[00:16:26] Speaker B: I'm good. I'm good. How are you?
[00:16:28] Speaker A: So we're gonna do that real easy intro bio.
So tell me about you.
[00:16:39] Speaker B: Okay, well, I'm a senior at Amsterdam High School, and I'm pretty much involved in school. I.
I did not know that I would be here now.
And to say that, I think, is an understatement, because there's so many layers to that. But my freshman year, I did not know that I'd be doing musical theater. And the only reason why I did step foot into it is because of Stefani. He forced me to audition for the Drowsy Chevron.
I was ensemble then, but he helped me be better and be great at what I do now.
So that's. Yeah.
[00:17:21] Speaker A: What'd you do before?
What were you doing?
[00:17:24] Speaker B: I was performing, too. I was a part of this program. It's called the TREX program.
It was founded in New York City. They came out here, they offered it at the Creative Connections Clubhouse, and I joined it my sixth grade year in middle school.
And that was my first time ever performing. Ever performing. The first song I ever performed was river by Bishop Briggs. I had no business singing that, but I did, in fact, do that.
And ever since, I just wanted to know what it was to have stage presence and what it was to be on a stage and what it looks like to have people be. So what's the word I'm looking for?
[00:18:07] Speaker A: I did 8,000 things.
[00:18:08] Speaker B: I'm like, connected, connected, captivated.
It's impacted. It feels nice to know what that is now and to know that I have not reached my fullest potential is also something to look forward to.
[00:18:25] Speaker A: So that's the.
What's it like again for this group?
Because it's. It's dumb. It's simple, but it gets my point across.
You guys crushed.
You know, apparently I can say you guys ate, you know, apparently was. I was schooled on that by one of my. One of my teammates, Ian Stratton. They said that.
Oh, yeah. And this is what. This is what eight means, you know, so they ate up the stage. I'm like, okay, I got it. So, again, a sports guy. I'm gonna say crush. But just. I mean, the ensemble, the energy, but the talent.
What was that? What's that been like? Cause you've been with this group, a lot of this group for four years, so what's that been like?
[00:19:22] Speaker B: The one thing that I will always talk about when it comes to our group is that we're a very diverse group.
Everybody is different and unique in their own way and their voices are so different and it adds so much depth and layers to the way we sound on stage and the way that people hear it.
They're all just.
They're amazing, they're talented and they work very hard. They know that no matter what role they get, that role is still very much crucial and that they should do whatever they need to do in order to make it crucial, as crucial as it is when it's put on.
[00:19:58] Speaker A: Hadestown. So I'm going to backtrack real quick.
Stefani said you took a year off.
That was no, that was a conversation that in our meetings with proctors, talking about our partnership and what we can do to help support the program is Amsterdam's back this year, Albany's back this year.
Huge.
And again, there are some boxes. Diversity, very important.
Opportunity, extremely important.
But Albany and yourselves in love with productions, in love with rehearsals and things like that.
What's that mean when you knew you were back in the running for these awards because you were here before with the group and with the program and in the woods and things like that, did it add anything that you guys were back in the mix, that this was a qualifying play musical?
[00:20:57] Speaker B: In all honesty, when we did this two years ago for into the Woods, I played Rapunzel. But when we did it two years ago, we didn't win any awards.
Maybe it was the lack of what we put on stage, but we didn't win any. So it kind of just like threw us off a little bit. So going into it this year, we were kind of iffy and we didn't know if we were.
I don't want to say, like enough, because we knew we had what it took, but we didn't know if that's what they would see.
And so going into proctors and doing all these things, it was very nerve wracking. And like Stefani said, it was definitely crazy because we were all feeling so many emotions and knowing that it could go out different ways.
It could either. We could have nothing. We could have one thing, we could have two, we could have three. And we ended up with three, which is amazing.
Amazing. And it's not what I expected, although we deserved it.
[00:21:50] Speaker A: Gotcha. Not so tough question because that. We're saving that for last. But when he presents that, you're gonna do Hadestown and like you said, he knew, but the group saw Hadestown on Broadway, what was your first impression of the. I mean, was that your first Broadway Performance you've seen. Have you gone? Are you a theater kid? So was that your first exposure and what was your thoughts on seeing Hadestown on Broadway?
[00:22:15] Speaker B: So when they went. When they went to see it, year, I did not go, but I did have FOMO fear of missing out.
So I went myself later in June, I immediately, when I walked into the room and the lights went down, the house lights went down, the stage is amazing. The band is on stage. I noticed that. I've never seen that. I've watched live post shots of musicals, but I've never watched an actual Broadway show. That was my first.
So going into it, I was not expecting a band on stage. I was not expecting a turntable. I was not expecting anything.
Anything like that.
So seeing Hadestown immediately, when they started singing, I was very captivated, very moving. I just wanted to keep hearing the story over and over and over again, which is funny because given the plot of Hadestown. But I just want. I just wanted to keep hearing it over and over and over again. After watching it the first time, because I watched it twice on Broadway.
[00:23:22] Speaker C: Did your homework?
[00:23:23] Speaker B: Yeah. After watching it the first time, I fell in love with it. But by that time, I already knew we were doing Hadestown because the secret got out.
The secret got out.
So I was already plotting. I was like, yeah, I want to be the young, hungry girl. I need to do that. I live her life. I feel like.
I feel like I relate to Eurydice so much so to be able to play that role. And it was amazing.
So watching it the second time, it was more so, oh, I'm getting ready now. I'm getting ready now. And that's what it is. Because I had watched it right before auditions in, like, early December.
[00:24:03] Speaker A: The one thing, and it's a challenge, and this is nothing against any of the musicals that I saw.
Again, I'm not a theater kid. My wife is, and she went with me on a lot of the dress rehearsals because it worked out for her schedule. One thing I came away with for some performances, and again, it's dress. It's not final. I'm not judging. I'm not on the panel. Thank God. I couldn't do it.
In some instances, it looked like some roles I thought were out of range for these young people because their voices aren't fully developed.
[00:24:40] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:24:41] Speaker A: Again, we had one, one that we saw, and I looked at my wife and I had the question mark eyebrows and things like that. And then we saw the performance at Proctors and. And my wife Amelia goes, yeah, he had A cold that day. He had a cold that day on a male actor. Because the performance of proctors was totally different. And obviously, when the judging came and the final performances came, the.
The role, like you said, the story.
But everybody on your cast was, pardon the phrase, pitch perfect.
Everybody was in range. Nobody. There's no appearance to me listening with dumb ears that anybody struggled.
Who gets that credit? Is it the talent? Is it Stefani? Is it combination?
[00:25:30] Speaker B: We all get the credit. I mean, we've all worked just as hard. Stefani really pushes us to be our best version of ourselves on that stage. And as cast members, knowing what I know and being on the inside, everybody works just as hard. Every person that got a role, I saw putting in every single work, our Hades, Samuel Valberg, he would spend his time in the practice room playing all his notes on a keyboard.
Anytime he had to act it out, he would literally pace back and forth, and he would just get angry and angry and angry, and he would just practice, practice and practice and practice all his lines for Hades and Naomi Orsini, our Persephone, she was like, oh, I need to do this. I need to do this. I need to be locked into Persephone. I need to bring her out. And she did an amazing job at doing that.
Our Hermes, she was perfect because she's such a Rachel. Rachel is herself. She is a very well spoken person, and she narrates stuff very eloquently and efficiently, and it's so amazing to be able to do that. And so playing Hermes, for her, it was more so she was that. That was her role. She. She needed that. She. That was hers.
So every person played their part, and they really all put in the hard work. So pretty much the credit is given to everybody who took part in this, because even the set designers, the lighting, the sound crew, everybody took place in this, and everybody just worked just hard.
[00:26:57] Speaker A: One thing I mentioned during. In that intermission during dress, because it was, again, new to me, just as to find somewhere. He saw it on Broadway where it's the typical, you know, the vision. It's a flat. It's a flat stage, and there's a backdrop. Typically, you know, 90% of the time, unless you're Disney and you have billions, the use of the turntable and the stairwells on wheels. When I saw it address, I was blown away.
Not only because the utilization of it and the visual capability it brought to the performance, but the perfection of the movements by the stage staff and crew is so crucial because that can go south. And again, I've been at dresses, and I had one instance where a set piece didn't work. You know, windows didn't open, doors didn't open, curtains weren't pulled. Cause it's dress, and that's all. It's good. It's okay. I got it.
But your dress was still three days out.
And that movement is magical in the performance.
What was that like when you. Because you saw it, you saw kind of something similar with the turntable on Broadway. But when you're delivering it here at Amsterdam in the theater, what was your take on it?
[00:28:14] Speaker B: It definitely was different because obviously, we're not gonna place a whole turntable on our stage.
That's not. We don't have the money for that. But doing it the way that we did it was very. There were a lot of, like, safety concerns. And immediately off the bat, we were like, okay, okay, this could happen, but let's not let it happen.
So that was one of the things that we really worked on. We would spend. We would. Specifically for chant, we would spend hours perfecting that movement of the table because there was also a problem where we would turn the table and it would be off center. And so we had to find a way to keep it on center. And the stairs. There were a lot of times where we tipped over a little bit sometimes. And so we had to, like, figure out ways to not have that happen either. So it was definitely scary. But we worked on it, and we made it very precise to the point where none of those things happened.
[00:29:11] Speaker A: Smooth as silk, really. It was. It was the role.
It's a lot. I mean, it's heavy lifting. You're on stage for a long period of time.
You are ranging.
You are going from.
I say guttural, but I'm gonna say a deep, you know, a deep soul. And then you're going up, and then you're carrying again. Stan speak for music.
How difficult heading into it is that role for a performer?
[00:29:51] Speaker B: For a performer, I'd say knowing your radicy and being able to show the difference in her moods and the way she's feeling, because there's so many things that she feels in so many different ways to express that too.
She's very vulnerable, and she's very. She's looking for. She's looking for something stable.
She's hungry. She's a runaway. She doesn't. All that she knows is not good. Everything that she knows about the world, she does not want to know because it's so evil and cruel. And so when she finds Orpheus, that's just like a light.
He's just like.
He's just carrying that weight off her shoulders that she's been waiting for.
So being able to understand that is probably the hardest thing to do because she's left in such a vulnerable state.
And being able to be vulnerable on stage is not easy. That is not easy. And I'm not gonna say it was easy for me because it wasn't.
Especially because I relate to Eurydice so much.
But that's the hardest part about her being vulnerable. Being vulnerable to her extent, because she full on, she's straightforward, she's blunt.
She just knows the ways of the world and she's not afraid to show that.
And that was scary to do.
That was scary to do.
[00:31:26] Speaker A: A little bit about the show and then we're going to fast forward to your trip and then the hard question. Okay, so on the show you won, the first award was backstage or it was ensemble, which.
[00:31:42] Speaker B: It was best ensemble.
[00:31:44] Speaker A: Best ensemble. Which.
Duh.
Best ensemble. Place went crazy.
You guys went crazy. You might have teared up, but you had makeup.
Then we hit intermission. There's a pause.
You got one. So you're not. You return. You're not going away empty handed. What was intermission like with.
[00:32:08] Speaker B: With the group Intermission? Well, I had just finished doing the.
The top performer medleys, so. So going off of that, knowing that I gave my all on stage, I was emotional.
After I got off that stage, I actually just started crying.
Actually.
I knew that what I had left, I gave out on that stage.
So it was very emotional. All the cast, everybody was so supportive backstage, everybody's, like, really hyping everybody up.
So being able to feel that much emotion and still being as supportive and held was nice.
It wasn't crazy.
It might have been socially overwhelming. There was a lot of people at proctors, but it was very nice. It was very nice to have that support from everyone, from all the different schools, everybody's directors. It was proctors, directors and their coordinators. They were amazing. All the support.
[00:33:07] Speaker A: And I probably didn't add. I probably added pressure because I said, you weren't done.
I told Stefani, you're not done.
He's like, I hope so. I said, I'm telling you right now.
I saw a lot. I fell in love with you guys.
Tear C.
Gotta be going crazy. And then within a minute, you're back up at the podium with the award.
You're going.
You know, you are one of the two top performers in the 518, 21 eligible performances.
I don't know how they went from 10 to 5. You know, they start with 10, they go to 5. And I talked to.
I talked to J. I'm like, I have no idea how they do it. I said I couldn't do it. I can.
Because of the breadth of performers.
On the young female side, no idea how they do it. The male side, because it's a smaller grouping.
I can see it's probably. There's. It's probably even tougher because you're, like, probably seven or eight, you know, really? That you've got to pick from.
On the female side, I'm like, absolutely. I can't get the five. But all I cared about was seeing certain names on five, and you were there, and then they call your name.
So I'm gonna pick on you for this, okay? Because everybody has it. Everybody goes up with their notes.
And it's funny, because. Is that. Do they tell you that, like, if you're in the top five, they're like, you should.
[00:34:41] Speaker B: No.
[00:34:41] Speaker A: Or is it kind of just, like, a known thing?
[00:34:43] Speaker B: I kind of just did it.
[00:34:44] Speaker A: You kind of should. Just so you don't forget. Is it so you don't forget someone?
[00:34:48] Speaker B: It's. No. I just did it because I have a hard time with, like, speaking officially and eloquently and just, like, not using filler words. So I struggle with that. And I didn't want to do that on stage, even though I did it anyways, because I was just too.
I was overwhelmed. I was excited. I was happy.
I was crying. I was just flustered all over the place.
So I just kind of did it because I knew I was gonna forget something if I didn't. I did forget. I did forget something, but it wasn't that big of a thing. But I did forget something. But it's okay.
[00:35:23] Speaker C: The.
[00:35:26] Speaker A: Everybody that you. Everybody that could was there.
Who's the first person you called or text when you had a moment after that? Didn't know.
[00:35:38] Speaker B: I called my friend Lorelei Kramer.
She's currently. She goes to Ithaca College for music education.
And she has been such a wonderful person to have on this journey. I feel like we've. I sing with her all the time. I actually was with her yesterday.
I sing with her all the time, and she's just amazing. And all the things she has to say are so nice, especially now that she's been to college and she's going to school for music education. She's given me a lot of advice to be as a performer, because she was also. She was here For Beauty and the Beast, she was here. For into the woods, she did musical theater. And if she were doing this now, she probably would have been top performers. She would have been one of the nominees.
She's amazing, and so I called her first because she did not know.
[00:36:24] Speaker A: Loved your speech.
What I will always remember is the true honesty tickled myself and my wife to our bones throughout us.
You're onstage, and in that truly honest moment, you utter I'm a handful.
Such a precious statement that just resonated, I think, with every stereotypical theater kid, but also for their parents.
So what did that mean? How are.
I've interacted with you several times. You are wonderful. How are you a handful?
[00:37:10] Speaker B: I mean, in all aspects, I'm not very.
I'm very picky with a lot of things, so being able to navigate through that hasn't been easy. And there's a lot of different things that we need to do in order for me to be stable and all right and okay. Cause for instance, doing proctors, I have a terrible food habit thing. I have a terrible eating problem. So doing proctors for the certain amount of times that we did, I had no time in between to get what I need. So I would have to have somebody run out and get me food, because the food that they would serve me at proctors, I would not eat.
Because, again, I'm just a lot.
But also I'm a handful of emotions. I'm just. I'm a lot. I'm a lot. I ask for a lot of things. I ask for a lot of support, which is normal, I guess, but, like, I do it more than. More than normal, I guess you could say.
Yeah, I'm just.
[00:38:08] Speaker A: So we'll get this out for everybody who's listening for here for the next 25, 30 years, return back and. And cover the seal. What's on your rider?
What's on your performance Rider.
When you're on Broad, what do you have to have? Like, we've talked about some of the food things.
What do you have to have waiting for you in the green room or in your dressing room? What do you got to have?
[00:38:31] Speaker B: My top favorite.
If you could get me a small little bowl of Mac and cheese, I will love you forever. That will do it for me every time. And I'm very picky with my Mac and cheese, but if you gave me a good one, the little place, there's a Yaya's Cuisine right next to Proctor's. Amazing. They have amazing Mac and cheese. I got food from there the entire week it was amazing.
[00:38:52] Speaker A: Such great people. Such great people.
[00:38:53] Speaker B: Amazing people.
[00:38:54] Speaker A: We'd be downtown Schenectady with all the events. Yeah, it's a. It's a go to. It's a go to. So I've got. I gotta make sure I put Mac and the cheese list on the. On the co host. I have two co hosts. I have Sherrod Brayer, who's part of the Stan and Shen show. And then when Shenan's not available, my wife fills in.
So we go from Stan and Shen to Stan and Friends. So I'm on there with my best friend. But Mac and cheese is a definite go to fruit for those two women.
[00:39:21] Speaker B: And it's so easy to make. Like, I will literally have any form of Mac and cheese. You can even give me an easy Mac and cheese cup, one of the easy Macs, and that's it. I will make it myself.
[00:39:29] Speaker A: So what's your. So staying with the Mac and cheese. I don't know if they informed you or not, but apparently. And I got this from Heather Lindt at Bittersweet Chocolate down on J Street in Schenectady.
You can go to Backstage Pub, Rainier Proctor's, and you can get Mac and cheese with anything on it.
Like they put pulled pork on it if you want it.
Bacon, like anything you want.
It's like pick a topping and they will put it on your Mac and cheese.
So your Mac and cheese. Do you like the creamy? Do you like. Sometimes, you know, they have that parmesan and the crusty cheddar. Are you a creamy or.
[00:40:10] Speaker B: So my favorite kind of Mac and cheese is baked Mac and cheese. Oven baked Mac and cheese. Awesome. I love it creamy. And the top has to be toasted completely with breadcrumbs on top. I wouldn't add any other thing. I feel like Mac and cheese by itself is beautiful and amazing and delicious and I just feel like putting something else would take away from that.
I'm just biased towards Mac and cheese, I guess.
[00:40:32] Speaker A: Are you a corner girl?
[00:40:33] Speaker B: I am a corner girl. I am a corner girl. I love a corner.
[00:40:36] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:40:38] Speaker C: The.
[00:40:40] Speaker A: What's been the response?
[00:40:42] Speaker B: I.
[00:40:43] Speaker A: For. For the ensemble, for the program and for you since you. Since you made your triumphant return to the big house here in Amsterdam at the high school.
[00:40:53] Speaker B: Yeah, I've been. I've honestly been getting stopped a lot, actually. We had our annual spring fling not too long ago, May 17. I was stopped there by this wonderful lady. She runs this tarot card reading business and she just stopped me and she was like, oh, My God. I saw you guys at proctors, and you guys were amazing. And her daughter's just, like, freaking out. She's like, oh, my God, I love you. It was amazing. The other day, I think Monday, Monday, I went to the Amsterdam Diner and somebody came up to me and they were like, were you.
Were you a seat? And I was like, yeah. And she's like, oh, you were amazing. You were amazing. I knew the moment that you hit that stage and you were gonna win, it was just amazing. All the support I've been getting, even from people that don't personally know me, has been surreal, and I could not ask for anything else.
[00:41:45] Speaker A: What's that like? As a young person, you know, you kind of.
It's one thing to be on stage and show your craft and put yourself out there on stage.
[00:41:59] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:42:00] Speaker A: The good news is you can see nothing. I've learned twice now that it's absolutely. You're absolutely blinded. So that does help overcome a lot of the fear. But you kind of go from that performer, showing your craft, showcasing your craft, and you're like, almost a public figure at such a young age. How is that for a young person?
[00:42:24] Speaker B: I mean, I've always envisioned myself living a life to the one that's coming up right now. The one that I feel like it's coming up right now. But definitely, it's already overwhelming a little bit because, like, I'll just try to have my own time. When I was at the Amsterdam Diner, I was with a friend, so I was like.
I didn't expect someone to come up to me, but it's definitely. I know that I have to learn how to manage it because it's just gonna keep happening, and I want it to keep happening, so. So I just have to.
It's hard. And I know it's going to be hard, especially because not everybody's gonna say the same thing. But I know that, and that's okay.
I know that some people are gonna have different opinions, and they're completely entitled to that.
To each their own.
But that's what I want. That's what I signed up for. That's what I want to keep doing. So I'm gonna let it keep happening, and I'm okay with that.
[00:43:25] Speaker A: Today's last day school.
[00:43:26] Speaker B: Today's the last day of school.
[00:43:28] Speaker A: How cool is that?
[00:43:29] Speaker B: I'm very sad, actually.
But, yeah, no, because school ends on Monday.
I leave. I'm not coming to school tomorrow because I leave at 9. 21 in the morning.
Yeah. I don't say is my last Day. And I'm friends with all the staff and students in the school.
Literally almost everyone.
So to leave is bittersweet. I did not think.
I did not think the ending would come this fast. And it's not necessarily the ending. It's more of a beginning to a new chapter. But it's still very sad that this.
[00:44:06] Speaker A: Chapter'S ending and part of that next chapter is ten wonderful Days.
Kind of like you're kind of hitting Broadway.
[00:44:15] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:44:17] Speaker A: What have they told you? What do you expect? What have they. I have no idea.
[00:44:20] Speaker B: As of right now, I know that I'm expecting to stay at Juilliard. We're staying at Juilliard.
We're gonna have roommates. We have POD numbers. Our pod is Pod two. And our name is Little Pod of Horrors.
Our name is Little Pod of Horrors.
We were stuck between Sweeney Pot or Little Pot of Horrors. We chose Little Pot of Horrors.
We're gonna get there, and it's basically a whole week of auditioning and master classes and vocal classes and media press training. It's a lot of intense work that is gonna be beneficial towards the performance day on the 23rd.
So that's pretty much all I know. Everything else I'm taking as it comes. I'd rather not think about it too much. Cause then I'm gonna think about it too hard and then get too nervous and then mess something up maybe. But, yeah, the.
[00:45:17] Speaker A: And Jimmy's been around for a long time.
[00:45:19] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:45:21] Speaker A: I don't think we've had a ton of success in the 518, but it's nationwide. This is huge. This is huge. These are the top performers across the nation.
When you go into this, is this just.
I'm going to the best ever performance boot camp in the world, or I want to win again.
[00:45:46] Speaker B: That's where I'm at. I have set already so many expectations for myself as a performer, nobody else. I know that I only have control of myself, and whatever I do is not going to affect the next performer. So I just need to worry about me. I definitely do want to win again, and I'm going to fight for it all that it takes. And my songs moving forward are amazing and so impactful. And I hope that I'm able to show people that and showcase that so that I can win. Possibly. I'd want to win.
[00:46:18] Speaker A: As a performer.
Who have you looked up to? Who have you. I hate to say modeled after, because I think perform. I think unless you're a tribute band, you know, that's. You know, that's the copying In a sense. You know what I mean? But the inspiration you've gotten, who have you looked for, admired, pulled from in your short career? We're talking four years here, and you're an all star at the highest level. So who were you looking at going, oh, ooh, I like that?
[00:46:53] Speaker B: Eva Noblezado.
She is amazing. She was the. I believe it was the 2017 Tony Award winner.
She was amazing. And I follow her. I watch things. And the way she. She's very. She's not afraid to be vulnerable, and that's something that I admire being able to do that is not easy. Like I said before, it's not easy at all. And she's. She does it so.
So it looks easy. It looks easy. I don't know if it is easy, but it looks easy. She does it so fluent and cohesively, and it's so. It's refreshing to see that, because not everybody can do that. But also, aside from musical theater, I've always, always, always, always looked up to Adele because she's always shown emotion. She's always. She's always. I know she has nothing to do with it, but she's always shown emotion and so much.
She's shown the tones and different performances that she has given.
So. And being able to do that and captivate an audience and not boring them with the same thing is also another thing that you need to have as a performer. You can't keep doing the same thing. If not, they're just not gonna. And she's just so different, and it's so nice. And that's the same thing with Eva. She's so different.
She's so different, and she makes it. She makes it easy to want to have that career.
[00:48:21] Speaker A: All right, ready for the tough one?
[00:48:23] Speaker B: Let's do it.
[00:48:24] Speaker A: What's next?
[00:48:27] Speaker B: What's next?
What's next?
The goal is the Jimmies, obviously. The Jimmies. Whatever happens after that, I'm just gonna apply it to college because I'm committed to SUNY Fredonia for vocal performance. But I'm in the process of switching my.
Because I feel like I would benefit more off of musical theater, and normally a normal person would have to.
I say normal because, like, I say normal because now I'm not being treated as normal. But normal person would have to wait until November to switch their. To switch their major. But since they were told that I was going to the Jimmies, I should send in all my audition material now to see if I can switch my major. Noun.
So I just want to keep working towards that and I want to be on a stage. I just want to be on a stage all the time. And I've always said this since I was younger.
I just want to live on the stage.
I want to keep being the reason why people are so impacted and so moved and so willing to get up and keep going.
I want to do that.
[00:49:35] Speaker A: I gotta come back with another tough one.
[00:49:37] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:49:38] Speaker A: It's an easy one.
But I think you know this answer more than as much as anyone does.
How important is musical theater in a high school, and how important is it to Amsterdam High School?
[00:49:53] Speaker B: I feel like musical theater is very important because it's a very.
It's an easy way to express things that you can't. And I feel like for teens, they struggle with communicating how they feel. And so being able to play a character and being able to play a character and understanding the character enough to keep the audience captivated and be. And be able allow them to relate to you while not allowing them to see who you are past that character is a good thing to do because they know the character, but they don't know that that's you.
That's you speaking. And it's a nice thing to have because you're not being direct, but you're letting it out. And that's the best thing.
I feel like that's the best thing about musical theater for me.
[00:50:46] Speaker C: All right.
[00:50:46] Speaker A: You are a joy.
[00:50:48] Speaker B: Thank you.
[00:50:49] Speaker A: You are not a handful.
