Katie Broad on Broadway: 24 years in the making!
Cut to two years later, I've moved back to Huntsville (where a big part of my job is interviewing my Broadway friends and sharing an insider's view into that world) and now I'm interviewing Katie Broad, who is currently making their Broadway debut in An Enemy of the People! Now I can't make up a better story than that. Btw, it's really difficult for me not to refer to Katie as Katie Broad every time I type their name. Because she strikes me as having the kind of name where everyone always uses her full name: Katie Broad. I should know because I have one of those names too. People usually refer to me as Kip Driver, not just Kip. Isn't this fascinating? lol
Katie Broad is certainly a Huntsville treasure, starting out as a young actor at Fantasy Playhouse Children's Theater & Academy, and performing in over 35 productions in the Rocket City before they left for NYC at the age of 17 to study acting at the prestigious Circle in the Square Theatre School. And now she is performing nightly on Broadway in An Enemy of the People at the Circle in the Square Theatre. What a beautiful full circle moment. I'm excited to share my conversation with Katie Broad from their apartment in Sunnyside Queens:
I know you got bitten by the acting bug pretty young, and you cut your teeth for years in the arts community of Huntsville before heading to NYC. Could you share with us when you first knew you wanted to be on Broadway one day and how long did it take you to get here?
I was homeschooled which allowed me to be heavily involved in the community theater scene in Huntsville. My father was a technical director and my mother worked in costuming so it was a family affair. I am constantly grateful that I was raised in the theater. We had a gentle rule that if you didn't get cast as an actor you would work on the tech side of the show. Just sharing the space with all the people involved in the show was sacred.
When I was 10 years old I auditioned for Hansel and Gretel. I was cast as Gretel but I remember being disappointed because I wanted to be a gingerbread kid. All of my friends were going to be gingerbread kids. But I remember being very good at playing Gretel. During tech I was sitting onstage and looking at all the lights. I suddenly realized that I had been dreaming about this and I had this 10 year old's moment of clarity that this is what I'm supposed to do. After that I treated all of the shows I was in or worked on as preparation for my future.
I love that! So you had your moment of clarity at 10 years old. You moved to NYC in 2007 and now you're on Broadway in 2024. Such an inspiring story of perseverance. What was your journey of being cast in An Enemy of the People?
I had taken about a five year break from acting. I decided I was ready to come back to it and then the pandemic hit. Some people spent 2020 being extremely productive: writing that novel, learning a new language, studying a new acting technique. Well I was not one of those people. I did nothing. But in 2021 I slowly emerged and began seeking acting communities online, going to coaching groups and reconnecting with people in the arts community I had lost touch with during this time.
I developed a working relationship with a casting director, Taylor Williams and conveyed my goals of wanting to do workshops, be involved in new projects, etc. By 2022 I started working as a reader for Taylor for her audition sessions. It was a wonderful opportunity because I would read the lines of the character opposite of the actors auditioning for the part. You can learn so much by just being there and you have a completely different vantage point of how the casting process works. And this is how she got me in the room for Enemy with the creatives making the decisions. Taylor mentioned to them that I was interested in reading for the maid track who understudies Petra. So finally one day after reading with the other actors they auditioned me for the part.
Five hours later they offered me the part!! They cast me in the beginning of November. I couldn't tell anyone until they announced it and the beginning of January.
Wow! I guess we know you can keep a secret! Haha. Do you have any pre-show rituals or superstitions that you have as a performer?
YES! And they've changed over the years too. For Enemy I tried to be less superstitious than normal. I was approached about leading the cast in a voluntary vocal warmup one hour before the show for every performance. At first, I wasn't sure I wanted to commit to this ritual but then Michael Imperioli (best known as Christopher from The Sopranos) thought it was a great idea, so now I knew I had to do it. I also use music, meditation and yoga as part of my pre-show rituals.
Ron Harris was the director of Lee High's Drama Magnet Program for 20 years. He always gave his graduating seniors a St. Genesius (patron saint of actors) charm. Since I was homeschooled I didn't receive one of these. But my dear friend, Sam Sanderson, gave me his when I told him I was moving to NYC at 17 years old. He said that I would need it more. I still have it. In fact, I wear it every single performance onstage under my costume.
Having been a young person and into high school age, growing up in the arts community in Huntsville, what advice do you have for the young actors in Huntsville now who hope to be doing what you’re doing one day?
I think it's important to learn about the ego. It's crucial to remember that every single person working on a show is important. The actors need the crew and vice versa. Otherwise there is no show. That ropes into my best advice which is to just be kind.
I also recommend adding other creative things to your life besides acting: Write a short script; Learn an instrument; Make a movie on your phone. There are so many other jobs in the theater and the arts in general, besides just acting. Open yourself up to all sorts of possibilities.
Ok, Let’s end with a lightning round of questions. Don’t think too much, just answer with the first thing that comes to mind:
Favorite Broadway show? Currently: Hadestown. But Patti LuPone in Gypsy is a favorite for me.
Least Favorite Broadway show? I don't know. I blocked it out I guess.
Favorite role you’ve played? Helena/Quince in A Midsummer Night's Dream
Dream role you hope to play? It hasn't been written yet. I thrive when working on new shows.
Best time you’ve had in the audience watching a Broadway show? Watching Cole Escola in Oh, Mary! at the Lucille Lortel Theatre. I was at the very first performance and it was brilliant! Oh, Mary! is a dark comedy starring Cole Escola as a miserable, suffocated Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks leading up to Abraham Lincoln's assassination.
Favorite restaurant in NYC? Dawas NYC; Best authentic Himalayan cuisine which is located in Woodside, Queens.
Favorite cocktail? Bourbon Mule
If you couldn’t be an actor what else would you do? I'd probably be a witchy gardener who lives in the woods.
In the future if you decided to leave NYC where would you want to live? I don't see myself leaving NYC. But one day, I do see myself having a home in Huntsville to be with family, my apartment in NYC and also a place somewhere like Barcelona.
Describe yourself in three words? Silly. Grateful. Lanky (hahaha).
It was truly a pleasure talking with you Katie Broad!
And now here's some more pictures of my silly, grateful & lanky friend:
LOVED THIS INTERVIEW AND LOVE ME SOME KATIE BROAD AND FAMILY.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you loved the interview. I'm excited to see all the things Katie Broad will be doing in her future.
Delete