Stephanie Styles is a Musical Theatre graduate from The University of Michigan who has been taking the musical theater world by storm. Stephanie made her New York debut as The Rose in The Little Prince at the New York City Opera at Lincoln Center. She toured with the National Tour of The Sound Of Music. Stephanie won the Tommy Tune Award for Best Actress for her portrayal Janet van de Graaff in The Drowsy Chaperone. Other credits include: Crazy For You (Irene), Sweeney Todd (Johanna), Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (Rachel), Bat Boy (Shelley), Beauty and the Beast (Belle), Spring Awakening (Wendla), Little Shop Of Horrors (Audrey), Once Upon A Mattress (Winnifred), Into The Woods (Cinderella), Aladdin (Jasmine), My Son Pinocchio (The Blue Fairy), The Wizard of Oz (Dorothy), Les Miserables (Cosette), Jekyll and Hyde (Lucy), and Seussical (The Cat in the Hat). She was most recently seen as Katherine Plumber on the 1st National Tour of Newsies. Now, she is making her off-Broadway debut in the new play Kingdom Come.
Kingdom Come is a world premiere off-Broadway play currently playing at The Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center For Theater. Samantha, who is restricted to her bed and alone, meets Layne, who is too anxious to adventure out into the world. The two meet through an online dating website and fall in love, the only problem is both of them are pretending to be completely different people.
I caught up with Stephanie (who might I add, is actually a real life Disney princess) to talk about the process of bringing a world-premiere show like Kingdom Come, to the stage.
Amanda Bohlmann: You most recently played Katherine Plumber in the national tour of Newsies. How did the rehearsal process for Newsies differ from the rehearsal process for Kingdom Come?
Stephanie Styles: With Newsies, we were revisiting a show that, for the most part, was already set. There was new blocking, dialogue, lyrics, and choreography, but for the most part, we were cutting the same pattern, but using different cloth. We were making the characters our own, but we also had a framework set by those who originated them. With Kingdom Come, I was doing a lot of things from scratch. Also, Newsies is a very large show with a huge cast, and and enormous set, while Kingdom Come is in an extremely small space with only five people. So there were differences in sculpting the shows because of that as well.
AB: Tell us a little bit about your character, Suz.
SS: Suz, despite her penchant for stilettos and selfies, has a heart of gold and is, oddly enough, the voice of reason in the show. She's a 23 year old secretary who lives a very materialistic and ignorantly blissful life until she meets Layne, a 33 year-old, anxiety-ridden claims adjuster who has never heard of Snapchat.
Stephanie (left) with Crystal Finn, who plays Layne, in Kingdom Come
AB: Were you given some creative freedom to play around with your character while in rehearsals or did your writer (Jenny Rachel Weiner) and director (Kip Fagan) already have a strong idea of who they wanted Suz to be?
SS: Jenny and Kip are amazing because they allowed each of us to have a dialogue about our feelings on our characters from the very beginning. From what we were wearing and what our props were, to backstories, etc, they let us explore and play. Jenny and Kip are both brilliant in that they had such amazing ideas for these characters that it was like a spark to an ember. They would have an idea or a feeling about something, voice it, and then that would immediately give me clarity on Suz in that particular moment.
AB: How do you prepare before every show to turn yourself into Suz?
SS: I wear a lot more makeup as Suz than I did as Katherine. I also don't wear a wig, so it takes a bit longer to get my hair "blown-out" and all my makeup on. Otherwise, I warm-up vocally and physically before the show although my routine is slightly different than it was for Newsies. Although I'm not singing or jumping into splits every night, I spend a large amount of the show "screaming" and running around/flailing in four-inch stilettos, so I still need to prepare for that. I also spend a good amount of time talking to Crystal Finn who plays Layne in the show. We spend so much time together on stage, so I really like chatting with her to see how she's doing before the show begins. She's become an incredible friend, and mentor.
Stephanie (left) with Carmen M. Herlihy, who plays Samantha, in Kingdom Come
AB: What is the most rewarding part about being in a world premiere production?
SS: The most surreal part has been seeing my name in in the hard-copy of the script. I've done so many plays that have had the names of the original cast members in the front of the book, and seeing mine there was a too-goo-to-be-true moment. I've also loved working with incredible artists both on stage and behind the scenes. Every person is incredibly professional, kind, hysterical, and irrevocably talented. I've learned so much from this experience.
AB: What about challenges? Have you found anything challenging in bringing this show to the stage?
SS: Bringing this show to life has been inspiring and educational. Everyone is so welcoming and good at what they do that it challenges you to be the best version of you that you can be. That being said, I've really had to invest in a few deep conditioning products for my hair.
AB: What do you believe is the most important lesson in Kingdom Come?
SS: I think there are two: be yourself and you're not alone. I think everyone has had a moment in their life where they doubt themselves, their ability, their worth, or who they are. So, if we can all recognize that EVERYONE has felt this before, EVERYONE has their own different battle they fight every day, and that EVERYONE is amazing in their own way...I think we can all breathe a little easier.
AB: Who would you recommend Kingdom Come to?
SS: Anyone who has felt what I descried in the last question. Anyone who wants to laugh, cry, and/or grab their friend's elbow in shock. Also, I think we live in a culture that is fascinated by online dating and "catfishing", and there really hasn't been a contemporary play about that yet. Kingdom Come is hilarious and heart-breaking.
The cast of Kingdom Come (left to right: Socorro Santiago, Stephanie Styles, Carmen M. Herlihy, Crystal Finn, Alex Hernandez)
Kingdom Come is playing at the Black Box Theater at The Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center For Theater in New York City now through December 18th, 2016. All tickets are only $25! Get tickets here!
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