A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Junior year of college I was cast in A Midsummer Night’s Dream as the swing for Quince and Starveling. This was my first experience swinging for a show.
Growing up, anytime I saw a Broadway show and an insert would be in a Playbill, I would be thrilled and immediately look up the performer getting to go on. One of my favorite Broadway stories is when I went up to see my mom’s friend, Johanna Day, in Sweat before it closed. We had tickets for Dear Evan Hansen a couple weeks later so when we got to New York my mom and I stagedoored for it because we didn’t have any other plans. We got there about forty minutes before the show ended and I saw a guy walk into the stage door that looked like Michael Lee Brown, who, at that time, was understudying Evan, Connor, and Jared. At this point, he had only gone on for Connor and Jared a few times. I told my mom all about him and how insane it must be to memorize three parts. Once the show let out, audience members crowded around us. Michael Lee Brown then walks out of the theatre and I point him out to my mom. No one applauded. No one knew who he was. But I did, I was just too shy to say anything. He walked away and went behind the crowd. My mom followed him and asked him if he’d be willing to sign my Playbill. He came back around the barricade and we talked for a while. He said this was the first time anyone had asked for his autograph at Dear Evan Hansen. The fans around us still didn’t acknowledge him which made my heart sink. When I came back to see the show two weeks later, Ben Platt was on vacation. Colton Ryan (who I also admire) had always been the one to go on as Evan when Ben Platt was out. However, the night I got to see the show, Michael Lee Brown was making his Evan debut. That night at the stagedoor, everyone knew who he was. He finally got the recognition he deserved and I was beyond thrilled to be there for it.
I always understood the importance of understudies, swings, and standbys, but getting the opportunity to be one taught me to appreciate them even more.
Director: Oliver Mayes Scenic Design: Richard Finkelstein Costume Design: Kathleen Conery Associate Costume Designers: Skyler James, Sophie Sons Lighting Design: Catherine Holcomb Production Manager-Technical Director: Brian Smallwood
Cast: Gavin Kiley, Amanda Willis, Bridget Gooley, Natalie Garciz-Ruiz, Maddie Thomas, Mason Jett, Abel Haddish, Joshua Higgins, Sydney Miller, Mitch Glaes, Jack Dalrymple, Madison Munson, Steven Sullivan, Cristian Bonilla Lainez, Carter Crosby, Maleek Hill, Diana Afriye-Opoku, Allie Lytle, Liam Klopfenstein, Lindsay Marcus, Becca Stehle, Bailey Ryon, Camden Gillespie, Drew Duren, Makayla Parker, Elizabeth Humphreys, Julia Bussey, Eliza Filatova
