Hangin' on 54th Street with CAROLINE, OR CHANGE Star Sharon D Clarke

Hello, I'm Richard Ridge for Broadway World

The latest from Roundabout Theatre Company is your stunning production of Tony Kushner and Janine Tesori's

groundbreaking musical, Caroline or Change. And I'm here at Roundabout's Studio 54

to catch up with the show's electrifying star, Sharon D. Clark. And I am mean

And I am tough But $30 ain't enough Sharon, it is very exciting to be standing out

with you outside your theater here. Live Studio 54. I mean, it's amazing

Well, I said it to you on opening night. I'm going to say it to you again. Welcome to Broadway

How does it feel? It feels phenomenal. It's an absolute joy, a blessing that I didn't even know

was going to come into my life. And yet here I am in this glorious city

doing this show, which I think is so timely and so important

and so prescient right now after the summer and a half that we've had. So I'm really glad to be bringing it home

and you know last week I was in my dressing room on a Saturday night and I put on some disco tunes

and I had La Freak going on and I'm sat there going come on down to the 54th and I'm like hang

on I'm here. I'm here it was just like such an amazing epiphany it's just it's brilliant I'm

loving life loving life. What was that day like for you because I spoke to you opening night after

the curtain had come down I mean it was an electrifying evening was the day a calm day

for you opening day what was that day like for you? Well you kind of want to treat it like any

other day you kind of just you just want to do your show and not get too bogged down in the fact

that the press is here and tonight's the night and it could all rise or fall on its ass tonight so

you just you just try and remind yourself you get out there and you do your show and you do it to

the best of your ability and and try and tell the story and just trust that you are doing a great

story with a wonderful cast and the time is now to tell it and go off and do it and then just ride

the crest of that wave I love that because a lot of people are like they wake up they're like oh I

have family in town or I'm thinking of like opening like gifts to give everybody or cards so it fills

their day of like not worrying about anything else I had to apologize to my cast they did not get a

card but I'm writing them as we speak opening week or the week after opening week or whenever

do you know I mean some point throughout the run when I get get around to it but yeah it was just it was a busy day and everybody was up and really gagging for it you know we'd done nearly a month

of previews by then so we were really ready you know and just get us in front of an audience and

Let's do this and let's claim the show and own it and run with it

Because for some of our audience who may not know, right before the pandemic, the day that Broadway shut down, you were getting ready to do your dress rehearsal, right

Yeah. So we didn't even get a chance to show it to anyone, you know. And that was kind of hard to not even really get going

But I don't know how much harder it would have been to actually have started the show and to then have it kind of eclipsed in that way

and also for us we were really lucky that roundabout when Broadway closed down had assured us that they

wanted the show to come back and that they would be doing everything within their power to make sure

that we could come back and tell this story so during the pandemic that was something to hold on

to to look forward to knowing that we would be I'd have a theatre job to come back to and that you

know what has been brilliant is that Broadway closed down as one as a community and has opened

up again as an industry as a community story and to be a part of that it's such a wonderful thing

for us all to be back on stage telling our stories holding up mirrors providing entertainment whatever

it is that we do but actually getting people back into a theater and being back on stage and and

having that back in our lives is such a wonderful wonderful thing that you know none of us are

taking for granted you know in a period where the industry was down and no one was working

for us to be back is it's overwhelming joy it's brilliant because none of the marquees were lit

they're all lit again there's people lined up to come into these shows there's lines at the box

office like i was waiting for you they were like can we go in and buy tickets i'm like yes go right

in and buy tickets it must be so exciting because did you go home like right after the shutdown did

you go home well i wasn't planning to when when it first happened people saying that they thought

it might be three to four weeks and i was thinking okay i can do three four weeks in new york that's

absolutely fine. My other half had come over so Susie was here she'd come over on the Tuesday

we didn't do our dress run on the Thursday she was due to fly back on the Tuesday

on the Sunday the travel ban to the UK came in which was a big sign for us so we looked up Susie's

flight and it had disappeared gone from the ether not even cancelled but just gone so we took that as a big warning sign and we got booked on the Monday flight and we were out of there And just as well because a year and a half nearly two years later here we are

So what was it like coming back here, like going to the theater for tech week and like unlocking your dressing room door for the first time

What was that like? It was really wonderful because I'd put it up there in the lap of the gods when we closed and I hadn't removed anything

So my dressing room was exactly the way I left it. I think all of us just upped and left going, we're going to be back

So it felt like home. You could just slip into the chair, get the makeup on and do it

and not feel like, okay, I've got to set myself up in this place. And it was coming home

It was coming home. We all were able to come back home and live our lives

and bring those lives to the wider community. I know when you went back into rehearsal again

it was like starting fresh all over again because there was 18 months that it happened

And it was a whole new perspective of looking at the show again, right? And reuniting as a company

Yeah, and it's kind of that thing where we can slip into old shoes

because we were just about to do the show, so we were ready, but also informed with the summer and a half that we've had

You know, George Floyd's murder and Black Lives Matter and that movement. And, you know, thinking how that corresponds with the show

with the burgeoning of the civil rights movement then and the assassination of JFK. it just felt right

I think as hard as it was to have that year and a half out

I think it has done us good in that way because it has enabled us

to all come back with a fresh perspective of the story that we're telling

and why we tell it and why it's important to tell these stories

so you know I think it leaves us in good stead it doesn't feel like it's been time wasted

it's been time that we've all had to grow as people, as human beings

to think about change and what change means and how much we do in action in change

as opposed to just talking about change, to really moving it on

And I think this time has helped us to cement that so that we can come together as a force and present this show

What was it like that first performance back with a live audience? What can I say

I mean, to sit out and see a full theatre. I mean we've been trying to do theatres in England

and it's all been socially distanced and no one is working to capacity

so therefore anyone who puts on a show is putting it on at a loss

because you can't make money because you don't have your audience so to sit out and see or to stand on stage and see a full theatre

it's just you don't like that I'm not going to cry, I'm not going to cry

I'm not going to cry just yet but it's overwhelming, you know what I mean

it means so much for all of us to be back doing what we love doing and you know a point in cases

you know here in new york you had save our stages you had people behind you wanting to

theater to come back and and doing everything that they could to make sure that that happened

in britain it that wasn't really the case and you know as an industry we were told to retrain

so when when your government is telling you that they don't have the faith in you as an industry

to do what you do best when you know what you do brings in more than fishing more than sport more

than you know is not only bring something to the coffers of the nation but to the soul of the

nation to have that not appreciated it's hard so to come back on stage here where you know that

it's been championed is like yeah you've championed us and we are going to bring you the best that we

can. What I love about this production is when I've seen it twice already, I love the young

audience. There's a lot of young audiences coming for the first time. That must make you feel so

great, like introducing them to this world of live theater. Yeah, totally. I mean, for me

it's always about getting young people in there and letting them see that theater is accessible

and it's for them and it can tell their stories and hold up mirrors and make them think about

things that they've never thought about before and put them in someone else's shoes and show

them a life different fantastical or drudgery or whatever but you know the way that theater can open

up your world because it's immediate and it's happening in front of you you know we were in

chichester and there was a gentleman and i i can't remember his name and i can't really remember his

job because i'm getting older now and things don't not staying in my head but he he worked in some

sort of law and he changed whatever it was from that to working on social justice because he'd

seen the show and it affected him in that way. So to get young people in and to have the young Emmys

of this world, just having things sparked for them or not even sparked but things going yeah that how I feel and I can see someone else is representing me in that way It a wonderful thing and I love theater for that so that as many young people as we can get in

from as many cultures and creeds and denominations, then all the better

You know, it was groundbreaking then, this musical, but the first time I went back to see it here

I was like, oh my God, Janine and Tony could have written this like last month

It feels so prophetic, so prophetic. I mean, when we opened in Chichester, so that was 2017, we opened the week of the Charlottesville riots

So, you know, for us as a country that doesn't have those Confederate statues and have that in our history

that was all brought very much to the forefront with Charlottesville. And, you know, every time that we've done the show, I felt that it's felt really important

You know, in 2019, when we were at the Playhouse in London

we were having the rallies at Trafalgar Square with Tommy Robinson and the English Defence League

I'm walking into work doing this show and I'm feeling guys looking at me with nothing but hatred in their eyes

and you're just kind of thinking here we are again having to hold up the mirror and tell this story

and we need to move on from this we need to move on from this

and so the more that we can see that history is being repeated and we've got to stop the repetition

and we've got to move forward we've got to become one But isn't it great that art, like something like Carolina Change, is not only entertaining, but it makes people think to make a change

Yeah, it's thought-provoking, and that's the beauty of theatre. Theatre can be escapism, and it can be jazz hands and frivolous, but it also can be life-changing

People can see something and go, wow, I never thought about something in that way before

And actually, there is something that I can do, and this has inspired me to go out and do it

And that's the beauty of theater for me. Working with this cast, you've got the most amazing cast in this show

What is that like, sharing the stage with all of them? It's an honor and a privilege and a blessing

You know, this company have welcomed me with open arms and have been very generous with their time and their friendship and their talent

And it's an absolutely beautiful place to be. How I love to use the word magical because that's what I think theater is

How magical has it been? You making your Broadway debut. I mean, you're a big star over in the West End

I've seen you do stuff over there. You're a multi Olivier Award winner

But there's nothing like coming here and making a stamp for yourself here, right

For New York theater. Yeah, it's wonderful. I'm just going to get all giggly

It's amazing, you know, to be to have a first now. Do you know what I mean

You never stop learning. You never stop growing. You can never stop having new experiences

And this is such a wonderful experience for me to be in this glorious city that I love so on Broadway

I mean, it's beggar's belief. It's mind-blowing. It's magical, baby. I love that word

I think there's nothing like that. That's what the theater is for everybody. How early do you like to get to the theater when you prep

Let me see. Let me see. If it's an 8 o'clock show, I've got a 7.15 fight call with the young Noahs so we can beat each other up

So I sort of like getting at half 5 if it's a 7 o'clock show and then half 6 if it's an 8 o'clock show

Because I love to talk to different actors. Some would like to get there like right before half hour, like get their wig on and just go on

And some people like to get there early and prep and do their stuff. I want to take my time

I don't want to be rushing. Do you know what I mean? So I'll get all my prep done and my makeup and my hair set

And then I'll go and fight a child. And then I'll come back and finish up and do my warm-up

And then I'm ready to go on. Of course, I love it because you have different children in the show for different performances

That must be so wonderful for you to see it through their different eyes each time you play Caroline

And the different ways that they play it, which means that I play things differently

You can't play the same thing to someone when you're getting a different reaction or a different feed from someone

So it keeps it fresh for me in that way as well. You know, having those beautiful Noahs and sometimes a different Jackie and Joe

But, yeah, it's wonderful. And the kids are great. You know, the kids are wonderful

And I think just the amount that they have to learn and the subject matter that they're dealing with for such young people

and to just take that all on board and run with it and really explore it and get their teeth into it, it's wonderful

Because I spoke to them all on opening night. These are really smart kids

I mean, they're really good at what they do, too, but they're really smart. Yeah, yeah

Intelligent. really intelligent. I mean, the rehearsal, some of the questions that they come up with is just like, wow

I don't know if I'd have thought about that when I was 11, you know, but maybe that's a sign of the times

that we living that they having to think about things differently because you know the things that they seen over the last and a half and it it making them question and they are able to be a part of that answer in the show that they doing now was there a defining moment for you

when you were growing up that you said i want to be a performer and try to make a living at this

i was six um i went to ivy travers dance school lovely local jewish lady in stanford hill

and I did my first show at Bowes Civic Centre and I was hooked

I knew after that first show that this was how I wanted to earn my living, this was how I wanted to put a roof over my head and put food on my table

this was the industry I wanted to be in and I'm very lucky that I've been able to do that

and make a career out of it and meet wonderful people, some of whom are now our family

We may not have the same blood but they are my family and I've met them through this industry

And so it's given me a lot. It's given me my wife. It's given me so many wonderful, glorious things

Yeah, this industry is wonderful. And I'm glad it chose me and I chose it

You know, the New York theater is one of the safest places to be right now. Would you just talk about the protocols are wonderful of what they're doing

It's the safest place to be is to be in a theater. I feel so safe

I mean, the fact that over here in New York, you can't enter a bar or a restaurant or a theater without showing your vaccination card

just means that people can come and feel safe. You know, you can sit down in an audience

and you don't have to worry, you don't have to wonder. We don't have the same thing in Britain

We don't have a mask mandate. We don't have the double vaccination proof

to get into a theatre, which means that we have some people who will not go to the theatre

because they don't feel safe. And I think that's insane. You know, when you come to Broadway

and you can see full houses, not socially distanced houses, full houses because people feel safe because they know that they're sat in an audience

where they are safe it makes all the difference and I just wish it's something that we would take

on board and I know that there's people in Britain who would strongly disagree with me but I just feel

if we're going to try and get the industry back on its feet people have to feel safe coming into a

theatre you know you're sitting with strangers in an enclosed space you know an hour and a half

sometimes three hours you've got to feel that when you get out you're not going am I riddled

with COVID. And it's wonderful taking these precautions and making sure that you're making theatre

a safe place for people to attend so that your houses can be packed

and that you can bring the shows to people and people can keep coming back

and bringing their young ones. You know, it's important that we make it safe

These are the times that we live in and we have to adapt. And if it means that, you know

to see a show, you get vaccinated and you show your card and you sit in your mask

then you sit in your mask. but then the industry and the creativity is not taking away from you

and we can still carry on to explore it and we can still carry on and be

Because I thought sitting here, it was so great. I hope the rest of the world learns from Broadway

and New York Theatre how safe it is. I met so many wonderful people here at your theatre

and they were so happy just to be back in a theatre again and sitting next to someone and saying

oh my gosh, what got you to this show? You know, that sort of thing. It felt so great to be here

It's wonderful. It's wonderful that we're able to do that. What are you loving the most about being in New York

Like I said, all the marquees are lit. I mean, the streets are going by, there's trucks everywhere, everything

I'm loving everything. I'm loving the dulcet tones of New York. Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep

There we go. Do you know what I mean? I'm just loving all of it, all of it. There's not one thing where I'm like, oh, this is what I love about New York

It's the whole experience. It's the whole package. And I am soaking up as much as I can

if you could sum up the best part of the experience of doing this show here in New York

what is it for you Sharon? Returning to what I love doing

returning to what I love doing and being able to share that

with an audience and with my fellow cast members and creatives just being able to

do what we love doing and doing it safely that's the joy

that I don't have to worry, we get tested every other day so that we can come into

work and know that we can do what we love doing and keep together as a company and that we know

that the audience is safe everyone's safe we can do what we love that's the joy yeah well anybody

who wants to come and see a fabulous show you've got to see sharon d clark and company and the

fabulous cast and her fabulous cast there we go see we got motorbikes riding down in caroline or

change here at the roundabout theater thank you for doing this for our show tonight absolute pleasure

absolute pleasure just come on down to the 54 people get over here you thank you so much