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Richard Jay-Alexander Chats with Frances Ruffelle
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Nov 2, 2022
BroadwayWorld is proud to bring you an exclusive conversation between two legends - London's Frances Ruffelle (now a New Yorker) and Broadway's Richard Jay-Alexander. Both of these longtime pros share a very special experience, being part of the legendary history of LES MISERABLES. The two friends got together on the stage of THE GREEN ROOM 42 in the heart of midtown Manhattan, where Jay-Alexander had just seen her show, FRANCES RUFFELLE LIVEs IN NEW YORK. There were no rules and nothing 'off-limits' as neither of them prepared or pre-discussed what they would talk about, prior to walking into the venue on a recent hot New York afternoon. It's very informative and just as entertaining. Ruffelle's final show of the season is Saturday, June 23rd at 7:00 P.M.
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Hello, everyone. My name is Richard J. Alexander, and I'm a half of Broadway world. I'm thrilled
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to be here this afternoon. This is something I've been wanting to do for a long time with this
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very special girl that I've known for a long time, and you've had in your hearts for a long time
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And, of course, she'll be forever remembered as the original Eponine in Le Miserables
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in both England and on Broadway. But she's so much more than that. So this is a cold interview
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We have not coached. We have not exchanged any thoughts. Am I exaggerate? I have no idea what you're going to ask me
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and I'm going to take her on a little trip and myself down Memory Lane
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I might even cry a little. But we're here in the club
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I just saw her show, which she called... Francis Raffel lives in New York
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So this is Francis Raffel, ladies and gentlemen, who I'll never forget when I learned
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that I was going to be doing Limbaerob in America. They flew me over, and I got to hang out
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with her backstage and in the dressing room, and of course my jaw dropped when I saw her
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But I want to start this with... There's something, Francis, you don't know a lot of people do not know this piece of information
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When Francis was coming over to do Les Mis, one of the hottest topics with the unions and
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equity was reciprocity, who comes here, who goes there, and Francis was actually not going
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to be on Broadway as Epinine. And I was reminded of this fact, amazingly, I went to see a
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production of Smile at the Manhattan School of Music a couple of trips ago to New York
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And I remember that I saw the original, and Anne-Marie Bobby, starred in that production. And she was actually offered Apenine and turned it down, which put us in the
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position of having to ask Francis to come. And she did, do you, let's just start with this
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Start with this drama was going on. I don't know how much, we haven't discussed this
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how much of this you knew or didn't know at the time when you finally found you were coming
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Just give us a little backstory. Okay. Everyone wanted to come to Broadway from the
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company, but we were told only Cole Wilkinson. So we were just carried on with our contracts in
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London. And so basically, I didn't know that they hadn't got an epine. I know now that they
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asked Amory to do it. But she took smile, luckily for me. And they couldn't find anyone else
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that they wanted as much as bringing me. So they managed to persuade equity to allow me to come. But
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They were already like three or four weeks into rehearsal, I believe. And so I was getting ready for my matinee in London on a Saturday
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and Cameron McIntosh calls me in my apartment and says, I'm taking you to New York
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So I was like, great. Can you go tomorrow? It was literally
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And I had to just drop everything and leave London and go the next day
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The reason I wanted to be on this stage is because I finally saw your show. Francis Ruffel has just a very unique
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relationship with a guy named Daniel Dunlow, who runs this Green Room 42, which we're very
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fond of and is one of the coolest places in Manhattan. And I saw her come to life. I'm just
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going to start, I can't define to you what I saw, but it's not a nightclub act. Like, you know
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you go see somebody's act or their after hours, you know, moonlighting situation. It's like a
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full-on theatrical experience. And I sort of felt like I was in Europe or something
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and I don't know with the, just give me one of those crazy lines about
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I dropped the sugar cubes and just give me one out of the box. I talk about my man
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and I see him across the bar and I say things. It's kind of like French vignettes, but in English
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So it's like he drops. I can't think what it is now
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I understand that doing a cup, but just. Okay, he puts two cubes of ice into his bourbon
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He stirs. He sips. He puts down his glass without talking to me
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So I set the situations the whole time. And then she sings
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I mean, you were totally committed. You weren't like Francis Ruffel like
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Hi, everybody, how you doing? It's so nice to be here and here. Thank you. This was like a transportive, you know
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I could have been in Paris, actually, if you want to know the truth. So tell us a little bit. Well, it sounds potentially
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to say this I guess but it's kind of more performance art in a way it's like a
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whole show is a piece and every time I do a one woman show I write a whole piece
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so it not it story from there a beginning and middle and an end and each song moves the story along just like in a musical So you have to listen to every word because you taken along And basically if I find a song that I don really feel moves it along
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but I want it to, then I rewrite the lyrics or I write the lyrics myself
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So some of the songs are French songs, and my favorite one is about the Mercedes-Benz
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And I wrote the lyrics myself. And the whole show, this show is about me
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So I'm actually, everyone says I'm brave, but I don't think I am
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I just, I'm happy to share my story with everybody. She also finds her way to the piano, to the bench, to the walls, to the chairs, to the back of the room, to this high little white chair with their, everything's sort of out
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It's sort of... Not everything. Well, no, but I mean everything that you want to see, you know, anything I want to see
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the rest of it leave it home. But it's really interesting. You've got to come see it
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And then you always do the scene from the wild party? I do two songs from the wild party
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One is, this is what it is. Catherine didn't, no. Did I put that in the playbill
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This is the other thing. I didn't see the playbill. So this is what we're going to do, Broadway world
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Check this out. No, I didn't. I was supposed to do some homework, but I told us we were going to do a whole
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So Francis does this great thing in the show where she goes, look, I've got a Francis playbill here
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It's correct with typos and anything if you're interested. And she throws it down on the floor like, I could care less
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And we all laugh and blah, blah, blah. And I was supposed to take one. But you know what we'll do is a companion piece to this interview
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We'll post it. No. Oh, no? It's only for people that come to the show
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Oh, say that. Yeah, it's only for people that come to the show. I misspoke. I'm sorry
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Yeah, because I don't like to tell everyone what I'm singing or what to expect
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so that they completely never know what's happening next. because I take everybody on this ride
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and then at the end if people were like, oh, I really wish I knew what that song was
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or it might be one I've written or something, then I have everything written down
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like my own little Frankie playbill. Okay, so now I'm not. They can take it if they can't
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We should have had a meeting before the same of you. Anyway
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I'm looking at France, I'm thinking she has three children, which is just not possible
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I mean, look at her. But I want you to tell everybody, I know too much about
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you. And I want you to tell everybody about your mom whose theater school is still going. Am I
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correct? Francis's mom is one of the most famous theater schools in London and she's still going
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because we all met in the 80s. So I just want you to talk about her a little bit because
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she really is a legend. My mom, I'm so proud of my mom. I'm so proud of my mom. Sylvia Young
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She owns and runs a Sylvia Young Theatre School. She's approaching 80s. She'll hate me for saying that
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But she's still working there. She's still so passionate. And apart from the fact that it is literally the best theatre school in London
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and, you know, she's had lots of famous people through it, you know, the Spice Girls and, well, lots and lots of film stars and pop singers
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And sadly, lovely Amy Winehouse went there. My mum gave her a scholarship
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My mum is also so generous. She gives out so many scholarships. It's not about money for her
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It's like about, you know, if she sees a child where, you know, if she sees a child. talent. She becomes their mother, actually. She's a mum to all children. And what I was amazed about
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the other night sitting here in this sold-out room is that people, well, first of all, there were some
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Les Mis original cast members. Jennifer Butt and Marcy Shaw. What was your time with them like
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Well, I kept in contact with them. Jennifer played my mom in Les Mis. And so we're like family
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me and Jen. So I've been seeing her over the last 30 years a lot. And just recently we bumped into
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Marcy, so that's nice. We've been hanging out with her as well. Tell everybody at Broadway World, all the viewers, about your album
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Well, the last one I did is called I Say Yeah, Yeah
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And it's half French, half English, because everyone thinks I'm French with my name, Francis
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Ruffel, and also Le Miserables, I think, that's part of it too
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So since then, I've been, I get offered roles. I played Edith Piaf in England
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in a play and I had a show written for me an amazing show that was done at the Royal Opera House in
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London and it was all Kurt Vile music but strung together as a musical and I was playing
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a French cabaret singer called Angélique and I had to learn French for that
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and so you know I spent so much time studying French for all these roles I decided to use it and put it in an album But the album is very much a sort of 1960s sound bass you know
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So it's really fun. It's all Bridget Bardot. And how did you meet Daniel Dunlow, who runs this room and build that collaboration
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Through Twitter. I put on Twitter that. Is that true? Yes. Twitter
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I was looking. for a club in New York that wasn't expensive
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because I believe that people should be able to go out on a night out and not have to spend $100 on a ticket
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then also have a minimum where you have to buy food and everything
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and I said, where can I find this? That my fans can afford and Ben Ramola
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Remola. Rimalauer. He answered back saying the green room and so there I was introduced to Daniel
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Wow. I love the internet. I really do. So, Limasarab was directed by Trevor Nunn and John Caird, who you were married to for a while
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Not both of them. No, no, no. John Caird. Sorry, the secondary. Let's be clear
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She was married to John Caird. So, and clearly you're friends with John and so
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But just as your work, like, is John there, like, when he sees you and stuff
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Like, what's that, like, post-married life and everything as he watches you grow, expand
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I hope that's not too invasive, but I think it's a good question. It's amazing. Do you know what? John came to New York
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and he came to my show and it was the sweetest thing
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he got the iPhone out. You know like fans get the iPhones and take it. He
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was doing it and he came after to speak to me and he said
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I'm so proud of you Frankie I loved it. I filmed it. I wanted to show the kids
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at home and you know and it was so lovely. Now can I ask you do you see Patty Lepone
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do you stay in touch with Michael Ball? Can you bring us up to date on a few of your favorite
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alumni? Oh I see Patty, Patty, Patty's amazing to me. She's come to the show as well
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She's been really supportive and, you know, introduced me to some people in New York
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Even though I was here 30 years ago, it's a long time ago
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So it took me a long time to move here, basically. So it's like sort of a new challenge and starting again
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And she has put me in contact with some great people. Michael Ball was great fun
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I love Michael Ball. I don't get to see him much. I'd love to see him. Now, he actually, he was the one who told me off because I didn't used to sing on my own in my shows at all
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And he said, he said, it's wrong. You have to sing on my own
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It's your song. You have to sing it. And he's absolutely right. And at a later age, I've embraced it
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And I sing it now as a grown woman rather than a child
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Yeah, it's great. It's like Andrew McArdle singing tomorrow or Patty's singing, don't cry for me, Argentina, you know
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And Broadway people, you know, we lost Leo Burma. you knew that. Yes, that was very sad. He played her father, Tenardier. And do you see Randy Graff at all
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No, but Catherine Porter, who plays my best friend, they're really, really close friends. So Randy's
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trying to come. Every time I do the show at the moment, it's been, she's been busy. But apart for the fact
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she's going to come and see the show, we're actually going to get together as well. So, you've been in New York a while you see a lot of acts. You know yours is very different
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and it's not an act. And we're on this sort of theatrical throw
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space, clearly that was part of your decision as to why you did it here
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but how would you distinguish what you do from the other things you've gone
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and enjoyed, because I've seen you in plenty of audiences, even shows that I've directed for people
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So how would you characterize what it is your doing? Okay, so what I do
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first of all, the word cabaret means small room. So my show
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works in any space. It doesn't have to be a cabaret space
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It could be a massive theatre. It could be a tiny theatre. It could be your bedroom
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Yes. What I do is make my show work wherever I am
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But it's really hard to say it's not a cabaret because everybody says that about their shows
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But it really is a theatre piece. I mean, I would love, love, love to be able to do it eight times a week
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I think it's a show. I think it's a play, a musical together. But also, everyone can tell it's
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about me and I not shy about my life And so and I love just being myself on stage but without talking as myself So it like I playing a character but the character is me I going to take her off script a little bit here
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So she has three children, but one in particular. I'd like you to introduce the audience, too, so they can do a little bit of surface stuff
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She has a daughter whose name is Eliza Doolittle, and I am so not joking
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And she's going to tell you about that. But do yourself a favor. Go on YouTube. Go on the internet
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it's fascinating. It's also fascinating what she looks like, but I'll let you take it
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She's like a mini-me. She's now going under the name Eliza. She was Eliza Doolittle because that was just a nickname
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And in fact, when she first started singing, they were just calling her Doolittle. And she went, but I'm Eliza
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So I quite like the name Doolittle. But she also has had hits here in the States with a band called Disclosure
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So you could look that up as well. And her late. video Eliza she directed herself as well and it's really unique. Did you try to steer her away from
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performing? No, not at all. Obviously when you have a child and you're in this business, you kind of hope
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they don't do it because it is really difficult business and I'm addicted to it. I'm in love with it
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but it doesn't mean that my life is easy. It's up and it's down. But it was so fantastic when
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she actually had success. For a mother, it's a relief. But when she was only 13, she wanted to be a
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singer and I said to her, start writing then. It's really important that you start writing. And she
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did. She started writing and she got a publishing deal by the time she was 18
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I'm just curious. I'm going to pry a little bit here because I love Craig Bierco. I remember
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when he first came to New York, I just remember how dazzling he was. And he's so uniquely skilled
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He's got an incredible sense of humor. He's got a dog that we all love that's now partly your dog
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And so what's it like at home with two, I'm just going to say crazy actors
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You know, like, you know, are the conversations real? Are they sort of made up
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Are they like, what's life like at home? Like, do you actually go into character or something
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Sometimes just play something out? No, not really, but we sing a lot
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We do sing a lot. There's lots of musical instruments all over the house. and we..
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Will you just spontaneously break into song? Yes, we do. Give me an example
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How can I give you an example? Look at our Instagram. Oh, I have to go to your..
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Are we in our underwear and singing? Like, what are we doing? Yeah, obviously at home
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They're not on the Instagram. Last summer, we all got caught on this rooftop
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and we watched Day Turn Tonight. And we just drank and drank and ate
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And then she drops the bomb on me that she's with Craig Bierko. And I go, get him on the FaceTime
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Get him on the FaceTime. He was filming in Vancouver. What was he filming? Unreal
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Unreal. And so he comes on, and I didn't see him in a long time
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And I went, I just heard you two are together, and I bless this
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I mean, it's when two people you love get together. Like, you can't even believe it
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And, you know, she talked about being away for 30 years, but part of that was she raised three children
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So that's no small feet. No. And they're amazing, my children. And I think you're a great mother from everything I've gathered when we've talked together
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I hope so, but we're very close, so I guess that's saying something
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I'm looking at this girl, and I'm loving her so much, and I think I probably bored you all enough
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but I was going to have her sing happy birthday to me, but I made a decision just looking at her
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I want you to sing happy birthday to your son, and we'll close with that. So I'm not going to sing happy birthday
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I'm going to say happy birthday to beautiful Richard and happy birthday to my beautiful son, Felix
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but I'm going to sing you a different song. Oh, go. Is that cool? Take me home
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You sing. boy, put your arms around me. Take me home, you silly boy, or the world's not around without you
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I'm so sorry that I broke your heart. Please don't leave my side
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Take me home, you silly boy, because I'm still in love with you
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Bring her to your city. Go come see her in New York. I love you
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Love you too
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