Q&A with Marc Kudisch
By Paul Wontorek
April 12, 2001
Marc Kudisch is gainfully employed ringing the bells of Faith Prince eight times a week--and he couldn't be happier. Sure, as star of Bells Are Ringing, his name is in lights atop 45th Street and he finally has a real chance to originate a leading man role on Broadway, but Kudisch is just happy about the work. On the other hand, his fans (which he has whether he realizes it or not) are thrilled to see above-the-title status finally come his way, after sturdy turns in The Wild Party, The Scarlet Pimpernel, High Society, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Beauty and the Beast (as burly Gaston). He recently had some time to chat with Broadway.com on his final day of previews.
Hey Marc. How’s it going?
Good. Everything’s good.
You’re coming off a week of press performances. How has that been?
Unfortunately, it’s the nature of the business, right? It’s hard when you work on a piece and you suddenly have to present it for a bunch of people who are basically going to tell you your business. It’s really just about the audience as a whole and getting a story across for an entire group of people. It’s just hard. You can’t help but feel judged, and in fact you are being judged!
I saw the show in Stamford. You guys really did a lot of work since then.
Yeah, we had an extra week of rehearsals before we started previews in New York, which was really good. They trimmed everywhere, anywhere we could lose any bit of fat. We moved “Is It A Crime?” to a later spot in the first act, which is more effective. We put back in some of “Hello, Hello There.” The subway scene is fuller and longer. I start singing “I Met A Girl” on the subway now.
I love that song. It must be great to be singing it on Broadway.
Oh yeah. I love singing it. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s also a humongous marathon—it comes at the end of a long period of onstage time for me. But it just gives the song a different charge. It’s right out of the gate. By the time I get to the end of that song, I’m like, “Oh my Lord.”
How do you feel you’ve grown in the character since Stamford?
I’m just more in touch with what I already thought I was in touch with. It’s also finding particular moments with Faith [Prince] where we really connect. It's been about discovering where the relationship with her really begins and where the magic starts.
That leads me to my next question. People are saying that the chemistry between you and Faith has really grown…
You know, it’s an interesting thing. I think everything takes time. There is an age difference between us that some people have had a problem with. Everyone has his or her own agenda. But the more we found out about the relationship [between the characters], that has really gone the wayside. You can see now what’s between them. We always had chemistry. I have a great relationship with Faith. I can talk to her in a way that I’ve not been able to talk to many actors. We’re incredibly honest with each other. Part of the problem that people were having is that Faith and I are so comfortable together that we were reading a little bit…There had to be more tension and more discovery between us. Because we know each other so well, it was probably a bit too easy as opposed to charged. We worked hard on really discovering the beginning of the relationship and how it carries us through the show.
Your character, Jeffrey Moss, is quite a trip.
What I’ve really enjoyed about it is finding the enjoyment of playing a snob—playing the ass that he really is. He knows that he’s an ass and a snob, which is really fun. It’s part of his charm. He’s such a Park Avenue/Upper East Sider. At the end of the show, he tells Ella that he needs her. I’ve really connected to that moment. He finally recognizes his own flaws, and it’s wonderful to see that.
It’s a really great, leading man role for you.
Yeah, but I see every role as a character role. I’m not a personality sort of guy. People don’t go, “Oh, Kudisch is really great at…” Every role that I do is different. That’s the fun part—finding the heart and soul and logic of the character.
Did you know Bells Are Ringing before you got the show?
I didn’t know it at all.
You’d never seen Dean Martin’s film performance?
I still haven’t seen it. I will eventually, I’ll get there. When I worked on Thoroughly Modern Millie, I didn’t watch that film until I’d already been involved in two different workshops of it. Finally, I decided to rent it. In that case, everyone was telling me that I was similar to the actor in the film, which didn’t surprise me because it all comes from the material. When I actually saw the movie, I was glad that I hadn’t seen it earlier. The entire film was winking and commenting, and I’m not good at that.
How does it feel to see your name in lights above the theater?
Truthfully, half of me thinks it’s wonderful and cool and the other half is very embarrassed and horrified. I remember I looked up at it when I was walking to the theater the night of the invited dress and I was so embarrassed. I was like, “Please don’t let me see anyone that I know!” I don’t want to deal with “His name is above the title? Why the fuck does he have that? Let’s see if he can really do it…” But deeper than that, it’s really an out-of-body thing. I don’t think about things like that. The role that I’m right for in this show happens to be the male lead.
How has it been working with your director, Tina Landau?
Look, I love her. She’s tremendous. She’s a collaborator. We have a great relationship. She’s approached the material from a truthful place and didn’t go for obvious musical comedy moments. She’s cut whatever was commenting or showy from the book. It just wasn’t necessary. And the show is only two hours and 40 minutes now. That first act as written was almost two hours alone.
It’s surprising to learn that Betty Comden & Adolph Green have been cool with that. I remember hearing that they were resistant to cuts when George C. Wolfe did On the Town on Broadway.
They’ve been very open. I think they see that Tina’s done it with respect. On the Town was a different situation. I love George Wolfe because of the experience of The Wild Party. He’s hands down the greatest director that I’ve ever worked with on an original piece. He’s willing to go out there and risk it all for the sake of really trying something different.
The Wild Party was an amazing show.
I will always cherish working with him on that show. However, Betty and Adolph were put off by his style of working. They like to have input. Tina moves quick and yet still always allows them to see what she’s up to. Tina has shown nothing but respect for them and they’ve been open and gracious. There are new lyrics in “Independent.” I have a new opening monologue. Hey, if you’re reviving a piece from 1956, you have to have a fresh take.
So are you ready for the leading man thing? Ready for the fans at the stage door?
Honestly, dude—I don’t have fans that way. At least I don’t think I do. I don’t deal with that. I don’t have strange people calling me. I just try to do my work. I don’t try to draw attention to myself. I don’t care about being a celebrity or a star. I lot of people don’t get that. And maybe they’re intimidated by it—I’m not one of those approachable people. I think people respect me or like me, but I don’t have fans like that. It was really funny—when I was doing The Wild Party [Kudisch played Jackie, a 1920s bisexual drug-addicted bon vivant], people coming out of the stage door wouldn’t even look at me! Some would come up and say, “Oh my God.” Friends would come up and say, “Dude, who knew you had it in you?” And I was like, “Me! I knew!” People always have trouble differentiating between the performer and the character.
Amy Morton, who plays Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest got booed at the curtain call the day that I went.
In which case she’s doing her job! People probably just think she’s a bitch without knowing her. Look, I’ve been knocking around. I’ve done well, but every time I do a role, people think that’s what I do. After I did Bye Bye Birdie [Kudisch played Elvis takeoff Conrad Birdie in the ABC-TV version and national tour], people said, “Oh, he’s a ‘50s rocker guy.” When I did Gaston in Beauty and the Beast, people said, “Oh, he’s a burly baritone guy.” After they saw The Wild Party, they couldn’t fit me into a type. I loved that. Nothing made me happier than people not knowing what to do with me! I would go in for auditions, and people would say, “Well, you could be the villain or you could be the hero.” I didn’t fit a slot.
And you couldn’t have been happier…
I loved it! It made people have to see me from more than one point of view. They suddenly said, “Okay, this guy is an actor.” Hopefully from here on out, people will want to work with me for the craft that I have. Ideally, my work ethic will make them interested. Dude, I don’t think like most actors. I’m not concerned with awards. I don’t care. I’m just concerned with my job.
But you must see this as a big break for you.
No, I don’t. I don’t see anything as a break. Well, if anything was a break, it was The Wild Party because I was given the opportunity to do a character that was non-existent. There’s not a type for that guy. I like walking that line—it’s a challenge. But Bells Are Ringing is a challenge, too. Most people don’t know this role. If they do, they think of it as thankless. It’s far more interesting than people remember. And it puts me in a different light. I’m not an idiot—I know that having my name above the title is good for business, but it ultimately doesn’t mean a thing. It doesn’t make me better. I know that. But this is a good job and I’m happy doing it. I’m here for Faith and Tina. They are the reasons that I’m here.
Do you have any dream roles, Marc?
I totally do. I have two very specific roles. First off, I want someone to write a musical version of The Count of Monte Crisco already. It’s brilliant and it’s never been done.
So whenever you meet songwriters, you ask them to get it going?
Yup. I’m waiting for someone to do it. And I know it sounds cheesy, but they’re working on a stage version of Batman, and I want to play him. There’s a great story in terms of what’s going on in this guy’s head. That’s what it’s about, dude. I totally see it. I want to get into the psychology of it. What makes him a hero rather than a villain? Because of the side of the law he’s on? I mean this guy has anxiety attacks and put on the costume to calm himself. It’s really about the disappearance of Bruce Wayne and the emergence of this other guy. What a freaky story. It’s incredible. I want to get into that mind.