TONYS 2009 Q and A: Best Performance By A Featured Actress In A Musical Nominee - Karen Olivo

West Side Story has returned to Broadway in a new production directed by its two-time Tony Award winning librettist Arthur Laurents. 

Karen Olivo, who plays the iconic and passionate "Anita" in "West Side Story", earned a 2009 Tony Award nomination for Best Performance By A Featured Actress In A Musical for her dynamic performance. 

Broadway legend Chita Rivera played Anita in the original "West Side Story" in 1957, while Rita Moreno won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in the film version four years later. The talented and inspired Olivo has embraced the emotional history of the role while making it her very own in the beautifully shaped new production.

Karen Olivo made her Broadway debut with RENT. Olivo created the role of Vanessa in the Tony Award winning musical production of In The Heights both on and off Broadway. She was also seen on Broadway in Brooklyn. Olivo is a native of the South Bronx.

BroadwayWorld spoke to Karen about how she first learned of her Tony nomination, the magic of the role and score and the exciting challenge of going from "Washington Heights" to the "West Side" in the hit revival.

BWW: First nomination?

Karen Olivo: Pretty crazy, it is so amazing, it might be a dream!

BWW: How did you hear about being nominated?

KO: Lin-Manuel Miranda read the announcements, so I told him to text me when he knew (laughs). I actually got my managers text before Lin's, so I got it by text message. My husband and I decided to stay asleep for the announcement period and to wake up when I wake up, to wake up into it all. We woke up around 10:30 am. We were just trying to get one of our last good night's of sleep. I was still lying in bed when I got the text so there was no jumping around, but I did immediately call my mom!

BWW: How did you become part of the production?

KO: They put out a call and said ‘You're one of the only people we haven't seen. We know you're not available, I was still in 'Heights', and we know you're happy where you are, but would you come in for the fun of it? And I went in, like you do and I auditioned. It is one of the Holy Grail of parts for a musical theatre actress, so you never really think you're going to get a role like that, but it happened for me, I'm so blessed. 

BWW: Going from the thrills of last year's Tony Awards with IN THE HEIGHTS to being front and center this year with your own nomination, what a wild number of months!

KO: I know right? Insane, a dream! Last year was such a good training camp for me and I watched Lin sort of navigate through the entire season and how he had to have so many hats on and I respect how genuine and sincere he has remained.

BWW: How great that he is able to share with you what this kind of journey is like, this exciting period for you.

KO: He's been calling me a lot asking if i'm ok and all, because he knows what it's like to to be nominated. It's hard for some of us to balance it all, we are just "ourselves", regular people, we can be intimidated and shy so it's great for him to be there in the background.

BWW: It is a very happy and at times very stressful period for a nominated actor leading up to the awards, keeping yourself balanced is a skill.

KO: I think it's the 1700 people in The Audience watching that keeps me balanced, quite frankly. When's there's that many eyes on you, you just do it because you can't let them down. Anita is one of the best roles in one of the best musicals ever. To be able to play her on a New York stage is the culmination of my career so far, I'm just so happy. You know, doing the work every night, being your best, that is such a gift, that fuels you. Just being nominated, the feeling, the respect of that, I feel like I already won. 

Nominations in 27 competitive categories for the American Theatre Wing's 63rd Annual Antoinette Perry "Tony"® Awards were announced on Tuesday, May 5th by Tony Award Winners Cynthia Nixon and Lin-Manuel Miranda from the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. 

The Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards are bestowed annually on theatre professionals for distinguished achievement. The Tony is one of the most coveted awards in the entertainment industry and the annual telecast is considered one of the most prestigious programs on television.

The American Theatre Wing's 63rd Annual Antoinette Perry "Tony"® Awards will be broadcast live from Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, June 7, 2009 (8-11pm, live EST, PT time delay) on the CBS Television Network. For more information visit tonyawards.com.

Click Here to View the Full List of 2009 Tony Nominees!

The original Jerome Robbins choreography for West Side Stroy has been restaged by Tony Award nominee Joey McKneely (The Boy from Oz, The Life).

The cast of 46 stars Matt Cavenaugh (A Catered Affair, Grey Gardens) as "Tony," Karen Olivo (In the Heights) as "Anita,"Cody Green (Movin' Out) as "Riff" and George Akram (The Farrelly's Stuck on You) as "Bernardo." The role of "Maria" is be played by Broadway newcomer Josefina Scaglione. The 21 year old actress comes directly, by special arrangement with Actors' Equity Association, from Buenos Aires after an exhaustive international search for the role. West Side Story also featuresSteve Bassett as "Lt. Schrank," Mike Cannon as "Snowboy,"Kyle Coffman as "A-Rab," Joey Haro as "Chino," Eric Hatch as "Big Deal," Curtis Holbrook as "Action," Michael Mastro as "Glad Hand," Lee Sellars as "Krupke," Tro Shaw as "Anybodys," Ryan Steele as "Baby John" and Greg Vinkler as "Doc" along with Nicholas Barasch, Kyle Brenn, Joshua Buscher, Isaac Calpito, Haley Carlucci, Peter Chursin, Madeline Cintron,Lindsay Dunn, Yurel Echezarreta, John Arthur Greene, Manuel Herrera, Matthew Hydzik,Marina Lazzaretto, Chase Madigan, Yanira Marin, Mileyka Mateo, Kaitlin Mesh, Angelina Mullins, Kat Nejat, Christian Elán Ortiz, Pamela Otterson, Danielle Polanco, Sam Rogers,Michael Rosen, Amy Ryerson, Jennifer Sanchez, Manuel Santos, Michaeljon Slinger,Tanairi Sade Vazquez and Mark Zimmerman. 

West Side Story is written by three theatrical luminaries: two-time Tony Award winnerArthur Laurents (book) and multiple Tony and Grammy Award winners Leonard Bernstein (music) and Stephen Sondheim (lyrics) in his Broadway debut. West Side Story features scenic designs by James Youmans (Gypsy), costumes by Tony Award nominee David C. Woolard (The Farnsworth Invention, The Who's Tommy), lighting by Tony Award winner Howell Binkley (Gypsy, Jersey Boys), hair by Mark Adam Rampmeyer (The Farnsworth Invention) and sound design by Tony Award nominee Dan Moses Schreier (Gypsy, A Catered Affair).

West Side Story is produced by Kevin McCollum, James L. Nederlander, Jeffrey Sellerwith Terry Allen Kramer, Sander Jacobs, Roy Furman / Jill Furman Willis, Freddy DeMann,Robyn Goodman / Walt Grossman, Hal Luftig, Roy Miller, The Weinstein Company andBroadway Across America.

Tickets for West Side Story at Broadway's Palace Theatre are currently on sale at www.tickemaster.com, by calling 212-307-4100 or visiting the Palace Theatre box office. The playing schedule is as follows: Tuesday at 7 p.m., Wednesday - Saturday at 8 p.m., Wednesday and Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Ticket prices are $121.50 - 46.50.

Photos of Karen Olivo by Walter McBride/Retna Ltd. and Peter James Zielinski