Interview: Noah Racey of ROAD SHOW at Signature Theatre

I first met Noah Racey when I was directing the 2004 Nightlife Awards at Town Hall in New York. He was performing with his co-star from Never Gonna Dance, Nancy Lemenager. If you've never seen him dance, you haven't lived. I got to chat a bit about his stay down here in DC.

JM: How are you enjoying DC?

NR: Loving it. I had an experience 10 years ago at at the Ford's and it's nice to be here in Shirlington. It's nice to see how the city has jumped up to support The Signature Theatre moving and supporting it in its own space. They support the artists really well.

My family came here last week from all over the place- Columbus, Seattle, and Maui, we had a wonderful time.

JM: What did you do at Ford's?

NR: I did Shenandoah with Scott Bakula. Jeff Calhoun directed. It's a powerhouse show, a really beautiful look at war and the impetus to take sides. I'm surprised it doesn't get done more often.

JM: I first fell in love with you during Never Gonna Dance. There aren't many opportunities nowadays on Broadway for an old-fashioned song and dance man.

NR: You know, it's true. It's a style. Everyone connects this kind of character to the movies. That's where that style hung on. Gene Kelly, The Nicholas Brothers, Bojangles, George M. Cohan. It's a style that takes a certain kind of understanding and ability choreographically, to tell a story.

JM: Why don't we see as much of it today?

NR: I think we are more and more. In pop culture, it turned into boy bands, Justin Timberlake and his ilk, they're phenomenal dancers, superb entertainers. The fact that it's back to knowing how to use a camera is interesting. That's how it's always been from Gene Kelly up to today's music videos. Video has become the norm.

It takes time and effort to create that. and you dont get it in an emailable file. and because musical theatre these days is shuffled around by creatives emailing scripts and emails, it's different. They have people looking at a book or a piece of music, things that are quantifiable. To create a dance, you have to go into a studio. Andy Blankenbuehler had to go in and create it. You're not going to get the feel of what it is if you're not in the room where it happens (so to speak).

That's why people have trouble creating it, envisioning it. It's not as easy to say here's that number. you need to create around the people who are moving. You need to create around them. It adds a level of difficulty in organizing. Whether you're Richard Kind, Peter Gallagher, or Noah Racey, your movement comes from such a primal basic level of your energy.

What Andy Blanenbuehler did with Leslie Odom Jr. in Hamilton - it just so beautifully comes from not only the character, but Leslie's energy and the movement profile he has.

It's in the moment that the most exciting stuff gets created. But there's no cast recording of the choreography. It's the most ethereal art form - great to capture it on video, but it's so in the moment that it's most powerful to witness it as it's happening.

JM: What's it like working on a lesser-known Sondheim musical and going the more "actor-singer" route?

NR: It's so great and beautifully challenging. I started by being a drummer and then I became an actor. Rhythm, acting, then wow, I can move around. My high school drama director said early on. What do you call yourself? He told me "the actor gets the job, then let them figure out what they want after that." I'm at heart an actor. A lot of the song and dance work I've done has been what has pulled me into the room.

What im most excited about is the chance to grow in the way Sondheim makes you grow. The dedication to the text is an archeological dig from the first note. Uncovering the emotional arc of the theme or the arc of the song.

To look at it from a dancer's perspective, when you start tap dancing, people are like, "great...so that happens, now what?" The nuances of creating a life onstage, can get brushed over in some forms of musical theatre - with great directors or not-so-great directors, you're always bringing life into releif. But nothing asks more of you than when you work on a piece by Sondheim and (John) Weidman.

JM: What specifically about working on this piece excites you?

NR: It's been such a wonderful experience - finding out how hard you can kick the tires of a piece and seeing how it holds up. And this one is so beautifully.

challenging and freeing to look at what happens there with these two brothers. Discovering what's going on with appetite. If there was a place where he could be content, he would be, but it doesn't exist in him.

Having Gary and Josh who understand the show so well. its been a masterclass

JM: So...there's a LOT of cocaine in this show.

NR: Yeah, there's a lot. Something about the creative. It's tied to the creative energy. Inevitably, you see so much use of cocaine in creative. Sondheim ties the two together and looks at that exceptionalism. It can come with a heavy price tag if you dont keep in touch with what that kind of appetite is.

You buy into the glamor. I don't want to feel bed, I just want to feel good. Nothing is superfluous. It's tied to their search, the American Dream.

JM: What's next for you?

NR: I'm going directly to Arkansas Rep to play Bud in Bridges of Madison County. It's such a beautiful show, and a really wonderful role to take a bit out of.

Road Show ran at Signature Theatre through March 13th. Their season continues with the DC premiere of The Flick running through April 17th. Visit http://www.sigtheatre.org/events/2015-16/the-flick/ for more information.

[Note: Due to a technical issue, we were unable to post this during the show's run, but please be sure to catch Signature's next show, and don't miss Noah Racey any chance you have to see him!]