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Davis Gainesperformed the title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera over 2,000 times on Broadway, in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Subsequently, he was chosen by Hal Prince and Lloyd Webber to play the leading role in the World Premiere of Whistle Down the Wind. Other Broadway and National Tour credits include Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera, Cornelius Hackl in Hello, Dolly! (with Carol Channing), Camelot (with Richard Burton) and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (with Alexis Smith). In Los Angeles, Gaines received Best Actor awards for his portrayals of Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha and Hannibal Lecter in SILENCE! The Musical. Film and television work includes Warlock: The Armageddon, Sweeney Todd, Desperate Housewives, Charmed, Chicago Hope, Veronica’s Closet, Bodies of Evidence and Murder, She Wrote. Additionally, Gaines has sung for six U.S. Presidents and with virtually every major symphony orchestra in North America, including the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl. A native of Orlando, he currently resides in Los Angeles and is a frequent singer of our National Anthem for the Los Angeles Lakers, Clippers, Kings and Dodgers.
DAVIS took TEN QUESTIONS IN TEN MINUTES with Broadwway World's Los Angeles columnist, GAVIN GLYNN, to share his private and public journey for his stellar career trajectory in live performances for our three million readers.
Which star formation were gathered over what lucky city for your first appearance on earth?
What is your earliest childhood memory of attending your first live performance? Who accompanied you, but who was the performer?
My parents knew I loved theatre and music and took me to see different types of shows that came through Orlando at the time. I remember seeing the opera "Carmen" and being swept up in the music and the drama of it all. I remember going to see concerts with the Florida Symphony Orchestra, seeing country music stars in concert and even remember seeing Florence Henderson perform. As a kid, we vacationed in Sarasota, Florida often. I didn't care to do the beach thing with my family, instead spending each day, sometimes twice a day, watching the amazing professional actors perform in repertory at the historic Asolo Theater. It was a master class for me.
The first show I saw on Broadway was the original production of "Oliver!" with Clive Revill, Georgia Brown and Barry Humphries. That hooked me forever. I wanted to be up there as one of those boys and my dream of performing on Broadway was born. Recently, I got to play the role of Fagin, so it was happily a full circle moment for me.
Who was the first trustedperson to tell you that you could sing, and when did you realize you agreed with them?
Early on, I don't remember any one person who mentioned my singing in any special way. As with most of my friends, I was in the chorus in school and sang in the church choirs growing up. Nothing unusual. In junior high school, I had drama teacher, Ann Derflinger, who truly changed my life and encouraged my dream of becoming a actor. She cast me as the lead in a couple of musicals, I think because I had a loud voice, not necessarily a good one. I sang in musicals at Florida State University where I majored the Theatre. I never really had a proper voice lesson until years after I had moved to NYC, when I found a wonderful voice teacher, Tony McDowell, who gave me a strong technique which I still use today.
How supportive were your parents as you pursue your starlight dreams of becoming a live performer? To speak truth to power: what is it like carrying on a prolific legacy name with both Davis and Gaines deeply rooted in Americana—is it a blessing or a curse?
My parents became extremely supportive. As first, I think they probably thought it was a phase I was going through, but after seeing my drive and commitment for learning the craft of acting and singing, they were all in.
I never thought of my name as a 'prolific legacy'. I love my name and never thought of it as a curse, but always a blessing. Davis, was my mom's maiden name, and I've always appreciated that she gave it to me as my first name. As my dad told me, through his interest in genealogy, the Gaines name is mentioned throughout American history, some good and some not so good, but I have never really taken the time to dig into it deeper. My middle name, Pendleton, probably adds to the story. (Fun fact: Jefferson Davis, General Edmund Gaines testified Aaron Burr killed Alexander Hamilton, CA Camp Pendleton is named afte Major General Pendleton, The name Gaines is English from Old French meaning "igenuity', Davis Gaines is synonymous to world class Broadway) )
Are you classically trained, or do you sing by ear and rely on your instincts? Do you prefer fronting a 55-piece orchestra or performing with regulated tracks?
I'm not 'classically' trained in the opera sense. I'd had people along the way tell me that I'd should go into opera, but my heart was always into the acting part of the singing and telling stories through song.
I hardly ever sing with tracks, and avoid it unless it's totally necessary for a particular gig. In my mind, singing with live musicians is the only way to go. Whether it be a full symphony orchestra, a big band, a trio or just a piano, there's nothing like making music with other live musicians.
What was your first professional gig, and do you remember what it paid? Additionally, which production opened the door of fate into the Actor's Equity Association?
When I was in high school, I got a job as a character at Walt Disney World. At the time, it was definitely the closest thing I had to a paid 'acting' job up to that point. We were paid a whopping $2.05 per hour. After college and moving to NYC, I certainly worked a lot and got paid for doing it, but I consider my first professional gig to be the show where I earned my Equity card. It was a production of "Bloomer Girl" at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, CT.
Could you tell us about the call you received casting you as world famous "The Phantom" in Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera? If Sir Andrew had realized his original vision of the production as a contemporary pop rock opera follow-up to Jesus Christ Superstar, do you think you could have adjusted your voice for 2,000 performances?
I give Hal Prince all the credit when it comes to my Phantom journey. It all began when I was cast as Joe Hardy in a production of "Damn Yankees" which was directed by the legendary George Abbott (who wrote the book and directed the original production as well as the film) when he was 99 years old. Mr. Abbott was Hal's mentor and they shared an office at 30 Rock for their entire careers. Since Mr. Abbott was turning 100 soon after the production closed, Hal was tasked with putting together the birthday tributes. I was included in all of those celebrations and my connection with Hal was made.
Without having to audition for him, Hal plugged me into "Phantom" on Broadway in the role of Raoul for a four month stint, while the actor playing the role took a leave of absence. Not long after that, he called me to audition for the role of 'Phantom'. At the time, I had no idea that he was looking for someone to replace Michael Crawford in Los Angeles. For the call back, they flew me to Toronto where Hal was putting together the Canadian National Tour, along with another actor, whom I never saw. I found out later that it was David Cassidy. After I finished my audition, and Hal came up on stage and asked if I wanted to go to LA. The rest is history and it changed my life.
If it was indeed a 'rock opera', I probably would have never been cast. (Fun Fact: Sir Webber conceived PHANTOM OF THE OPERA as a rock opera for Steve Harley who fronted Cockney Rebel)
Given the legendary competition between Sondheim and Webber, how did you come to be part of the dream cast for the PBS production of Sweeney Todd alongside George Hearn, Neil Patrick Harris, and Patti LuPone? What is it like singing Sondheim's personal favorite and most haunting song, "Johanna," with its mathematically precise intervals?
I actually had the opportunity to work with Steve before working with Andrew. I was part of the original cast of "Assassins" at Playwrights Horizons in NYC. I covered the roles of the Balladeer (Patrick Cassidy) and Charles Guiteau (Jonathan Hadary) and was fortunate to go on for both of those roles during it's original run.
Steve remained supportive and I'm forever grateful to him for casting me in that beautiful production of "Sweeney Todd".
I had initially been a part of a concert version of the show in Los Angeles, with Kelsey Grammer, Christine Baranski, Neil Patrick Harris and Melissa Manchester. When time came to cast the New York Philharmonic production, I received an incredible note from Steve saying that he had insisted that the New York Phil choose me.
Throughout all of the rehearsals, Steve was there, everyday, giving us notes. He continuously urged me to sing "Johanna" just as he had written, without romanticizing it. Of course, there was nothing I wanted more than to please him and sing it 'right'. On the closing night of the performances with the San Francisco Philharmonic, where it was filmed for PBS, he came to my dressing room during intermission and said that it was the best he's ever heard 'Johanna' sung.
Needless to say, this experience was one of the highlights of my career.
What is your professional take on pop stars taking on leading musical theater roles and riffing to make them their own, or adding pop inflections reminiscent of a Barry Manilow concert?
In today's climate, when it's so unbelievably expensive to produce a Broadway show, money is obviously the bottom line. I totally understand that casting TV, film and pop stars in an attempt to sell tickets and bring in an audience. However, it's unfortunate that so many accomplished musical theatre actors, who have trained all their lives to perform on Broadway, are being passed over by performers who have never done theatre before.
I'm all for actors making a role their own, but sometimes the 'pop star' singing, that I think you're referring to, is not ideal if it takes away from the original intention that the creators envisioned or detracts from the rest of the production.
By the way, I'll be singing my favorite Barry Manilow song at the show in Palm Springs, sans the riffing.
You have performed in more theaters across America than most, but what are your favorite Los Angeles venues, and which ones have you yet to perform in? While Beyoncé brought pop music to the desert, you are bringing Broadway classics there. Why do you think performing in the desert has become so popular again, reminiscent of the Sinatra era?
Yes, I've been fortunate to have had the opportunity to perform in most of Los Angeles' iconic venues, like the Ahmanson, Mark Taper Forum, Hollywood Bowl, Ford Amphitheater, Dodger Stadium and Cyrpto.com Arena. All very different, but equally as thrilling, so I'd be hard pressed to pick a favorite.
I'm not sure performing in the desert has ever lost it's appeal for entertainment. It's a very sophisticated audience and there are so many wonderful venues, from the McCallum to the Annenburg to the piano bars and more that feature amazingly talented entertainers year round.
I think that the CVRep's Summer Cabaret Series has brought Broadway to the desert all summer long. I'm grateful to be a part of it and look forward to performing in the desert, once again.
JOHN OLEARCHICK is a pianist, arranger and supporting musician based in Orlando, Florida. He earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Educationfrom Seton Hill University and a Master of Arts from the University of Central Florida. John has performed with the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, the Jacksonville Symphony, both the Space Coast Symphonyand the Space Coast Symphony Jazz Orchestra, the Orlando JazzOrchestra and has accompanied many renowned vocalists, including AnnHampton Callaway, Michael Andrew, Mario Frangoulis, George Perris,Deborah Myers, Christiane Noll, Doug LaBrecque, Tony DeSare, MontegoGlover, Mark Tremonti, Terri Bibb, Alexis Cole, and Davis Gaines. He is aalso collaborative pianist at the University of Central Florida, RollinsCollege, Valencia College and frequently performs with bands andinstrumentalists in the Central Florida area, including the American Sirens,Laurel and the La La Band, and flamenco guitarist Don Soledad.John Olearchick is an Orlando based pianist and music educator. He has performed with notable groups like the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, the Jacksonville Symphony, the Space Coast Symphony and the Space Coast Symphony Jazz Orchestra. John is an adjunct instructor of music at Valencia Community College, and a collaborative pianist at Rollins College.
