BWW Interviews: High-Flying NICOLAS DROMARD Charms 'MARY POPPINS'

Triple-threat Nicolas Dromard seems to be on a roll. Already a burgeoning performer since his days as a toddler in his native Ontario, Canada, the charming actor-singer-dancer is currently enjoying the second of two significant back-to-back roles in a couple of high-profile stage musicals. In both shows, Dromard excels in playing heroic, extremely likable characters that easily endear him to many theatergoers. But, truthfully, the guy has had lots of practice at it.

Beginning with community theater productions in Canada, the actor often found himself landing gig after gig. At 18 years old, a chance audition in New York City garnered him a spot in the Branson, Missouri cast of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, his first show on U.S. soil. Soon parts in Canadian regional productions of CRAZY FOR YOU (his personal favorite), WEST SIDE STORY, and GYPSY opened up a path that led him to play Eddie and Pepper in the First National Tour of international hit MAMMA MIA!

Broadway itself came calling soon after, where Dromard appeared in Trevor Nunn's revival of OKLAHOMA!, then in the ensemble of THE BOY FROM OZ, and, later, as the understudy for the character of Bert on MARY POPPINS—a role he will later revisit. But in 2008, he left New York after being summoned by the witches of Oz for a sit-down production of the mega-hit musical WICKED in San Francisco. There Dromard spent almost two years performing as Fiyero, the dashing but self-centered young man who somehow falls for the caring, smart girl with peculiar green skin. The role earned the actor great praise and a legion of rabid new fans.

As the bay area production of WICKED was nearing its close, Dromard would soon learn he'd be once again hanging out with another lady with a penchant for defying gravity (this time, sans broomstick... and, instead, with a bit of Disney magic), which is where we arrive in the present. Now currently traveling North America in the Disney/Cameron Mackintosh stage adaptation of MARY POPPINS, Dromard is once again playing Bert, the show's affable jack-of-all-trades. This time around, though, he has graduated into the role full-time, taking over where Gavin Lee—the actor who originated the part in London, Broadway, and the show's first national tour—left off. A joy to watch as Mary's witty, flue dust-covered pal, the actor vigorously dances, sings and narrates with an infectiously palpable sweetness, making Bert truly his own.

Right before he arrived in Orange County for MARY POPPINS' four-week engagement at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa (which ends August 7), Dromard—while literally driving down the coast of California on the 4th of July—chatted for a bit with BroadwayWorld's Michael Lawrence Quintos about his early theater history, his influences, and how he morphed quickly from Chimney Sweep to Winkie Prince then back again.

Hi, Nicolas! I'm so happy to talk to you again! So, how's the tour been going so far?

It's been going great! We're having a great time hitting all these fantastic cities and, yeah, we're all excited. We all can't wait 'til we get to Costa Mesa!

Cool! Now, you guys are doing the show here in Orange County for four whole weeks! Are you looking forward to doing any fun things in particular while you're down here?

Ohmigosh, so many things! Between Disneyland and Universal Studios... going scuba diving... even a trip to Vegas! [Laughs] There are just so many great things to do!

Awesome! So, you play Bert in the show, which in the MARY POPPINS world is a pretty iconic role. What sort of challenges, if any, did you have to go through in order to take on this world's most famous chimney sweep?

Well, I understudied the role for two-and-a-half years on Broadway. I left [the show] in 2008 to go play Fiyero in WICKED. When Gavin Lee was finishing up the tour, [Disney] started calling up all the Broadway Bert understudies from the past two years to come and re-audition. So I went back... I just took the red-eye from San Francisco... I sang and danced on a Monday. Flew back [to San Francisco] on Tuesday. By the time I landed, there were two messages on my phone—one from my agent and one from the tour director. That was my audition process! I think the reason my audition went so fantastic was that they said "we don't want you to try and copy Dick Van Dyke... bring your own flair and personality to the role, and just be true to the character as opposed to just doing a copy..."

Which makes sense since the stage version veers quite a bit from the movie.

Yeah, it's not a recreation of the movie. It's really a perfect blend of the books and the movie... and so you have your favorite songs and some new songs that have been added. The role of both Bert and Mary Poppins aren't just carbon copies of Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews. So, it was a really great audition process. Our creative team is so gracious and so amazing that it's really a pleasure to do this role.

Great! Okay, so the first time we met [during a press event back in May with Richard Sherman and Disney Theatrical Group president Thomas Schumacher] and even now as I'm talking with you, I don't detect even a hint of a British accent. Was it tough to learn that?

No, not too tough. It's just like any skill you pick up. You hear it. And a dialect coach came and worked with everyone, even our kids—who are nine, ten, eleven and twelve years old. I think at that age, it would've been harder for me... [Pauses] or maybe not! Maybe kids learn [accents] more easily. They're like sponges. But accents are just a part of it, like any other training where you have to learn something.

So, for anyone who's never read, seen or even heard anything about MARY POPPINS, can you describe for our readers who Bert is?

Yeah! He's a jack-of-all-trades. He's essentially Mary Poppins' best friend... [Laughs] ...or, rather, he wants to be Mary Poppins' best friend. He's done it all! He paints and sells paintings. He's a chimney-sweep. He's also basically the narrator of the show. He starts the show—popping out of a chimney—and gets the story moving. He loves everything. He loves life. And he loves everything he does when Mary Poppins is around. Everything is heightened... because everything gets that much better when she's around.

Okay, spoiler alert! I don't mean to divulge this big moment Bert has in the second act, but I'd like to ask you about this incredible, gravity-defying stunt where you are dancing, literally, upside-down! Was there a lot more training and extra preparation involved with your role because of it?

You know, it's magic! First, I don't think it ruins anything to say that I tap-dance on the ceiling, because I think that will pique people's interest. You can write that! That's not ruining anything! [Laughs] But, it's just like any type of preparation. It's basically just trying to get gravity and energy properly balanced. It's just like going on a roller-coaster ride. There's so much safety in the magic that it's so much fun to do that every night! But, well... it does take a little practice.

So no close calls so far? Nothing of SPIDER-MAN proportions, I hope!

[Laughs] No... Disney is so fantastic and so safe that there's never been any close calls. I mean, Mary flies three times in the show! I only do the one aerial stunt. So, no, there's never been any safety issues.

Oh, good! So, as you've mentioned, right before you assumed the role of Bert full-time in the national tour, you spent a good, long time playing Fiyero in WICKED in San Francisco. Tell me a little bit about that experience.

That was a great experience... to be Fiyero for the company in San Francisco, which I did for a year-and-a-half! It was such a great time because we weren't touring. It was a sit-down company, so we really got a chance to know that city very well and be in this humongous blockbuster of a musical. And I played this great role that was... easy! I kiss  the blonde, I kiss the green girl, I swing on a rope, and I take a bow! [Laughs] And sing great songs. That was a really great show. It was a real fantastic experience.

Great! Well, you're officially now the third actor I've interviewed for this column that's played Fiyero in the past! I've previously interviewed both David Burnham and Kevin Kern who were both in the Broadway company!

Oh, really? Cool!

Yeah! Well, I wanted to ask you... the one common thing I recall David and Kevin sharing was that they've gotten really strong, significant reactions more noticeably from fans of WICKED. Was it the same for you?

Oh, yeah. You know, WICKED really connects with everyone. It has such a cult following because it just touches people. And so, people form such an affection for the show and the characters that the stage door was always crowded with fans and people who want to share their love for the show and say "thank you." They ask for autographs, take photos... it's such a strong reaction for a lot of the characters. So, yeah, no other show is like this.

So as far as jumping right into the POPPINS tour, was it a big adjustment for you to get back on the road after performing in such a long sit-down production?

Not really, because in San Francisco... I was comfortable and I was unpacked, but it was never my home, you know? New York is my home. So while in San Francisco, I still had the mind-frame of going back to New York whenever this contract [with WICKED] is over. The MARY POPPINS tour is great because it's not that short... it's not like one-weekers or doing two cities within a week. Instead we get three or four weeks in each city. So when we get there, we get to unpack and we get to be comfortable and really get to know each city. So it's not going to really feel like a tour until the last weekend [in each city] where we're, like, "Oh, yeah, we need to pack our trunks and pack our suitcases?" [Laughs] Then we go "What's the next city? Let's figure out what to do... what tourist-y things we can do... and what the must-see things are for each city!" So, yeah, we're really lucky in that we get to play in these cities for extended periods of time.

Fun! Okay, let's switch subjects for a bit and talk about your background. So, where were you born and where did you grow up?

I was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada! For the first eighteen years of my life, I was there!

How did the performing bug start for you?

I started dancing when I was six years old. I started taking voice lessons when I was nine. I was part of the choir in my school... And then when I was eighteen, I went to New York for some auditions and got the Radio City Rockettes Christmas Show—my first professional job in the States!

Awesome!

Yeah! That took me to Branson, Missouri... then went back to Canada in Toronto where I did WEST SIDE STORY at the Stratford Festival. And then I did the tour of MAMMA MIA which got me back into the States and to New York... and I never looked back.

Well it sounds like you knew pretty early on that you really wanted to do this for a living!

Yeah, I guess you could say that. I've always loved to perform. When I get asked that question, I always say that, you know... it's not like I woke up one day and said "I wanna be an actor! I wanna do musical theater!" No... I saw a Fred Astaire / Ginger Rogers movie and I was, like... wow! I wanna tap dance! And so, from there, it just became this career that I'm in. I'm very fortunate that I've been very lucky to be doing this, which I love to do.

That's great, Nicolas! Who are some of your idols?

As far as musical theater, I would say Norbert Leo Butz is definitely someone that I admire and aspire to follow in terms of his career. Susan Stroman is also one of my favorite directors and choreographers.

What about actual stage musicals? Which ones were influential for you?

I did CRAZY FOR YOU in community theater and that really became one of my favorite musicals. But I think the first musical I saw was STARLIGHT EXPRESS when I was ten or eleven. I really loved that show and was my first real Broadway show experience. So, I would say those two shows really sparked my love for theater.

I'm sure you get asked this a lot... but do you have any dream roles on your bucket list from other shows that you'd like to take on someday?

Well, sure, yeah! [Laughs] Well, CRAZY FOR YOU is my favorite musical, so next time it gets done professionally, I would love to play Bobby Child! I love THE LAST 5 YEARS' music and listening to Norbert Leo Butz singing it—I play it on my iPod a lot whenever I can—so that's really another role I'd love to do. It's such an emotional range. Um... JERSEY BOYS is a great show. I would love to do that! Yeah, I don't know.... we'll see what happens. Those are all great shows I would love to do.

Great! Okay, so before I finish the interview, I'd like to do... THE LIGHTNING ROUND! I'll ask you some quick, short questions and all you have to do is give me the first thing that pops into your head. Is that cool?

Okay!

In one word, describe what goes through your head right before you step on-stage as Bert.

Excitement!

What song do you like belting in the shower or when you're all alone in the car?

"One Song, Glory!"

What scares you the most?

Forgetting... my lines!

What is your one guilty pleasure?

Nutella!

What do you like doing on your day off?

Hmmm... sight-see... walk my dog... and spending time with my girlfriend.

What or Who irritates you the most?

[Laughs] Self-entitled people!

What instantly puts a smile on your face?

A Jason Mraz song.

Cool. If you could trade lives with someone for one day, who would it be?

Hugh Jackman! ...for all the great movie roles he gets to play! I wanna be Wolverine! [Laughs]

If you weren't an actor, what other job do you see yourself doing?

I would be... a musician in an orchestra!

Wow, cool! What instruments do you play?

I play the piano, the flute and percussion.

Awesome! Tell me, what's the one thing you learned about yourself as a member of the Broadway community?

Oh, wow. That's a tough question. [Pauses] I guess I've learned that I've persevered... that I don't let myself get down, you know? I don't get affected by the negative that some people might bring in this business.

As you probably know, many of our readers on BroadwayWorld are young theater students hoping to someday do exactly what you're doing. What advice would you like to share with them about going into this line of work?

Oh, yeah. Take as many classes as you can, [as early] as you can. The more you learn and the sooner [you start], the better it is. The more training and skills and tricks you have, the more likely you'll be to get hired. Anyone who wants to be in this business needs to do it as often and as early as possible.

Sound advice! One last question... what has been your absolute favorite moment of the MARY POPPINS tour so far?

Uh... [Laughs] ...when my girlfriend joined the tour in Philadelphia! That was a great moment when she was able to join me and the show. That would be Moment #1. And #2 would be when she and I were in Sacramento... and all our WICKED fans came to see us and screamed and were just so supportive. They really warmed our hearts on Opening Night in Sacramento!

Oh, that's so great!

Yeah! So, those would be my two favorite moments of the tour so far!

Follow Michael Lawrence Quintos on Twitter: @cre8ivemlq

All photos from the National Tour of MARY POPPINS by Joan Marcus. Photo of Dromard as 'Fiyero' in WICKED by Joan Marcus.

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See photos from the MARY POPPINS Costa Mesa press event: here. Read the Review of the Orange County stop of the tour: here.

Performances of MARY POPPINS at The Segerstrom Center of the Arts continue through August 7, 2011 and are scheduled Tuesday through Friday at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 2pm and 7:30 pm, and Sundays at 1pm and 6:30pm. MARY POPPINS is a co-production of Disney Theatrical and Cameron Mackinstosh.

Ticket prices start at $22.50 and can be purchased online at www.SCFTA.org, by phone at 714-556-2787 or in person at the SCFTA box office (open daily at 10 am).

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is located at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa.

For more information, please visit SCFTA.org or the show's official site at www.MaryPoppins.com

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