Interview: TOOTSIE Star Dan DeLuca Embraces Characters Who Experience Deep Transformation

“I am always drawn to characters and stories in which there is a deep transformation.  In TOOTSIE Michael’s huge catalyst for change occurs when he begins to step into the shoes of another person – a woman.”  His journey awakens “new empathy, new compassion in him.  He is able to see that Dorothy is a part of him.  All of us have a masculine and feminine side within us; the trick is to balance the two, to dissolve old stereotypes, and to discover how powerful the softer feminine side can actually be.”

Dan DeLuca, who is reprising the dual role of Michael/Dorothy for the second time since first undertaking the part at Ogunquit Playhouse in 2023, hails from Pittsburgh, PA, and confesses to embracing the dream of becoming an actor “in kindergarten, when I saw Cathy Rigby on tour in PETER PAN. I fell in love with theatre right then and there, and to this day, I am still looking for roles where I can fly,” he jokes mischievously. DeLuca moved to New York City at eighteen, enrolled in classes in the CAP 21 (Contemporary Arts Project 21) program, began to work professionally, and joined Actors’ Equity at nineteen. He remembers fondly his first role after joining the union was in the comedy, Because of Winn-Dixie, directed by John Tartaglia. He went on to work with the likes of Alan Menken and Stephen Schwarz on Disney projects and enjoyed playing lead roles in regional productions of RENT, THE NUTTY PROFESSOR, GUYS AND DOLLS, and YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN.  DeLuca says he always yearned to be a character actor, though in his twenties, he was often cast in boy ingenue roles. “I grew up worshipping shows like SPAMALOT and actors like Robin Williams, Jim Carrey, and Dustin Hoffman, as well as stage icons, Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.  I’ve always been weird,” he laughs in self-deprecation.  “I love dressing like a woman in TOOTSIE; it’s fun to play both sides of the spectrum. Shape shifting, like Aladdin’s Genie, has always come easily to me.”

DeLuca admits he also thrives on the fast pace and chaos of a production like TOOTSIE.  “I like to play multiple characters, and for some reason, it comes easily to me.”  He waxes enthusiastic about the fun of the logistical challenges of TOOTSIE - the many wardrobe and makeup changes, the need for two vocal registers.  “It is fun to stretch my instrument (my body), but since I have done it before, I am hopefully finding how to stay grounded, conserve energy, and yet play a big range.”

And just like the actor’s ability to “shift shapes,” the movie and musical TOOTSIE have been morphing since the first iteration of the story in the 1982 Dustin Hoffman film. “What makes a good show is how malleable it can be,” De Luca maintains.  In the case of this new production at MSMT, the actor says the designs, the choreography, everything has a fresh spin under the direction of Mark Martino.  “Even though this is a big show with big numbers, there is a more intimate feeling here at MSMT – a sense of inviting the audience into the show.”

But TOOTSIE has changed in other ways since the 1980s.  Much of this shift has been in adjusting the book and lyrics to reflect present-day perceptions to the gender issues the story raises. If the 1982 film was “charmingly dated” in the way it portrayed gender roles and budding feminism, De Luca notes that the book writer, Robert Horn, has carefully updated the show, making changes in the 2019 Broadway musical and again in the scripts used in 2025. Asked what the thrust of these changes are, De Luca replies: “Greater sensitivity in not making Dorothy a stereotype and trying not to make a mockery of men playing women.  The show still has elements of farce, but it is more layered and nuanced,” because Michael is seen as someone who is trying to manipulate the room for his own ends.  We now understand that Michael’s experience playing Dorothy is “just a taste of what it entails to be a woman. I love the line ‘Being a woman is no job for a man.’ Michael is not a bad person – just ignorant; his learning curve is a steep one, [and that combined with] farcical slamming doors and deep, heartfelt moments makes for great theatre.”

De Luca also observes that TOOTSIE differs in one significant way from other musicals about men cross dressing as women. “Shows like KINKY BOOTS or LA CAGE AUX FOLLES are based on men who are homosexuals; in TOOTSIE Michael is a straight, white guy trying to make his way in the theatre world, and he learns there are consequences to his actions. He learns from his castmates; as Dorothy, he stands up to Ron and improves the television show by changing old tropes about women. But the irony is that he is helping women through deceptive means.  Nothing is black and white.”

As DeLuca sees it, it is this “course correcting in real time” that makes TOOTSIE so relevant. “It’s the transformation and Michael’s desire to be a better person that are so compelling. True, he makes so many wrong choices, but, hopefully, he ends up learning a lot of lessons.”

Asked what he hopes the audience will take away from TOOTSIE, Dan DeLuca answers, “Celebration! This is a big, funny musical that is completely joyous.  I hope we [our production] can create a safe space where everyone can come and have a good time. There is no better place than the theatre to share an experience as a community – with humanity gathered face to face, collectively laughing, clapping together.  I am so honored to be able to perform this role here.”

Photo courtesy of MSMT, Jared Morneau, photographer

TOOTSIE runs from June 25 to July 12, 2025, at MSMT’s Pickard Theater on the Bowdoin College campus, 1 Bath Rd., Brunswick, ME  www.msmt.org  207-725-8769