Interview: James Ross in MADAGASCAR-A MUSICAL ADVENTURE at The Growing Stage

The Growing Stage, The Children's Theatre of New Jersey is presenting MADAGASCAR - A Musical Adventure from Friday, April 27th through Sunday, May 20th. The show is based on the Dreamworks Animation Motion Picture. It has a book by Kevin Del Aguila and original music and lyrics by George Noriega and Joel Someillan. This production is under the direction of Stephen L. Fredericks, Executive Director/Founder of The Growing Stage with musical direction by Stephen Fox and choreography by Jillian Petrie.

MADAGASCAR - A Musical Adventure tells the story of Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Melman the Giraffe, Gloria the hip hop Hippo and, of course, those hilarious, plotting penguins as they bound onto your stage in the musical adventure of a lifetime. It follows all of your favorite crack-a-lackin' friends as they escape from their home in New York's Central Park Zoo and find themselves on an unexpected journey to the madcap world of King Julien's Madagascar.

Broadwayworld.com had the pleasure of interviewing James Ross who plays Alex the Lion in the show.

James is honored to be in another production at Growing Stage back-to-back as "Alex the Lion". He was last seen as School Class President (and other characters) in Growing Stage's world premiere of Boy Sees Flying Saucer. James is a proud graduate of Tisch School of the Arts and was previously seen performing for young audiences all over NJ as a member of the Educational Touring Company at George Street Playhouse. He can also be seen in many professional short films submitted for festivals coming soon. Thanks to both Steve's, his immensely talented cast mates, and his family for their relentless support!

Did you see any children's theatre as a youth? If so, what performances do you recall?

I surely did see some great children's theatre as a kid, and they would usually come to our school for assembly's. I can't say I remember a specific performance however. There was nothing actually like Growing Stage in my part of NJ. I will say seeing the Lion King on Broadway at a very young age impacted my understanding and love for theatre.

Is there someone in particular who has inspired in your acting career?

Frankly, my peers who I've worked with in school and in professional productions as cast mates are who inspire me the most. Witnessing another person's talent is breathtaking, but when I realize I have the power to enhance their performance with my own? That is truly inspiring to me when everyone is operating on the same wave-length and generating this force that will take an audience on a journey they'll never forget. I will add that my inspiration for performing at all without a doubt is Michael Jackson. His work ethic, creativity, execution, vulnerability, and pure joy on stage and screen is what caught my eye at age 4 and what I grow to appreciate more and more 20+ years later.

Tell us a little about your time at Tisch.

Like I just mentioned about my peers from school, that was the most beautiful part of going to Tisch. There are dozens of other great acting programs around the country but Tisch's student population was massive, while still having very high artistic and academic standards. In other words, I was constantly surrounded by immensely talented, brilliant people that I learned from and competed with as well, which made me the confident artist I am today. Not to mention amazing faculty, famous and/or working artists who were truly invested in our process , which I've been able to develop and adjust for any production I've worked on since graduating. It also didn't hurt getting to live in and explore New York City , where most performers around the world want to give it a shot, and I got a head start you could say.

We'd love to know about the short films you are in.

I just finished shooting a powerful short film for a Grad Thesis at Temple University entitled The Substitute. The film takes place at a high school and explores the blatant and covert racism that still exists in our society as well as the expectations of fitting in as a minority, told mostly through comedy/horror. I feel like that hybrid genre is being used more and more as a vehicle to discuss such societal issues a la Get Out. I'll also mention a short film I shot in the Fall about a post-apocolyptic world entitled After Downfall with a good friend of mine from Tisch's film school. The quality from actor performance, to camerawork, to storytelling is astounding and I can't wait to see when it makes festival rounds.

How does it feel to be back at The Growing Stage?

I can't really say I'm back at The Growing Stage because I never left, having jumped into this production the day after closing Boys Sees Flying Saucer. Nevertheless, working here has been a pleasure with a team that really gets a lot accomplished being the small staff that they are. I've truly had fun at every rehearsal since getting to know this theatre. My only complaint is that I wish I lived a little closer ! I hope to work with this theater and fellow actors for many more seasons to come and continue to see the smiles on kids faces.

What are some of the challenges of your role as Alex the Lion in Madagascar?

The biggest challenge for me as Alex is the vocal and physical demands his part requires. I sing in the upper register and "roar" a lot while running, jumping, and dancing across the stage. I'm definitely up for the challenge and will be making sure to eat, drink, rest, and warm-up properly. As far as tapping into my inner lion, I think I've got that covered as I've played a few lovable lions in my career thus far!

What would you like Madagascar audiences to know about the production?

I want Madagascar audiences to be ready to get out of their seats and be a part of some hilarious and exciting interactions with the actors. There will be a lot of surprise exits and entrances is all 'll say. Also just be ready to laugh a lot and surely be singing along by the end.

Anything else, absolutely anything you want BWW NJ readers to know!

I just want to say I am grateful to Steve and the rest of the team at Growing Stage for giving me the opportunity for my first major role on a regional stage. I started out doing community theatre in NJ and to comeback full circle as a professional is a milestone I'll never forget in my career. Lastly, I always want to give thanks to my Parents and sister for never wavering in support and giving me all the love I'll ever need to be happy and successful.

You can follow James Ross on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/jrossabe4/.

The Growing Stage, The Children's Theatre of New Jersey is located in the Historic Palace Theatre on Route 183 in Netcong, New Jersey. MADAGASCAR-A Musical Adventure has performances Saturday and Sunday at 4:00 PM. A Special Opening Night performance will be held on Friday, April 27th at 7:30PM. Tickets are $25 for Adults, $20 for Seniors and $15 for Children. To purchase visit their website at http://www.growingstage.com/ or contact the Box Office at (973) 347-4946. Special group rates are available.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of James Ross