Interview: Arnetia Walker on THE WIZ, DREAMGIRLS, & YES, VIRGINIA

From November 18th-21st, Judson Theatre Company will be presenting a new holiday comedy by Stan Zimmerman & Christian McLaughlin titled YES, VIRGINIA at Owens Auditorium inside the Bradshaw Performing Arts Center. Actress Arnetia Walker stars in the production opposite Mindy Sterling. She has appeared on Broadway in THE SIGN IN SIDNEY BRUSTEIN'S WINDOW, TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA, RAISIN, THE WIZ, and DREAMGIRLS. Her TV credits include: QUANTUM LEAP, NURSES, THE FRESH PRINCE OF BEL-AIR, MAD ABOUT YOU, NYPD BLUE, MALCOLM & EDDIE, JUST SHOOT ME!, THE Steve Harvey SHOW, TOUCHED BY AN ANGLE, CITY OF ANGELS, JUDGING AMY, EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND, and DYNASTY. Her film credits include: THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS, THE WIZARD OF SPEED AND TIME, SCENES FROM THE CLASS STRUGGLE IN BEVERLY HILLS, LOVE CRIMES, FOR LOVE OF THE GAME, and COLLEGE ROAD TRIP. I had the great pleasure of interviewing her about all of this and more.

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To start things off, how are rehearsals going?
AW: I'm very excited. This'll be the third time we've done this production. The first time we did it was a couple of years ago in L.A. at the Dory Theater. Then we did it online for the Judson Theatre Company last year during the pandemic. That was a very new experience for me. Now we get to do it on stage in-person again at the Judson.

How has it been working with your co-star Mindy Sterling?
AW: It's a blast. We both are experiencing memory issues at certain points. So we help each other during that. I mean, the play is a dialogue between the two of us for two hours. It's a tremendous amount of words.

As the whole world is slowly coming out of this pandemic, what does it mean to you to be performing for an in-person audience?
AW: It means a lot. Even the process of acting with someone on Zoom is so different because when you are on stage, you get to see people's expressions and you get to play off of each other. On Zoom, you have to look at the camera. One of our playwrights, Stan Zimmerman, had directed it so that it would kind of mimic a play in order for me to look like I'm looking at her. I can't look at her on the screen. So that was quite an experience where we really had to listen. Then of course, one of the wonderful things about live performance is that you get to feel the audience, and the performance feeds on each other. So you kind of miss that with zoom. There's nothing like a live performance.

Would you mind telling us about your character?
AW: She has been the housekeeper for Mrs. Miller (Mindy's character) for 37 years, which means she raised her kids. Then all of a sudden, the kids are grown and I don't want to say too much about how these two ladies happen to come together on New Year's Eve, because there's quite a twist here. But suffice to say that by the end, both of them realize that they need each other and that they can have their own lives, and don't have to depend on their kids.

Going back to the beginning, how did you first get started in the theatre?
AW: I think I first knew I wanted to be an actress when I was five years old. I saw Doris Day in Calamity Jane. I just thought she was so beautiful. I loved her voice and the way she made me feel. I knew I wanted to make people feel that way. That is a dream that never left me. As little kids, you want to be many things and eventually they fade away or not. When I was 11, I went to live with a brother and his family in New York, and I heard about the High School of Performing Arts. So I auditioned for it, and I got into it as a drama major. That was like the beginning. I got my first Broadway show, which was also a Lorraine Hansberry show. It was The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window. I said "also" because I later did Raisin, which was a musical version of A Raisin in the Sun, which was written by Hansberry too. I got my first Broadway show at 16, that one closed after three days. So then I got cast in Joe Papps' Two Gentlemen of Verona. I was in the chorus, but I worked with some wonderful actors such as Raúl Juliá, Clifton Davis, Jonelle Allen, and Stockard Channing. Even though I was the youngest, I was always fortunate that I've worked with some really fine actors and learn from the best. Same goes for directors too.

How did the opportunity for you to get cast in THE SIGN IN SIDNEY BRUSTEIN'S WINDOW come about?
AW: I was apprenticing at Vinnette Carroll's Urban Arts Corps. her piano player, Neil Tate, pulled me aside one day and said, "Hey kid, can you sing?" I was like, "I think so." He then played a little something for me to sing, which I did. Then he said, "Wow! You really can sing. I'm working on this show that's going to Broadway. I want you to come and audition." So I did, and I got it. That was the beginning of my professional career. It would have almost been the end too, because I was in the School of Performing Arts at the time. I was in the 11th grade, and they had a rule that you could not work professionally while you were attending school because they were training artists. I wanted to be an artist, but I realized the stars that were making the money. So I kind of wanted a bit of both. So I went to the head of the Drama Department and said, "I got a part in a Broadway show." He was like, "Well, Arnetia, you know what the rule is?" I then said, "Yeah, I do. I'm prepared to leave school." He was like, "Let me talk to the board. Let's see if we can work something out." They did, and then I had to keep my grades up, but they let me work. Every day after school, I go over to the theater, do my homework that night, do a show, then get on the train, ride two hours up to the Bronx, get up in the morning, and do it all over again.

In one of your follow-up credits, you got to be the standby for Stephanie Mills as Dorothy in the original Broadway cast of THE WIZ. What was that like?
AW: Doing The Wiz was a wonderful experience for me getting to work with all of those talented people. As for standing by, you're waiting for somebody to be sick to go on and believe me, Stephanie never missed a performance while I was her standby. Then after about a year and a half, I got the role of Benita in Raisin on Broadway when Debbie Allen went out to L.A. So the week that I left, Stephanie took a two week vacation. I don't know if that was a compliment or what.

Well, you at least got to be a part of the creation of a new Broadway musical that's gone on to endure for many years.
AW: Oh yeah. There were several performers in the cast that never made it to Broadway. Like Butterfly McQueen, who played Prissy in Gone with the Wind, was a wonderful lady and she loved me. I loved her too, but she couldn't remember her blocking nor her lines. She didn't make it. Stu Gilliam, who was the original Scarecrow, left right before we went to Broadway. Hinton Battle, who took over for him, literally had maybe a day's worth of rehearsal when we opened. There's so many backstage stories. I mean, it's a wonderful show. I have really had the good fortune of being in some Wonderful Productions.

You're someone who holds the distinction of being the only woman to have played all three of the principal characters in DREAMGIRLS. Would you mind talking about your journey with that musical?
AW: When they were doing the workshops, I had heard about it, but I was out in L.A. at the time. I was a starving actor, and I couldn't afford to go to New York and be in a workshop. Then when it opened on Broadway, it was a sensation, and I borrowed the money for a plane ticket. I think I paid like $10 for standing room only. I stood in the back and I watched this show. I thought it was fabulous. When Jennifer Holliday sang 'And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going', I said, "I've got to do this show." When they were auditioning for the L.A. company, Michael Bennett, Michael Peters, and Bob Avian all came out, and I had really prepared for it. That audition was all day long. I kid you not. When I got cast in it, Bennett didn't know what role he wanted me to play. So he paid me to come to New York and just learn Deena and Lorrell, which I did. Of course I ended up being cast as Lorrell, the comedic role, but I always asked Bennett, "Can I understudy Effie?" He was like, "No, you're all wrong." So when we were in L.A., Lillias White was Jennifer Holliday's understudy. Lillias at this particular performance had gone to Washington D.C. to sing at the Kennedy Center for the president. So she was singing there, but Jennifer was sick. So at around 4:00 on this particular day, Michael Bennett calls me and he says, "Arnetia, you know how you always wanted to be Effie?". I was like, "Yeah", he's like, "Well, you're on tonight. Get over to the theater." So my first performance as Effie, I literally had no rehearsal. Of course, I knew everybody's part and I knew every line of the show. From that point on, I did my regular role and I understudied Effie at the same time. Eventually, Jennifer left the company and then Lillias became Effie. She already had understudied that part, so she already knew the role. So whenever Lillias was out, I would be Effie. I remember one performance, I was standing literally in the wings in my Lorrell costume ready for the overture to begin. Yet, the stage manager came to me and said, "Arnetia, go get into the Effie costume. You're on as Effie tonight." I was already geared up, but my psyche was into Lorrell, but I had to switch it. Theater is very exciting. It's unpredictable and there's no "Cut! Let's do that again." You truly have to be in the moment and you have to go with it.

You also have a ton of film and TV credits on your résumé. Are there any in particular that happen to be among your favorite experiences in that department?
AW: I really enjoyed the time I spent on Nurses. We did three seasons, so you kind of become a family when you work that long and that close with folks. Almost everything I do has a special place in my heart because I've either learned something really important for my being or I met with someone that has made an impression or become a friend for life or just being around talent. Working with talent and pushing others and being pushed as an artist. It's pretty exciting. You never know. So if you're a person that likes surprises, which I do, acting is school. You can't ever say that you're bored. People work for years and years doing the same thing. You can't say that about acting. And you certainly can't say that about the stage.

For those who'd like to have a career in the theatre, where do you think would be a good place to start?
AW: Learn about whatever it is you want to do. If you want to do theater, or if you want to be in film, or if you want to work on television, learn. I started taking these master classes. Programs where professionals just sit, talk, give advice, share how, and I take them. It's almost like you're sitting there talking to Ken Burns or Shonda Rhimes. It's so wonderful. Definitely learn your craft. There's tons of regional theaters. So try to do theater in your city or community, and then go for it.

Arnetia, I thank you very much for devoting your time to this interview. It was great getting to talk to you.
AW: Thank you, Jeffrey. It was very nice of you to have me.

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Judson Theatre Company's production of YES, VIRGINIA will be presented at Owens Auditorium inside Bradshaw Performing Arts Center from November 18th-21st. For more information, please visit: www.judsontheatre.com/yes-virginia/

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