Pierce Brandt's Golden Day Interview in three parts
with Leslie Henstock, Adam Overett, and Andrew Ragone from the Broadway touring company of A Light in the Piazza.

Leslie Henstock, Adam Overett, and Andrew Ragone were recently in the cast of the Broadway tour of The Light in the Piazza. These are three ambitious young actors who have had their well-deserved shares of success in the “business of show,”and have some intriguing stories to tell about their experiences in their constantly changing and evolving careers.

Through speaking with Leslie, Adam, and Andrew, it’s clear that a life in the world of professional Broadway theater is, at its core, what each of them makes it out to be from their own unique perspective. While there are undoubtedly some similarities in their experiences of being New York actors making their way in a challenging business, it seems the way their individual careers have unfolded has been driven by each of their own personal intentions and expectations which are rooted in some form of the outlook that “somehow, it always works out.”Sounds like a great recipe for success to me.

I met up with Leslie, Adam, and Andrew over dinner before their performance of …Piazza at the stunning Paramount Theater in downtown Seattle. The interview turned out to be so much fun and so full of stories, that I’ve had to break it down into three parts so that it’s not such a long read all in one shot.

Part Two: Adam Overett

Adam understudied the leading role of Fabrizio in …Piazza, his first Broadway gig. He joined the Broadway company of the show at Lincoln Center in March of 2006, and has had a great ride going from the coveted boards of Lincoln Center to the famous stages of many of the country’s great cities. Having received a double degree in music and dramatic literature at Yale, Adam is also a writer and composer. Wow. He’s not simply a “triple threat,”he’s a quadruple threat. Actor, singer, writer, composer. And who knows, he’s likely a great dancer, too, but we don’t get to see that in …Piazza. Look out Great White Way. With a clear passion for what he does, whether it’s onstage or with paper and pen (or keyboard), Adam’s passion and excitement for his work make it clear that he is one up and coming theater professional to watch.

Pierce: When did you first know you had an interest in theater?
Adam: It must have been around first grade, when my school teacher played the recording of Cats for my class. I remember thinking, “Wow! These characters are singing songs as part of a story!”I immediately became fascinated with story songs more than any other kind of music. I used to listen to Cats in my Grandmother’s attic and I would wish so sincerely that somehow it had been me that had created this great thing and that I was performing in it as well. From there, I joined a children’s choir and got involved doing school plays and musicals. I think I knew pretty early in life that this was the kind of thing I wanted to be doing for the long term.

Pierce: When did you see your first Broadway show?
Adam: When I very young ­–young enough that I don’t remember this –my parents took me to see Annie on Broadway. According to my parents, during the scenes with Miss Hannigan, who is the sketchy character that runs the orphanage, I would jump in my Dad’s lap and cover my eyes. She was scary! Later, but still a child, I saw the touring production of Cats. The day before the show, I made my parents take me to the bookstore to get T.S. Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. I scoured it and memorized it so that the next day I could follow along with the show.

Pierce: When did you first start thinking that this was something you wanted to do professionally?
Adam: It just grew out of a life long obsession. Starting at a very young age ­–again, so young that I don’t even remember it –I was fixated on music and would sit for hours each day listening to music, especially theater music. Before long, as a result of the confidence and sense of self I gained as a performer from being in the children’s choir, I was being picked for solos with symphony orchestras and operas. Their support and encouragement made me realize that this was something I could do, and do it well. And, my desire to be a composer/writer went hand in hand with my desire to perform.

Pierce: Was there any person who influenced and inspired you?
Adam: There were more than one: the conductor of my children’s choir, all my teachers in school and, as far as well-known figures, I have to say Stephen Sondheim and Meryl Streep. Sondheim’s Into the Woods blew everything out of the water for me, and made me so aware of what musicals can be. And, Meryl Streep, well, no one can touch her. She has such an amazing ability to transform herself into any character, and that’s the kind of acting prowess that I aspire to.

Pierce: Tell me about your first experience of living in Manhattan.
Adam: I moved to New York City right out of college, and it was a scary experience at times. My first priority was to make sure I could pay my bills. So, for the first six months or so, I worked for my alma mater, Yale, putting together a big benefit event that celebrated alumni in the arts. My own theatrical pursuits were somewhat on hold during this period, but being a part of this event was very inspiring for me, and it got me really jazzed up about the business.

Pierce: Okay, now the nitty-gritty of living in Manhattan as an actor. Did you ever have a “bread and butter”job?
Adam: I’ve actually had some great “bread and butter”jobs. One was assisting director and writer Richard Maltby, which was a fantastic opportunity for me to learn more about writing. It was a great gig but, like any job that’s good, it requires its own time and energy, and it became difficult to balance that with really pursuing work as an actor full time. Later, I got a job transcribing audio tapes for news networks. I love the news and I love to type, so it was easy for me. And, I enjoyed the set schedule that I could rely on; I always knew or could plan when I needed to be available for auditions. After a while, however, that job got a little numbing! I have a hard time sticking with things that I don’t find stimulating. I have to say that I’ve never been in truly dire straits, but there have been plenty of times where I would think, “What am I going to do? Nothing is panning out. How am I going to keep pursuing this dream?”But, I’ve always stuck it out, and it has paid off.

Pierce: What’s your favorite thing about New York City? And, what’s your least favorite?
Adam: Fave: the pace, the energy, and the fact that it’s like eternal college where you’re surrounded by brilliant, fascinating, passionate, driven people. Least fave: the money part. I tell my friends that there’s a sort of New York challenge when you move there. It’ll do its best to kick your ass. It’s like, “Are you really ready to pay this for rent?”“Are you really gonna deal with this weather?”And then once you get past that, it’s like, “Okay, I can do this!”

Pierce: Now on to life in …Piazza. Tell me about the first time you went on as Fabrizio.
Adam: After I got the job in the Lincoln Center company of …Piazza, I didn’t go on as Fabrizio for about a year, and that was once I had joined the tour. I had plenty of rehearsal time, but the whole time I was convinced that my first time performing in front of an audience would be a disaster. I had never been an understudy before. However, the first time on as Fabrizio was probably the most fun I’ve ever had in the business. It was exhilarating. All the work that I had done came together in a new way, and I was captivated with the experience of being able to be within the world of the story of …Piazza in a way that I had never been before, in a way that understudy rehearsals just couldn’t prepare me for. Being in the show with all the actors and the full sets, lights, costumes, and orchestra …it makes a world of difference in creating and being able to really live the story. And, I also had the comfort of having Leslie [Henstock] as Clara for my first performance. Since we were both understudies, we had always rehearsed together, so it was really nice to do it “real”for the first time with Leslie. All in all, it was a true thrill ride from beginning to end.

Pierce: Do you have any hobbies outside of performing and writing?
Adam: Those take up most of my time, but my other interests are the New York Times; I’m a big news junkie and also a political junkie. I love politics. I think I’d like to be a Supreme Court Justice in another life. I also do crossword puzzles obsessively.

Pierce: What’s next for you after …Piazza?
Adam: Besides going back to New York and auditioning, I have a show that I’ve written that I’m working on mounting. It’s called Call it Courage. There’s a theater company in New York that is interested in it, and I want to start preparing it for next year.

Leslie: And someday he’s going to cast all his friends in his show!

Adam: Yes, well maybe, but not with this show unless you’re having Polynesian transplants! The show takes in the South Pacific. But I guess that calls in the whole Meryl Streep transformation thing…you can do that, right?!

Pierce: Well, maybe. That’s a wrap! Thanks Adam.

[For Part One with Leslie Henstock, see the article posted August 15. Come back in a couple of weeks for Part Three with Andrew Ragone.]