Hello Beautiful People,
At the risk of sounding cheesy…well, no, I know I’m going to sound cheesy, Jennifer Ashley Tepper has changed my life for good. And yes, you musical theater lovers, that Wicked pun was definitely intended. She’s by far one of the hardest working people I’ve ever met, and I will constantly marvel at how she does it all. Jen has this uncanny ability to bring out the best in all of her colleagues, artists, and friends – just hanging out with her for five minutes will make you want to work harder at your craft – whatever that may be. But one of the most beautiful things about Jennifer Ashley Tepper is that even when she’s running on three hours of sleep, with nothing but caffeine running through her veins as she runs down Broadway or 8th Avenue, she remains kind. Gracious. Compassionate. Loving. Her intense, infectious, unending passion for musical theater never wavers for a second, and she always seems to be ten steps of everyone else. I am honored to be able to call this visionary a friend and a colleague, was thrilled to feature her in our Movers & Shakers Q&A Series, (as there is no doubt that she is the Mover & Shaker of the Great White Way), and I am over the moon, overjoyed, and just all sorts of happy to feature her in our School Time Author Q&A Series, as The Untold Stories of Broadway, Volume I, is something that everyone, and I mean everyone, will be able to treasure.
MM: When did you first get the idea for The Untold Stories of Broadway?
JAT: The idea for the book, a collection of stories about each of the Broadway theaters taken from interviews with hundreds of theatre professionals, had been percolating in my head for a while… definitely a couple of years. I’ve always been obsessed with not just shows, but the Broadway theaters themselves, and as I worked in more of them, and spoke to more people about their memories of them, the idea for the book grew… into a pitch to publishers!
MM: Growing up, what books/authors did you gravitate towards?
JAT: There were so many books that were important to me as I was growing up. Theatre-wise, some of the most important ones were Not Since Carrie, by Ken Mandelbaum, Everything Was Possible: The Birth of the Musical Follies, by Ted Chapin, Ghost Light, by Frank Rich, and Underfoot in Show Business, by Helene Hanff.
MM: What do you hope people come away with after reading The Untold Stories of Broadway, Volume I?
JAT: I hope people come away feeling more entranced by the magic of Broadway, more in touch with the reality of Broadway, and more familiar with the community of Broadway that is anchored in the center of New York City, and what that community of people is like.
MM: If you had to name a favorite (or three favorite) Broadway shows that went from the page to the stage, (ones that started as novels and wound up as either plays and/or musicals), which ones would you choose?
JAT: That’s a good question! Some of my favorite musicals that were adapted from novels are Ragtime, Wicked, Les Mis, Little Women, The Secret Garden, South Pacific, Flora The Red Menace, 42nd Street, Giant, Henry Sweet Henry, High Fidelity, Once On This Island, and Big River. (Okay, that was more than 3.)
MM: How does one juggle a full-time job and produce multiple concerts, while simultaneously writing their first book?
JAT: You know… This has been one crazy, magical, epic year, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything! That said, I’ve really missed sleeping, seeing shows, and spending time with family and friends. Not necessarily in that order. There have been a LOT of 20-hour work days! I think how you do it is you just make sure that everything you’re doing is something really important to you, and you plan your life so that you know there will be a time in the future when you’ll be able to do things like sleep again.
MM: How did you prep for the interviews, and what’s the wildest place you held an interview?
JAT: I prepped for the interviews by coming up with original questions for each interviewee, based on their Broadway credits, theaters they’d worked in, and information I knew about their careers. One challenge was to come up with original questions for some of the legends who had clearly been interviewed many times before!
There were many cool places I held interviews, from Broadway dressing rooms, to interviewee’s apartments. Maybe one of the wildest ones was interviewing William Ivey Long in the depths of his costume shop. I got to hear stories about his Tony Award winning shows, while surrounded by his Tony Award winning costumes! That was awesome.
MM: What made you focus on the Al Hirschfeld, Marquis, Lyceum, Winter Garden, August Wilson, Neil Simon, Richard Rodgers, and Mark Hellinger Theatres in this first volume?
JAT: Ah! I’m happy you asked that. It was the hardest decision!! Of course, the number of theaters in the book (8) was based on the length the book needed to be, but the Shubert was the last to be cut, and that was so hard! Luckily there are more volumes coming up!
I featured the theaters that I had collected the most diverse range of stories about. For example, I have a ton of incredible stories about the Nederlander, but there’s a ten-year span that I had not interviewed anyone about yet. And I had great stories about the Shubert, but hadn’t spoken to an original cast member of A Chorus Line. I had an amazing collection of tales about the Imperial, but it’s one of the Broadway theaters I have never been backstage at, so I’ve never explored myself. The 8 theaters in the first book I felt I had full pictures of… but there are so many Broadway theaters I still have to more fully explore!
MM: There are 200 interviews that you’ve completed thus far. Are there any interviews in particular that gave you a completely different insight into the world of theater that you know so well?
JAT: I loved, loved, loved interviewing Rey Concepcion and Rose M. Alaio. Rey is the doorman at the Marquis, although right now he’s at the Neil Simon, and Rose is the doorwoman at the Shubert. They are two of the most popular people on Broadway, and man do they have some amazing stories and insights! I will definitely be interviewing more doormen and women for Volume 2!
MM: If you had to offer a piece of advice to aspiring writers, what’s the one thing you would tell them, knowing what you know now?
JAT: Write! Just write and write and keep writing. Write about what inspires you, and surround yourself with friends and community that inspire you as well.
MM: What can readers expect from The Untold Stories of Broadway, Volume II?
JAT: They can expect so many more outrageous, heart warming, hilarious, and surprising stories about Broadway! It honestly kills me how many stories I have that haven’t been able to be shared yet, about the theaters in upcoming volumes. I cannot wait to share the Rent stories!! There’s a story in the Barrymore chapter that I can’t get through without crying. Joe Mantello was one of my favorite interviewees, and he’s barely in the first book, because the featured theaters weren’t the ones we spoke about in our interview. There’s so much more to share!
MM: Lets fast forward ten years. Picture this – there’s a young teenage girl from Boca Raton, Florida, who’s coming to the Big Apple to see her first Broadway show. What do you hope she finds on the Great White Way?
JAT: I hope she finds new musicals that are filled with heart and guts and originality. I hope she finds theater that really means something, and isn’t just a way to pass the time in between the Statue of Liberty and the Met. I think she will.
Thank you, Jennifer!
Now all you Write Teacher(s) Readers – be sure to get yourself a copy of The Untold Stories of Broadway TODAY.
Live, Love, Learn,
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