My reason for leaving 'Beautiful', because I had such an amazing time on that show, was by the time I left, I had been doing the show for almost two years. I was a little burnt out.
I grew up watching the films of 'Carousel' and 'Oklahoma' and 'The Music Man' and 'My Fair Lady' - all the classic musicals of that golden era, The sort of more modern musical theater, or what was modern when I was at a ripe teenage age, I wasn't really listening to that stuff. I was really more raised on the classics.
I watch Renee Fleming a lot. I listen to Renee Fleming a lot. She was like my built-in master class.
The thing that gives me great hope is that I think, if anything, our world now is ready to be, like, 'This stuff happens.' We're not trying to pretend like terrible things don't happen, that uncomfortable situations, uncomfortable behavior, unhealthy behaviors don't occur in our daily lives.
My dad listened to a lot of James Taylor when I was growing up. We had a couple of his cassettes in the car, and we'd go on a lot of long family car trips. It was either strange musicals or James Taylor - or Whitney Houston. It was quite the combination there.
'What's the Use' is normally done with all the women onstage with Julie. Sometimes it's staged as a 'lay at my feet, dear children, and let me tell you the ways of life.' We felt like that wasn't really what was going on.
I always loved playing the sidekick, and that's what I expected - I didn't think I was pretty enough or diva enough to play the lead.
My first professional gig was 'Once Upon a Mattress' at the Drury Lane Oakbrook... I was in the ensemble. I was one of the ladies in waiting, and I covered Winnifred.
Directors didn't know what to do with me in college. I didn't really sound like a belter. I didn't look like a soprano. But in New York, I was in the right place at the right time, where my unusualness fit the bill.
In school, I really felt like I didn't fit a type. I think everybody had a hard time putting me in a category. They all sort of realized, 'Hmm, you don't really look like a soprano. You're not really a character belter.'
I always thought moving to New York would mean starting over in theater, because I had great work in Chicago and didn't want to become a waitress here.
I went to Syracuse University.
