By BARBARA HOFFMAN
June 25, 2007 -- SHE'S been courted by a beast and chomped by a plant. But neither "Beauty and the Beast" nor "Little Shop of Horrors" prepared Kerry Butler for the hell on wheels that is "Xanadu."Broadway's spin on the Olivia Newton-John roller flick claimed its first casualty two weeks ago, when co-star James Carpinello broke his ankle in two places, prompting a new opening night (July 10) and a new male lead (Cheyenne Jackson).
Days after the rehearsal that sidelined Carpinello - who played the artist to Butler's muse - she seemed shaken.
"He moved his whole family to be here, and we love him," she says. "He's the best skater of all of us! He would check my skates for me every day and warn us about things." It was while showing the others a place onstage where their skates could get stuck that he went down.
But accidents, the 36-year-old trouper reveals over a veggie burger at an Upper West Side diner, are hardly news on Broadway.
"In 'Hairspray,' " - where Butler played nerdy Penny Pingleton - "they'd pop their knees and hurt their necks. In 'Little Shop,' the giant plant was so heavy, the puppeteers were always getting back problems. In 'Blood Brothers,' one of the set pieces came down, hit a girl on the head and they rushed her to the hospital.
"Susan Egan" - the Beast's first Belle - "broke her arm and went through previews that way! Once I was on the castle and the lightboard started coming down on top of me and I had to get down on the floor."
Little wonder Butler - who calls herself "one of the most uncoordinated people you'd ever meet" - was a little antsy about all that skating.
"I have a great coach," she says. "Before we started, they gave me three hours a week of skating lessons for a month in a little studio on 72nd Street.
"So I go to rehearsals thinking I'm pretty good and then I realize, I can't skate around someone! For the first month of rehearsal, I didn't even act - I just concentrated on skating."
Initially, the entire cast was supposed to roll around in the finale. But at the first day of rehearsals, she says, the over-40s - Tony Roberts and Jackie Hoffman among them - were proclaimed exempt.
"Jackie cried," Butler recalls. "Tears of joy!"
But while the skating's been tricky, channeling Newton-John has thrilled her.
"She and Donna Summer taught me how to sing!" Butler says. "She's my muse!"
Growing up in Bensonhurst, she made a few commercials before her mom yanked her out of showbiz. But at 9, Butler found "Annie" and begged to be in it.
Many auditions later, she says, the principal of her parochial school went on the PA and said, "Everybody, pray for Kerry Butler - she has a final callback today for 'Annie.' "
One classmate, a future Muppeteer named Joe Mazzarino, wasn't buying it.
"I'm not praying for that," he said, "That's stupid!"
Ten years ago, they got married anyway. (And no, she didn't get the part.)
Recently, the couple adopted a little girl from Ethiopia named Segi.
"I used to skate around the apartment," Butler says. "We'd put on music and she'd dance, I'd skate.
"Now, every morning, she says, 'Skate? Skates?' "
She smiles. "We're getting her a pair!"
(Source: New York Post | Theater | Rolling Wonder)
Want to watch "Xanadu"? CHECK WHERE IT IS ON!!!
Or, BUY A CD OF THIS SHOW
.
No comments:
Post a Comment