Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome to an exclusive cosmic curtain interview with Timmy Lewis. I'm Brian Kitson, head writer of the Cosmic circus and the Cosmic Circus Broadway. And in this interview, Lewis, who plays lowered Farquaad and Shrek the musical, currently on its north american tour, discusses how he made this iconic role his own, what a typical show day looks like for him and how the show has changed over time from the beloved animated film. Thank you so much for listening. Enjoy. Thank you so much for joining us today. We're beyond excited to see Shrek the musical in you as Lord Farquaad, but thank you so much just for being here today and letting us interview you.
[00:00:36] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:00:37] Speaker A: So how has this experience been for you? I know that you were kind of announced 34 weeks ago that this was becoming a national tour. So how's it been for you?
[00:00:50] Speaker B: It's really hard to summarize into words as to how the whole experience has been because there are so many different factors to it. But, like, overall, it's definitely, I mean, a dream come true in a lot of ways because, you know, growing up as a kid, I watched the movies and then I got introduced to the musical when that came out as well. I remember seeing a production of it at a youth theater that I used to do shows at. And I never, for some reason, I just never thought that it was in my future at all because, well, I just didn't think it was going to happen. And so when they announced it, I was excited about the concept of it, but I never necessarily put myself in it. And so now the fact that I'm over, like eight months into the process, including auditions and everything and a workshop and getting to work with our Tony and Pulitzer winning composer and lyricist Janine Dezoria and Dave Vinci there, our incredible creative team, it's just been such a wild ride. And if you had told me a year ago right now that I would be doing this, I would have been like, okay, no way.
That's not a thing.
So being able to be here and sort of look back on how I got here and where I came from, it's been a real blessing in many ways.
[00:02:10] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, this is one of those shows that's interesting because it's something that we grew up on. You know, this is, I remember seeing Shrek in theaters when I was just a kid. So to see a transition, have new life on stage is, is definitely a interesting experience for you. How did your relationships change with Shrek? Having grown up, probably seeing it to now being on stage, is it a different, like, I guess you, you're still connected to it, but in a very different way. What is that relationship been like?
[00:02:41] Speaker B: Absolutely. I think just in terms of analyzing the story, it's been very different just in terms of the meaning of it. So growing up. Growing up, you're watching Shrek and you're like, oh, you know, ha ha, ogren or princess.
That's funny.
[00:02:59] Speaker A: Absolutely.
[00:03:00] Speaker B: But then having been able to really delve into the story and what, what, the message that we are trying to convey has been such a privilege because it has really made me realize how this silly movie, from what I was for, really has a tremendous impact because of the idea that it's about how anyone not only can but deserves to find love, not just romantic love, but also platonic love. Love within yourself.
[00:03:31] Speaker A: Absolutely.
[00:03:32] Speaker B: Just understanding that, like, kids are seeing this and even though they may not realize that it will marinate, hopefully. And that message has been being conveyed for the last 2020 years because it came out for 23 years. Came out in like, oh, one.
[00:03:53] Speaker A: Yeah. So that sounds about right.
[00:03:55] Speaker B: So, so in terms of you, you know, my relationship, I just, it was always a movie that I loved, and the story was, you know, funny and goofy. And so now being able to not only know the story, but then say, all right, now I'm telling the story, that's a, it's a completely different relationship. And it has made me appreciate the story and the meaning behind it so much more. So much more.
[00:04:19] Speaker A: Especially for you. For you. You're playing, like, the quote unquote villain of the story. You know, everybody knows. Laura Farquaad.
How has your view of him as a character changed? Because, you know, as a kid, we see him as, like, the one that we have to defeat and stuff like that. But I'm sure that there's a different relationship now that you're being him.
[00:04:41] Speaker B: Yeah. I mean, like, playing any character as an actor, one of your goals is to not judge your character. No matter how awful the person that you're playing is, one of the goals is to not judge them and to sort of find the human motivations behind the things that they do. So playing the villain is always fun in shows like this because it's just ridiculous and, you know, being big and goofy and silly and just, like, absurdity is so fun.
But, you know, as an actor, you know, you have to find those moments where you actually have to find the truth within that. And so for me, my relationship with the character obviously is different in the way that it's, you know, my relationship with the story has changed in that I've had to find those. Those little inklings of what? Why is he like this? Why does he. Why does he do the things he does? Why does he say the things he does? Why is this so important? And, you know, being able to boil down this ridiculous character that everyone, you know, loves and laughs at and being able to be like, yeah, I'm gonna be that for you. I'm going to be this ridiculous person. But in my head, I'm going, okay, but what does he want to.
And how is he going to get it? And those are the, you know, and so being able to do that and still be like, haha, is hard, right?
[00:06:22] Speaker A: That's a hard balance.
[00:06:23] Speaker B: It is. It really is. Because, you know, it's possible to be big and truthful at the same time.
And so that's kind of the goal for me.
[00:06:34] Speaker A: How did you take this such well known character and kind of make it your own?
[00:06:39] Speaker B: That was. That was really the team. They really encouraged that with everybody, with all of us. They really didn't want us to go towards the original. I mean, obviously, there's so you can only get so far away from it without it being a different character. But in terms of the actual nuances and even the voices and the physicality, there was never any encouragement to be anything like the originals, whether that was the movie or the original musical.
So they very much made sure that we had our own take on these characters. So it wasn't, you know, it's a terrifying thing, sort of stepping into big shoes. Well, littler shoes, I suppose.
But, you know, the original being John Lithgow, hard to beat. And especially in the original highway production, being Christopher Siebere, hard to beat.
But they very much, from the get go, before we even within auditioning, they were very much like, this is not the original.
Do your version. And so that kind of allowed a bit of freedom to say, okay, I'm not gonna do it like them. They don't want me to, so I'm not gonna.
[00:07:59] Speaker A: Is, you know, in the audition process, when they say that, is that almost, like, scary to hear, or is that a. I'm sure it's exciting as well.
[00:08:05] Speaker B: But, yeah, I mean, with. With a show that has such brand recognition, it's kind of all, you know.
[00:08:10] Speaker A: Sure.
[00:08:12] Speaker B: Yeah, it can be. It can. There's definitely a moment where. Where you go, oh, well, what is my version? I've never.
This is the version I've known for over a decade. And so learning that, like, things like learning the music was really hard because a lot of times, what happens on the cast recording versus what's actually in the sheet music can just be different, depending on how that.
[00:08:36] Speaker A: Sure.
[00:08:37] Speaker B: You know, that piece has changed and shifted from workshops to production to production. So when we were in rehearsals, that was kind of the hardest part, because in my head, I had Christopher Siebers, the way he sang the song and so unlearning that and that muscle memory that I had established over the last however many years, the hardest part about it was going, all right, these are not the notes, and it's not that he was singing it wrong all those years ago. It's just that the way that the piece has evolved, they just have realized that, you know, this is how we want the actual melody to go. And so having to focus on that was kind of the hardest part.
[00:09:16] Speaker A: I'm, you know, I've been going to Broadway musicals for a lot of my life, and, I don't know, a lot of the behind the scenes things. So it's always interesting, and I'm sure other people didn't don't realize that there is changes that happen even after a show has been established, that you're always changing and adapting.
[00:09:32] Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah. That's the beauty. That's the beautiful thing about theater. You know, it's like.
I don't know, it might sound pretentious a little bit, but it's like, it really is a living, breathing art form. And even these musicals that we've had for almost, you know, 100 years, they're constantly tweaking and they're playing with things. And, I mean, even, like Shakespeare, people do bridged versions. They change things around, and, you know, it's nice to know that things are never done, which is obviously sort of a double edged sword because you think like, oh, I just want to. Just want it to be finished. I just want to have a piece that's done. But then there's also a beauty in that where you go, oh, this will never be done. This will always have room to improve, and it will change with the time. It'll change with context, because, you know, content is nothing without context. And so being able to see that is really cool, especially in a piece that I've known for so long, seeing that it has the ability to change and go, oh, you know, that affects the way that we look at the way the things.
Looks at the we. Sorry. That makes we create things. So the people in the cast and even audience members who may be creatives, writers, directors, it allows them to look at it and go, oh, I grew up thinking this is one way, and I realized it can change. So now I know that as a creative, as someone who makes things, that I can also do that with my own work.
[00:11:02] Speaker A: And I feel like that also has to add to that responsibility of kind of taking this animated film, this musical that's been around for, like you said, for like a decade and then continuing to change it. There's the people who've loved the original, who love the musical, and they're coming and experienced something different. And while that may, some people may not like that, that does change the experience, and it makes it more exciting for those who are joining and for those who just want to experience something different.
[00:11:30] Speaker B: Mm hmm. Absolutely. I mean, our, it's theater, and it's a comedy, so our biggest, you know, our relationship is with the audience.
So. And we get instant feedback. So if, you know, if a joke doesn't work for this audience, you know, it might work for the next one, but we know it sure as heck didn't work for them.
But there are definitely, I mean, there are definitely people who come into the show expecting it to be the original, and it's not. And they are disappointed. I mean, not gonna beat around the bush on that. There are people who walk in and they think it's going to be one thing, and it's not. And they are not happy about it.
Our show is not for them. It's not.
We are not trying to cater to a specific expectation of anyone.
And while that. I wouldn't say that necessarily alienates people, but that's going to happen with any sort of thing that has brand recognition. If you have something that has been around long enough, and people, especially with the pro shot being available on Netflix, people think it's going to be one way, but that's not. We didn't, we didn't launch this in an effort to be like, hey, we're doing it again.
[00:12:43] Speaker A: Right?
[00:12:43] Speaker B: It was specifically saying, hey, this is a new way. It's different.
And so it's. While there have been the naysayers, the overwhelming response has been positive from people who have never experienced the show or who have experienced the show, and they go, this, you know, I liked this one better because it just either felt more accessible or just, you know, I was able to relate to it better or people who ever experienced it and were experiencing it for the first time and they get to have. They have no expectation. And so that's a really beautiful thing. And then also the kids seeing the kids in the front row with their little ogre years on, it's just like, little things like that that are so, you know, you realize, oh, that's, that's, that's what we're doing it for, is those kids and, and, you know, the people dressed up as Shrek, Fiona, the people who love this story, and they just want to see the story.
That's a really. That's a really nice thing to be able to do for people.
[00:13:45] Speaker A: I think that that is, you know, it speaks to this type of adaptation. Back in November, we had frozen that stopped in here, and it was a different kind of show seeing it than when I go and see pretty woman, because there's the people that know this story and the people who are dressing up and the people who are excited because it is, you get to see the story come to life in front of you, and there's a beauty to that.
[00:14:09] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, there's always a tricky thing with, I mean, like, pretty woman frozen, all movies to musicals, you know, it's gonna be a different experience with a show like shucked. Do you know shucked by chance?
[00:14:27] Speaker A: So I've heard of it, but I have not got to see it yet.
[00:14:31] Speaker B: Sure. Well, so it's going on tour pretty soon, so I'm hoping it comes through so you get a chance to see it. But completely original story. Completely, you know, not based on anything that I know of. And so it's interesting. It's interesting to see how people react to the stories that they know versus the stories that they don't. Sort of the expectations that they have with both.
[00:14:51] Speaker A: Sure.
[00:14:52] Speaker B: Because even frozen, I would love to see what would happen if Frozen were to come back and. But be different because Shrek, when they did it originally, they tried to get it so close to the movie.
[00:15:05] Speaker A: Sure.
[00:15:06] Speaker B: Where Shrek looked like Shrek did as he came off the screen. You know, they, you know, don't.
[00:15:13] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:15:14] Speaker B: You know, you can only do so much with donkey because.
[00:15:16] Speaker A: Right.
[00:15:17] Speaker B: He's got to be a human being.
But they really, I mean, Farquaad from the, like, even the costume design was pretty much a direct replica of the movie.
So, yeah, it is always interesting when audiences experience the stories that they know and whether it be pretty woman or frozen or seeing, having, understanding that they have a relationship and respecting that, but then also knowing that things may be different than you expect.
[00:15:47] Speaker A: You had mentioned about, like, jokes, and it's very audience reactive and stuff like that. How does that impact you as an actor? Like, if you're on stage and a joke goes really well, do you play that up, do you?
What is that for you?
[00:16:02] Speaker B: That. Ha. That's a great question. I was just talking about this with somebody recently because there is sort of an interesting thing that happens where sometimes, and I'm guilty of it myself, if you really feel like you have an audience with you, it does sort of drive you a little harder, and you may start doing things that you've never done before because you are sitting there thinking they think I'm hilarious.
So I'm just gonna. I'm gonna give them a little something extra. And sometimes, yeah, it'll, it'll work. Maybe they'll laugh more. But sometimes you sort of, like, abandon the story and you abandon the intention that you had originally established.
[00:16:43] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:16:44] Speaker B: It can kind of, like, harm you a little bit in that, you know, you start getting a little too cocky about it.
[00:16:50] Speaker A: Sure.
[00:16:52] Speaker B: I got them. They're on my side, you know?
And so it's really important to know that, like, if the jokes are landing and they are with you and they are laughing, it's kind of like, all right, keep. Keep on the path that you're on. Don't try to keep going up. And that's something I have to remind myself of. But on the opposite side, because it is instant feedback. If a joke doesn't work and then the next joke doesn't work, you start to go, oh, no, am I not funny? Is this not funny?
It worked before. It worked in Dallas. But why is it not, you know, like, but then the next day in Austin, it's not. And you're like, how is this? Is it not funny anymore? Then you have to remind yourself. It's just, you know, maybe this audience is sleepy. It's, you know, Tuesday instead of a Friday night.
[00:17:42] Speaker A: It's gonna be different, right? Different. Different crowds, different feedbacks.
[00:17:47] Speaker B: Absolutely. Different demographics, different parts of the country. Different jokes are gonna mean different things to different people. Sometimes the audiences that are filled with kids, we get the biggest curtain call, but the show is quiet.
[00:18:00] Speaker A: Oh.
[00:18:01] Speaker B: Either they're not getting the jokes, or they're getting the jokes, and they're just children, so they're not, like, laughing.
[00:18:07] Speaker A: Sure.
[00:18:09] Speaker B: And so sometimes it can be like, wow, they hated it. And then the bows happen. They are. It's uproarious. And you're going, where have you been this whole time?
I really was reconsidering my career.
[00:18:21] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:18:23] Speaker B: I thought I was bad.
[00:18:25] Speaker A: I was signing my resignation letter right now.
[00:18:27] Speaker B: Like, I put in my two weeks before act two.
But it is really in theater in general, you kind of have to just remind yourself you're doing it right. You wouldn't have this job if you didn't.
And so the relationship with the audience can be. I mean, it's a relationship, and much like any relationship, platonic, romantic, parental, you know, it's gonna ebb and flow. Yeah.
[00:18:55] Speaker A: Okay, so something about Shrek the musical is that they've added music, obviously, to a story that didn't have music to begin with. How do you think that enhances the story overall?
[00:19:05] Speaker B: Well, we are so lucky because our writing team is. Is, I mean, one of the best in the game. I mean, Janine's story is the most awarded female composer of all time. Her music, it spans. You know, she's worked on everything from movies to operas, musicals. She's written music for plays.
And, I mean, I think that was her first Tony nomination, actually, was the music she wrote for a rendition of 12th night.
Oh, my gosh.
And David Lindsay Abert is just a master with words.
Like I said, he won a Pulitzer Prize for drama for his play Rabbit Hole. And they just won the Tonys for best book score and musical for Kimberly Akimbo last year.
[00:19:55] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:19:57] Speaker B: And just the way they work together, it's just.
It's kids middle, honestly, they. So adding music to a movie, you know, it can.
It can go one of two ways. And I think that it has done nothing but serve this story because I think they were able to capture the essence of the story and put it into music in a way that just makes it better.
Not that the movie is not phenomenal, of course. And the soundtrack from the movie is iconic.
The Shrek's. Not. The amount of times, you know, I, growing up and I heard funky town and I was like, oh, this is from Shrek, right? Not. I mean, it is, but it's not all star, like, yeah, yeah, smash mouth. I mean, everyone's like, smash mouth, Shrek. It's like, you know, smash mouth existed before, so they. They were able to.
From. From the very first, from the overture, it just sets you up in this world in a beautiful, beautiful way that I think serves the story perfectly.
Every tune is a bop.
[00:21:11] Speaker A: That's awesome.
[00:21:12] Speaker B: No skip tracks for me.
[00:21:15] Speaker A: I have to say, I have not even seen the pro shot yet, so I'm going into this with a freshen mind. And so I'm so excited to see how it's adapted.
[00:21:22] Speaker B: Yeah, I'm excited for you to see it. I can't wait to hear your thoughts.
[00:21:26] Speaker A: Just. Just a few more questions.
What has maybe been something that surprised you about either your role as Laura Farquaad or your time on Shrek the musical.
[00:21:35] Speaker B: Something that surprised me.
[00:21:37] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:21:40] Speaker B: I think the thing that surprised me the most, honestly, was just how much, like, heart there is in the story.
[00:21:47] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:21:48] Speaker B: How much it really makes me cry.
I really didn't.
I mean, I remember seeing it years ago at the youth theater company that I worked at, and I remember being very sentimental, sentimental about the whole thing.
But I think it wasn't until I really worked on this that we really got to the root of, like, what the piece was saying, that I was like, wow. Everyone thinks it's like, oh, it's just. It's Shrek. You know, not. Sorry, not everybody. But there are. There's, you know, a facet of people that think, you know, you know, it's a movie. It's a kid thing and stuff, and it's sort of not viewed as, like, a really impactful thing. So the thing that surprised me the most was how I have been looking at the. The sort of what I said before about, like, the meaning of the actual, actual meaningful message. And I really was. I really was shocked by how profound it is and how it's said in such a silly and goofy way, how there's, you know, there's a number in act two that is. Would be considered lowbrow. Okay, to some, but it's still, you know, you still walk away and people are crying.
[00:23:09] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:23:10] Speaker B: It's. It's still a beautiful thing. And that's kind of been the most surprising thing about how people will. My friends will see it, and they'll send me a picture of intermission. They're like, I'm crying. I'm like, wow, that's crap. I never thought. I never thought, like, oh, I'm doing Shrek, and people are gonna see it, and they're gonna cry, and they're gonna be moved, like, so profoundly moved by it.
[00:23:31] Speaker A: I mean, it makes sense, though. My mom still can watch Shrek and cry every single time, so.
[00:23:37] Speaker B: Sure, sure. I love that your mom loves Shrek. That's so great.
[00:23:41] Speaker A: Oh, I mean, we grew up on, like, we're an animated family, so, like, that was. That was, you know, all four of them are top notch, you know? And so when I told her this was coming, she was really excited about, like, getting to come and see the show. So what does a typical show day kind of look like for you?
[00:23:57] Speaker B: That's a great question.
It's different every time because it is a tour, and because our tour schedule changes a lot. It can mean anything from, like, today we have a couple new cast members joining us. So exciting. We have a. Yeah, very excited. They're absolutely wonderful.
One of them is temporary while someone is out with an injury, and one of them has left us permanently. And I mean, everybody, everybody, all the people leaving, the people out here, the people coming in, everybody just so phenomenally talented. So we're very lucky that we have been able to work with the people we work with and are going to continue working with the people we work with. And so today they're joining the show, so they have a rehearsal. So, like, today I wake up, maybe I'll do an interview, and then, you know, maybe I'll go to the gym and then do a rehearsal and then do the show. Some days, like yesterday, we traveled from Nashville, so we had to wake up, get on the bus, drive in from Nashville, maybe have a little bit of time to eat, and then go to the theater and do everything. Some days it'll be wake up in Missouri at 05:00 a.m. get on the bus, drive ten and a half hours up to Milwaukee, get off at the theater, don't even go to the hotel, go straight to the theater, go into a show, and then wake up and do a matinee the next day. And then sometimes you have a blessing of a day, which is probably, I think the next time we get one is Friday, where you wake up and you are not called until seven. And so you have the whole day to either sleep in or wake up and go maybe like, grab some groceries or go to the gym as well, or go read. So it really changes drastically day to.
[00:25:57] Speaker A: Day, but you're busy from pretty much start to finish. It sounds like most days you're going, oh, yeah, yeah.
[00:26:04] Speaker B: Sometimes, yeah. We have a stint in Toronto coming up, and that one is going to be pretty nice because it's two weeks in the same spot.
[00:26:14] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:26:15] Speaker B: And it'll be like, just show at night, show at night, maybe a matinee on a weekend, that kind of thing. So that'll be really nice. But there are a couple days, there are a couple weeks in October where I think we have 17 or 18 one nighters. So that means there's like five or six days in a row where it's a different theater every single night.
So we have a show, got to wake up, travel show, makeup drop.
[00:26:39] Speaker A: Oh, so the theater version of like a clopen.
[00:26:44] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:26:45] Speaker A: Closing and opening.
[00:26:46] Speaker B: Absolutely. It's a, it's happy opening, happy closing. You know, set goes up, the show, set comes down.
I mean, God, bless our crew, because they are.
They are. They are the hardest working people around here and can't do it without them. I don't know. I don't know how we do it. I don't know how they do it. I don't know how we do it. I don't know how they do it.
[00:27:12] Speaker A: It's the magic of Broadway, you know?
[00:27:16] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:27:18] Speaker A: And, you know, I just, you know, you've been in so many incredible shows. You know, Christmas story, gypsy spamalot.
What is maybe a dream role for you that you like?
Young Timmy's just always dreamed of being in it.
[00:27:32] Speaker B: Yeah.
In terms of, like, dream shows, I just. I would love to be in wicked someday. I mean, feels the answer, but it's kind of a perfect musical and always has been. That's why it's still around. It's timeless.
But in terms of actual roles, I would love to play the Dy squith family in a gentleman's guide to love and murderous.
[00:27:56] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:27:57] Speaker B: Also, Charlie Chaplin and Chaplin the musical.
[00:28:00] Speaker A: Those are fantastic roles. Well, thank you so much for talking with us and for taking some time out of your day. I look forward to seeing you on Friday at struck the musical, and I hope that you have a good couple of shows coming up.
[00:28:14] Speaker B: Thanks so much. Me too.
[00:28:16] Speaker A: Take care.
