What I've Learned From BROADWAY

The inspiration my first Broadway show gave me, the dreams I've fought to keep alive and thriving, and the discipline learned along the way.

The first Broadway show I ever saw was “Mamma Mia.”

I was 18 on a high school class trip. It was my first time visiting New York after growing up in musical theater. On that trip, we did a class where we had the opportunity to perform scenes with Broadway actors. We saw “Mamma Mia” on a real broadway stage, and saw “Madama Butterfly” at the Met.

That trip changed me. All of a sudden, there was this magical new hope for my future.

ME ON THAT TRIP, LOOKING AT ALL THE THEATERS AROUND ME:

Could singing and being on stage actually be a real JOB that pays MONEY?

THE UNIVERSE RESPONDING BY SHOWING ME DOZENS OF WORKING ACTORS MAKING A LIVING ON BROADWAY:

“Yes, young Melissa. It can be a job… But it’s HARD WORK.”

I could barely wrap my teenage brain around how many theaters there were in Manhattan. How could so many theaters be so close in proximity? And how was it possible that they were filled with audience members 8 shows a week?

I loved the hustle and bustle of New York City… The way people weaved in and out as they circulated through Time Square. I loved the big marquees and flashing lights. It was all so vibrant and exciting. Even more exciting was knowing that there was appreciation in the air for the creative arts in a way I’d never felt before. There were soon to be audience members in every restaurant and cafe, finishing their meals and getting through those theater doors before each respective curtain went up.

It was an expansive moment for me, just as I was about to enter adulthood. I remember trying to calculate how many working performers must exist in this city alone. They did a show almost every night of the week, most of them on year long contracts. This was their main job. I knew actors in Hollywood were famous and made lots of money, but this was different. Most people in New York would never be recognized out on the street, they weren’t famous per se, but they were working on Broadway.

I thought I would run off to New York as soon as I could, but that didn’t end up being my path. Instead, I ended up in Los Angeles 2 months after graduating high school - In Santa Monica more specifically, going to a junior college there and trying to figure out my next moves. I did a lot of theater in college, met a lot of amazing people who would go on to be lifelong friends. But it became clear in the first few years of living on my own in Southern California that I had a lot of learning to do still.

I ran into vocal issues (which I will talk about more in another essay) when I was just entering my early 20’s, and realized I needed to continue my training - I had a lot of years of voice lessons under my belt already, but I was so young still. It’s funny to look back on it now, how big of a gut punch that felt like at the time. I was a strong singer already when I moved to LA - I thought I had this singing thing figured out… But my adult body and voice was still in the growing and developing stage.

I had no idea just how much growing I had ahead of me.

I was in a production of “Evita” at Santa Monica College playing the Mistress, who has one beautiful song in the show (the most beautiful piece of music in that whole score, in my humble opinion.) The song, “Another Suitcase in Another Hall,” proved to be more challenging than I thought it would be, on top of all the demanding ensemble singing I was doing as well. The song was beautiful and heartbreaking - a delicate, thoughtful piece to perform - A far cry from the big belty numbers I was used to popping out as a teenager.

Outside of rehearsals and doing the show, it was also a time in my life where I was discovering a deeper love for rock and pop music. I had sung in a recording studio before, but now that I was living in LA, I was being called for that type of work more frequently. I was using my voice in a million different ways, singing and talking constantly. I didn’t realize it, but I had no sense of balance when it came to self care and vocal health.

My voice was quite frankly, overworked. “Evita” at Santa Monica College (and early nodules on my vocal cords,) was my wake up call. That production was what drove me back into my voice lessons with a new teacher that would really help me correct the course.

This is a photo from that production of “Evita” - I see it now and realize what a BABY I was.

It was one of my first big, humbling adult actor experiences. It was my reminder that if I wanted to be the type of singer that was versatile in style, I needed a hell of a lot more control over my instrument. It was a reminder that Broadway musicals are hard work… that you don’t get to walk in and push your way through every rehearsal and performance without repercussions. Singing a Broadway score night after night requires discipline and a deep understanding of vocal style and vocal health. When I was younger, I was resilient with the kind of abandon that comes from being a kid.

I was being called now to grow up and get serious if I wanted to truly pursue this life. I was entering higher stakes productions with a lot more pressure and competition involved, and my ego was certainly being checked. The message was coming through LOUD AND CLEAR.

“Do you REALLY want to compete? Because if so, you need to keep studying your craft.”

Ultimately, that was just the beginning of many moments of humility to come… Many moments of NOT excelling in the ways I thought I would right off the bat… Many moments of my confidence being knocked down a peg or two when things didn’t work out how I thought they would, or I didn’t get a part I thought I was a shoe in for. I had countless rejections ahead of me, as well as big successes that I had no idea would be on the horizon. Sometimes, we take 1 step forward, and 3 back. But eventually, the steps forward start outweighing the drawbacks, if you stick with it and keep on a path towards growing and evolving.

I tell my voice clients now how important those life lessons are if you want to have a career in entertainment. You won’t escape the hard stuff. They rejections will find you, and they will shake you. The ebbs and flows of starting one job, finishing it, and searching for the next is a regular grind that you have to get comfortable with. Feeling inspired and motivated is a skill you have to develop around your work, especially in the in-between moments.

Ultimately, how will you respond to the challenges? Will you crumble and fall apart? Even if a breakdown happens, will you rise up afterwards and continue on with dedication and focus? It all feels so personal sometimes, but ultimately, it’s just part of the biz, as they say. Curve balls will come in all shapes and sizes. Melissa with the early nodules in that production of Evita thought her singing career might be over, but little did she know, it was just beginning.

When I’m on tour with “Mania The Show,” the West End ABBA tribute I have worked with for years, and I get asked in press interviews what ABBA means to me, I always reference that first trip to New York. I fondly remember seeing my first show on Broadway, being introduced to ABBA’s music for the first time. It’s a full circle moment, doing a national tour that performs at many of the same theaters that Broadway tours frequent, singing those very same songs that inspired my teenage heart so many years ago.

That very first show on Broadway gave me a gift. It let me SEE that believing in myself could eventually lead to a life where performing was part of my daily reality… That if I worked hard, singing could actually pay some bills… That if I was willing to put the work in, eventually, I could call myself a working actor.

And damn, does that feel good.

Every time I return to New York now, I am inspired again and again, in the same way I was as an 18 year old walking through time square for the first time. But now, 20+ years after my high school trip, it’s friends and former colleagues working those shows, whether it’s on stage or behind the scenes… It isn’t a dream that feels big, beautiful, and far away anymore. Broadway to me now is an extension of my own community of creators, and making my own Broadway debut is something I still dream about and would love to do at some point in my career, when the right moment and job presents itself.

If I’ve learned anything, it’s that you can never know what opportunity might fall right into your path, when you least expect it.

It isn’t easy breezy. There WILL be hard days… Hard YEARS. You will have to fill in the gaps. You will have times where you feel like you have no traction, no opportunities ahead.

But if you love this? If you LOVE performing and are willing to stick with it and keep creating and collaborating and challenging yourself, your next big opportunity is just around the corner. Don’t give up before you get a chance to experience the breakthroughs. They come to those who persevere. We can only survive what we learn to understand.

So to anyone out there with doubts and fear, I leave you with this:

You can build a career in the unpredictable entertainment industry… With self awareness and hard work, and deciding that no matter what, this is the life you’re dedicated to living, and the dreams you’re dedicated to chasing because those dreams brings you joy.

That’s the key to all of it, actually: The JOY.

Do it for joy. Do it for you LOVE of the craft and being creative. Do it for the 18 year old with big dreams and hopes that doesn’t know any better.

Those dreams inside of you will never diminish if you give them space to exist.