 Sutton
Foster arrived for our interview recounting a disturbing
dream she had the night before.
"They—whoever they were—decided
to take away my dress I wear in the ball scene and give
it to someone else. Then they cut me out of the scene
completely!" she said. "In my dream I was
very upset and confused, because it's a very funny scene,
and a very funny dress, and I was losing all these funny
lines!"
Her nightmare gets worse, as nightmares do, complete
with black-streaked stage makeup and bizarre cameos
from former costars of Foster's last show,
Thoroughly Modern Millie. "When I
woke up I was totally freaked out. Why do these nightmares
have to be so vivid? I hate that!"
In real life, of course, it's highly doubtful Foster
would be cut from anything, especially a pivotal scene
in her latest show, Little Women the Musical.
Fresh from her 2002 Tony-winning role as Millie, Foster
now plays Jo March, the irrepressible tomboy sister,
second of the four beloved archetypes from the Louisa
May Alcott classic. The character of Jo is famously
based on Alcott herself: a strong-willed, somewhat awkward,
ambitious teenager who grows into womanhood tackling
life—including family, responsibilities, and suitors—strictly
on her own terms.
"I honestly feel like I'm most one with Jo,"
she said. "The sisters are all so different, and
so specific. I'm not a Meg, I'm not a Beth—I don't
know if anyone is a Beth! Amy ... well, maybe, because
I was a bit of a terror when I was a child. But like
Jo, I was always inviting friends over and writing scripts
and making them act in these sort of murder-mystery
plays, whether they wanted to or not. Jo's an incredible
character to play. It's been really fun getting to know
her more and more—because every night you perform
it, you learn more and more about the part you're playing."
Little Women the novel needs
little introduction. A beloved classic, this Civil War
chronicle of the March family has been passed down mother
to daughter, sister to sister, for well over a hundred
years. But this tradition, Foster thinks, will not limit
the audience for the current Broadway show.
"When people think of Little Women,
they're like ah, chicks, girls—but I really think
that's a misconception," she said. "This show
surprises people. My boyfriend has seen the show, and
he's a man, and he was so moved and touched and taken
with it. It definitely has four women, four girls. But
so much is happening! It's about love, and humanity,
and sacrifices, and loss and hope. It doesn't matter
if you're a man or a woman; I think it touches all people."
Little Women the Musical has
also proven to be something of a reunion for Foster
and one of her costars, Danny
Gurwin, who plays Laurie.
 "I
grew up with Danny!" she laughed. "In Detroit
there was a children's luncheon theatre called The Peanut
Butter Players. Every week you'd put on a show and you'd
serve lunch—mainly hot dogs—then you'd go
and do the show. Danny and I were both members. And
his mother, Nancy Gurwin, was one of the heads for the
Jewish Community Center theatre. I did several productions
there with Danny and his mom. So we grew up together!
But this is the first time we've worked together professionally
since we've moved to New York. I keep bringing in photos
of us as children and videos of us doing shows. They're
very frightening and embarrassing! But it's thrilling
to come full circle like that—it's been fifteen
years."
Fifteen years is a somewhat sobering statistic, considering
Foster's reputation of being a plucked-from-the-ensemble
overnight sensation. Modestly, she does not dwell on
it, but it's clear she's experienced much of the long,
difficult slog her character Jo likewise endures, pursuing
her dream of becoming a famous writer.
"If you don't dream big, you'll have regret in
your life," she said, sounding very much like a
certain Jo March. "Dream big, go for it, and fulfill
your dreams. If you don't even try, you'll regret it.
Later in life, you'll be saying, 'Oh, if only...'"
"When I go see a Broadway show—I know it's
a lot, but I want to be changed," she continued.
"I want to be affected in a way that my life is
different when I leave the theatre. It's a lot to ask
for. I wish that on every show—that you go to
a show and you leave thinking about things that you
didn't think about before, that it stays with you. And
I think that this show has an enormous potential to
do that. I think this show will take people by surprise.
They won't expect to be as moved as they will be."
Okay, obligatory Tony question: Where does she keep
her award?
"My Tony award is above my computer desk,"
she admits. "It's very inconspicuous. When I first
won I thought I' was going to put it in the corner with
lights, and when you walked by music would play and
it would spin. But it's sort of hidden on a shelf. It's
got a little fuzzy bear with pinchers attached to it.
Darth Vader is lightsabering it, and Darth Maul is lightsabering
it from the other side, so it's part of some action."
That's exactly the sort of blood 'n' guts answer you'd
expect from a Jo March....
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