Theater
The two-time Tony winner reflects on her entry into the Broadway big leagues.
Nine months before Sutton Foster turned 28, she won herfirst Tony Award.
The Georgia native had already been a successful theater actor for years, butMilliemade her a star.
Offstage, however, Foster didnt feel quite so sure of herself.
I felt like my reality, my identity, was wrapped up in being a performer.
I was sort of 100% Millie, says Foster, whos now 46.
In the decades since, shes worked to remedy that single-minded focus on the stage.
And now, back to Broadway.
We have 20 Broadway debuts, she says ofThe Music Man.
They’ll ask [for] advice about representation, or what to wear for opening.
That mom gene has flipped on pretty hardcore!
What did life look like for you in 2003, when you were 28?
So I went through a plant phase and started keeping African violets.
I had, like, 20 African violets, and would make more by [propagating them].
And then I went through a goldfish phase.
I had all these crazy types of goldfish.
I was desperately trying to find something.
Her name was Judy Jingles.
How did winning the Tony recalibrate your career?
It was like a dream.
I was born in Georgia, but spent my high school years in Michigan.
How did having Christian join the show change your experience with it?
We were working together, living together, raising goldfish together.
It was actually a really positive, great time.
It was like the first time I was really making a home.
Up until then I [had been] more transient, touring or living out of suitcases.
What was your idea of a splurge back then?
Buying an exotic goldfish, of course!
One of our favorite things to do was to go out [for] a really nice meal.
On a Sunday night after a show, we’d go somewhere fancy.
Do you rememberPer Se?
You get, like, an 11-course meal.
Whose career did you see as something you wanted for yourself?
Ive always admiredPatti LuPone.
I grew up watching her when I was a kid.
I remember seeing her perform at the Carnegie Hall Sondheim celebration.
I was probably 15 or 16 years old, and she sang Being Alive fromCompany.
There was something about Pattis command of the stage that was terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.
One day after my lesson, in walks Patti LuPone for hers.
Has there been a point when you felt like youve truly made it?
I swear to God, I was like, I’ve made it!
I no longer have to drop my laundry off at a laundromat!
What would your 28-year-old self think of Sutton Foster today?
I think she’d be proud of her, that somehow she found her way.
I wish I could tell my 28-year-old self, You will find yourself.
You won’t need 15 goldfish.
You’re going to be OK.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
The Music Manis currently playing at the Winter Garden Theatre (1634 Broadway) in New York City.
This article was originally published onFeb.
