Facebook Twitter Instagram
    • Services
    • Aircheck for Actors
    • Demo Reels
    • Audition Prep/Self-Tape Reader
    • Mailing Labels
    • Contribute
    • Industry Links
    • Advertise
    Daily Actor
    • Acting Tips
      • Actors on Acting
      • Advice Columns
      • Acting Quotes
      • Audition Tapes
      • How To Become An Actor
      • How to Memorize Lines
    • Monologues
      • Monologues from Plays
      • Monologues from Movies
      • Monologues from Musicals
      • Comedic Monologues
      • Dramatic Monologues
      • One Minute Monologues
      • Monologues for Women
      • Monologues for Men
      • Monologues for Teens
      • Monologues for Kids
      • All Monologues
    • Acting Resources
      • Acting Resume
        • Acting Resume Template
      • Acting Classes
        • Los Angeles Acting Classes
        • Las Vegas Acting Classes
        • San Diego Acting Classes
      • Acting Schools and Colleges
        • Los Angeles
        • New York
        • BFA Acting Schools
      • Casting Websites
      • Headshot Photographers
        • Los Angeles
        • New York City
        • Headshot Printing
      • Acting Techniques
        • What is Method Acting?
      • Stage Directions
      • Demo Reels: Everything You Need to Know
    • Interviews
      Featured
      Casting Director Interview - Brett Benner and Debby Romano

      Interview: Casting Directors Brett Benner and Debby Romano Talk ‘Shrinking’, Finding Actors and More

      Recent
      Casting Director Interview - Brett Benner and Debby Romano

      Interview: Casting Directors Brett Benner and Debby Romano Talk ‘Shrinking’, Finding Actors and More

      March 6, 2023
      Jeremy Davis Olaf in Frozen Interview

      Interview: Jeremy Davis on Playing Olaf in ‘Frozen’, Costume Mishaps and Making the Role His Own

      January 19, 2023
      Casting Director Kim Coleman Interview

      Interview: Casting Director Kim Coleman on ‘Five Days at Memorial’, Self-Tape Tips and Portraying Real People

      January 11, 2023
    • Actor Blogs
    • Reviews
      • Movies
      • Theater
      • Books
      • Products
    • Actor Services
      • Airchecks
      • Demo Reels
      • Website Design
      • Mailing Labels
    Daily Actor
    Home » Actors on Acting » Audra McDonald and Leslie Odom, Jr. on Their Broadway Breaks
    Actors on Acting

    Audra McDonald and Leslie Odom, Jr. on Their Broadway Breaks

    Chris McKittrickBy Chris McKittrickJune 28, 2022No Comments2 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Photo Courtesy of Deposit Photos

    “Man, you really want to be prepared when that opportunity comes.” – Leslie Odom, Jr.

    Shortly before Audra McDonald and Leslie Odom, Jr. hosted the long-delayed 74th Annual Tony Awards last year, the Tony Award-winning pair interviewed each other about their big breaks on Broadway for Interview magazine. While acknowledging that both of them appeared to be “overnight sensations” because of their first major Broadway roles, the duo spoke candidly about the work that they put in before audiences began to notice them.

    Odom admits that he was very hungry for attention by the time Hamilton came around, but points out that he ended up doing “damn near nothing” to figure out the role. He explains, “I think I was afforded something you weren’t, in that I got to work my stuff out in the dark for so many years. Nobody was paying attention for so long, so I was in the woodshed. I was still growing, still trying to figure out how to work more, and how to find my way into better rooms. When I got presented with a masterpiece, which is what Lin [Manuel-Miranda] gave me, I felt like I knew what to do with it, which is damn near nothing. You and I both know, you have to do so little. I trusted the material more than anything.”

    When it comes to getting your big break, Odom confesses that it’s difficult to advise someone on how they can get there. He says, “It’s such a hard thing to tell people, because you don’t want the advice to be, ‘I got lucky, you should too.’ You don’t want that to be the advice, but man, you really want to be prepared when that opportunity comes.”

    McDonald picks up on that thread by adding that what young, hungry actors have on their side — creative energy. She says, “When you start out in this business, it’s like, ‘Career, career, career, career.’ In some ways you feel very fertile, as far as what’s going on with your career. Even if you’re not super successful, you’re fertile with your creativity.”

    Related

    Previous ArticleThe Cast of Emmy-Contender Short Form Series STRUT: “Every character is a human first”
    Next Article Brian Cox on Method Actors and Why Acting ‘Doesn’t Have to Be a Religious Experience’

    Related Posts

    Jeremy Strong in Armageddon Time

    Jeremy Strong: “There’s infinite ways really to play any part. So you have to discover what feels necessary”

    March 14, 2023
    Christina Ricci

    How Christina Ricci Chooses Her Characters and Why She Loves ‘Yellowjackets’

    March 9, 2023
    Casting Director Interview - Brett Benner and Debby Romano

    Interview: Casting Directors Brett Benner and Debby Romano Talk ‘Shrinking’, Finding Actors and More

    March 6, 2023
    Add A Comment

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Daily Actor Facebook Daily Actor Twitter Daily Actor Instagram Daily Actor Pinterest Daily Actor YouTube Page
    Popular Pages
    Become An Actor | Acting Tips | Acting Quotes
    Acting Resume | Resume Template
    Headshot Photographers
    Los Angeles | New York
    Print Your Headshots
    Acting Schools & Colleges
    Los Angeles | New York
    Monologues
    Movies | Plays | Comedic | Dramatic
    Men | Women | Teens | Kids
    • Contact
    • About
    • Advertise
    • Resource Listings
    • Write A Column
    • Contribute
    • Privacy Policy

    Disclaimer: Daily Actor at times uses affiliate links to sites like Amazon.com, streaming services, and others. Affiliate links provides compensation to Daily Actor which helps us remain online, giving you the resources and information actors like you are looking for.

    © 2023 Daily Actor

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.