David Brown and his son Brody are not new to Globe Productions. As a member of Globe Youth Productions, Brody (now 11) started at the age of 8 with Annie, and starred in Aladdin (2013) and The Wizard of Oz (2014). He also starred in Globe's adult shows - The Music Man and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Dave didn’t get his start in musical theatre quite that early. His first show was All Shook Up in 2013 (which won THEA for the Best Musical Production) and was actively involved in the Wizard of Oz as an Assistant Stage Manager (ASM).
Cabaret is the first time Dave and Brody will appear on the stage together. Dave plays Victor, one of the Kit Kat boys and Brody plays a young German boy singing “Tomorrow Belongs to Me”. We wanted to know how excited they are about it.
Globe: Hi guys. It seems like there’s not a show the Brown family isn’t involved with. You boys are either in the cast or behind the stage. Have you always been ‘into’ musical theater?
Brody: My mom got me into it when I was 7 because she felt I was a natural actor. I was in a couple of plays in Milton, as well as taking vocal lessons before I auditioned for Joseph (in 2011) which was when I was introduced to Globe.
Dave: I’m definitely a musical theatre newbie – my wife Teri and I started getting involved as parent volunteers when Brody performed in Joseph and our involvement has increased from there, from helping backstage with ‘changeroom logistics’, props and earlier this year I was an ASM for Wizard of Oz, which was a challenging task. I was responsible to make sure performers were ready for their scenes and set changes happened on-time while ensuring none of the 50 children (and a dog!) were injured by those large set pieces, among other things.
I’ve always loved being backstage, seeing the energy of the performers go from butterflies and nervous anticipation to the smiles and satisfaction when coming off stage to the applause of the audience. Performing is always something I’ve wanted to do, so with a little push from Teri, I decided to audition for All Shook Up. The experience was absolutely amazing – one of the most challenging – and rewarding – of my life. And now I’m excited to be back again for Globe’s Cabaret. Although I’ve always wanted to act or perform in some capacity, I would have never thought it would have been in musical theatre – and being able to now share the stage with Brody is just icing on the cake.
Globe: Set up in the night club in Berlin, during the 1930s as Nazis are rising to power, Cabaret is not exactly a family show. Dave, how did you explain Brody the whole atmosphere of this show?
Dave: Even though Brody’s only 11, we’ve always been able to have pretty adult conversations with him, so it became a bit of a teaching or history type of discussion. We basically explained what life was like during those times in Germany. Before the Nazi rise to power, Germany had been in a deep depression for a long time. The show presents to us a love story surrounded by a collision between the world of the Kit Kat Club – which was an escape from those hard times – and the rise of the Nazi party – which to many, represented hope and a more positive vision of Germany’s future. I think Brody now understands it was a very unique time and place in history, which is what makes Cabaret such a powerful story.
Globe: Brody, you sing “Tomorrow Belongs to Me”. Is this your first solo? Do you practice a lot at home?
Brody: Yes, it’s my first solo. I practice a little bit almost every day. When my Mom gets home from work most days, I sing it through for her once or twice because I haven’t started being at rehearsals regularly yet. That starts this week!
Globe: Dave, you play Victor, one of the Kit Kat Club dancers. How hard/easy is it for you to get into the role?
Dave: The character is quite a departure for me on many levels, so being cast as Victor – even though it’s not a lead role – seemed a little daunting at first. However, once we began rehearsals, I just started having fun with the character (not to mention trying to perfect a German accent) and I have to say it hasn’t been too tough – it’s been a lot of fun, actually. The Kit Kat Club and the characters who are a part of it are all pretty wild and ridiculous, so I’ve really just embraced that in developing the role. It’s been a challenge for sure but it hasn’t been as overwhelming as I thought it might be.
Globe: Dave, what is your dream role?
Dave: Again, as someone very new to performing in musical theatre, I hadn’t honestly put a lot of thought into what roles I might really love to play – but now you’ve got me thinking... The characters that come to mind which I think would be fun and challenging to play, given my personality and style would be: Seymour Krelborn from Little Shop of Horrors, Amos Hart from Chicago, one of the guys from The Full Monty.
Globe: Brody, what is your dream role?
Brody: My dream kid role is Charlie Bucket from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I haven’t really thought about any adult roles yet.
