Larry Marshall :: part of Xanadu’s fun (but not on skates)
Larry Marshall is no stranger to the Great White Way. He most recently appeared as Ole Mister in The Color Purple. His credits also include Sportin’ Life in Porgy and Bess (for which he received both Tony and Drama Desk nominations); Hamlet in Gower Champion’s Rockabye Hamlet; Berger and Hud in Hair; and Horse in The Full Monty. Not to mention all of his regional stage credits and film roles. Marshall gets around... but not on roller skates. Not in this production any way.
Famous for having a number of cast members on skates, Xanadu, based on the film by the same name, has become a cult classic. Marshall plays Danny Maguire and Zeus in the touring production heading to Orlando for a week’s run at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre. EDGE had the chance to catch up with Marshall last week by phone to get the real scoop about him and the show.
Playing a muse
EDGE: Can you give me a snapshot of your stage background?
Larry Marshall: I was attending the New England Conservatory of Music . I was a voice major. My junior year I was told of a Tour of Porgy and Bess that was going to be in production and they were holding auditions. I was in Boston and so I came down to New York and I got it. That summer I went to Israel and toured for two and a half months, understudying Robert Guillaume as Sportin’ Life. That was my first introduction to theater.
EDGE: Can you tell readers a little about Xanadu?
Larry Marshall It has to do with some of the muses coming down to earth to inspire artists to create art. The rule is that they are not to expose to the person they are inspiring that they are muses. They are not to fall in love with the mortal and they are not to create art themselves. Kira [a muse] falls in love with Sonny who she’s trying to inspire. She, of course, has to face the music with Zeus. Sonny takes off after her and goes to Mt. Olympus to retrieve her.
I play Danny, a character Kira inspired years before when she came back to earth. They [the muses] are immortal and so never get old. Danny recognizes her but didn’t know she was a muse. He thought she was a woman who left him because he wanted to make money instead of art. He finds out who she is and tells Sonny not to be a fool like him and go after her. Sonny goes to Mt. Olympus and Zeus agrees to release her. She becomes mortal and they live happily ever after.
It’s a really fun show. And the music is wonderful.
EDGE: What is it that makes Xanadu work instead of being laughable?
Larry Marshall Because it’s just a lot of fun. It’s campy. It makes you laugh. The music is really great. It kind of speaks to people. It has that really nice kind of a romantic story to it that puts people at ease. And it has a lot of laughs to it.
EDGE: What’s the biggest challenge you face in terms of performing this particular show?
Larry Marshall In the movie, Gene Kelly skates. I wanted to skate. I loved roller skating coming up in high school. But they don’t have me skating [in the show]. When I auditioned I was on skates, really looking forward to trying to convince the director that [my character] really should skate even though he didn’t skate on Broadway. The first day of rehearsal I have my skates on, warming up. Then the director came in and said hi and I hit the floor and hit my coccyx and he said that’s that. So I didn’t have the chance to convince him. [He laughs.]
EDGE: What’s the best part about performing this role in this show?
Larry Marshall I really enjoy these roles. It gives me different energies to play and it gives me a chance to sing and do a little dancing here and there. It’s a wonderful role for me. I look forward to performing it. It’s a really enjoyable cast and really enjoyable show.
EDGE: Who should come to see this show?
Larry Marshall There’s no age limit. It reaches everybody because it’s just pure fun. We have all sorts of ages in our audiences and they all really seem to enjoy it.
Xanadu runs through April 27 through May 2, 2010 at Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre, 401 W Livingston St., Orlando, FL. For more information visit the Xanadu website.
Watch this clip of scenes from Xanadu:
