|
|
 |
PLAYBILL.COM'S CUE & A: Max von Essen
By Ernio Hernandez
30 Jan 2008
 |
|
Max von Essen
|
| photo by Stephen Mosher | Max von Essen — who stars in the Carnegie Hall concerts of Jerry Springer - The Opera — fills out Playbill.com's questionnaire with random facts, backstage trivia and pop culture tidbits.
|
Full given name:
|
Thomas Max von Essen
|
|
Hometown:
|
Rockville Centre, Long Island, NY
|
|
Zodiac sign:
|
Capricorn. (I don't pay much attention to that stuff, but I bet I'm a total Capricorn.)
|
|
Audition song:
|
Audition songs vary. I usually walk in and take requests.
|
|
Special skills:
|
I have an oddly high head voice (that's probably how I booked Jerry Springer) and I play piano pretty well. Not sure if people know that.
|
|
First Broadway show ever saw:
|
Dreamgirls with Jennifer Holiday. After, I told my parents, "I want to do that." They were a little confused. They didn't quite know that I just meant sing on stage, in general. I didn't mean I wanted to do what Jennifer was doing specifically.
|
|
If you could go back in time and catch any Broadway show, what would it be?
|
Awesome question. I've been so passionate about West Side Story for so long, I'd give anything to have seen the original.
|
|
Current show you have been recommending to friends:
|
August: Osage County and Spring Awakening
|
|
Favorite show tune:
|
"I Have Dreamed." I never tire of it. So simple and beautiful.
|
|
MAC or PC?
|
MAC. Just bought an amazing new desktop. The screen is like 7 feet wide. It's awesome.
|
|
One CD you couldn't live without:
|
My CD of The Life. It brings me such joy.
|
|
Last book you read:
|
"Flesh and Blood," and I'm in the middle of "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius."
|
|
Must-see TV show:
|
I'm a sucker for "Will and Grace" re-runs, and I hate to miss "Ugly Betty" and most things on HBO. |
|
Last good movie you saw:
|
"Into the Wild" and "No Country for Old Men." Both amazing!
|
|
Performer you would drop everything to go see:
|
The Rat Pack in Las Vegas. Imagine?
|
|
Pop culture guilty pleasure:
|
Any reality show with models. "Janice Dickinson," anyone? "America's Most Smartest Model"? I mean, c'mon!
|
|
First stage kiss:
|
10th grade. I was Conrad Birdie in Bye Bye Birdie, and I had to kiss the Kim.
|
|
Favorite post-show meal:
|
The kobe beef steak at Marseilles after a show. Delicious. Or a bottle of Barbera D'Alba at Nizza with a plate of meats and cheeses. Amazing. Then I just roll home.
|
|
How you got your Equity card:
|
Playing Matt Off-Broadway in The Fantasticks.
|
|
Worst missed cue/onstage mishap:
|
How much time do you have? LOL. Running to the balcony in West Side Story, hitting a slick spot on the stage and falling with such momentum that I slid into the wings. Missing an entire scene in My Fair Lady. You got it, I got confused, and somehow missed my entrance. Once I was so sick during a performance of another show that I stopped in the middle of the number, and walked off stage. I did come back two minutes later and finished. Not my finest moment. I've also been onstage when other actors have missed their entrances. Let's just say Christine Baranski and I once performed a scene that Lawrence and Lee had never written for Mame. We had to fill the time somehow.
|
|
Worst costume ever:
|
I think I'm about to wear it at Carnegie Hall. But I mean "worst" in a good way. (In case my costume designer is reading this.)
|
|
Cats or dogs?
|
I don't have any pets, but when and if I do...definitely a dog!
|
|
Favorite cereal:
|
Rice puffs. Well, my favorite is Lucky Charms, but it doesn't really fit into my diet.
|
|
Who would play you in the movie?
|
I don't care as long as I get to sing any vocal tracks. I'll be the Marni Nixon of my own movie.
|
|
Worst job you ever had:
|
Waiting tables for two months. Honestly, it wasn't a bad job, but I couldn't deal with the stress. I'd tell you about my job as a maintenance man in an office building across the street from Penn Station, but I'm saving that one for Ellen or Oprah.
|
|
What musical role have you been dying to play?
|
The one that's written for me! Are you reading this, Stephen? Sondheim or Schwartz, I'm not picky!
|
Contact Us | Advertise | Privacy Policy
Send questions and comments to the Webmaster
Copyright © 2008 Playbill, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
|
|
|
|
|