BRANDI BURKHARDT
A year ago, Brandi Burkhardt, the young singing actress with the beautiful, rounded soprano, had yet to make her Broadway debut. Fast-forward a few months, and the talented performer is currently starring in her second Broadway musical. Burkhardt began the season as Lucie Manette in the short-lived musical A Tale of Two Cities at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, and she recently joined the cast of the long-running, international hit musical Mamma Mia! at the Winter Garden. In the ABBA-scored production, Burkhardt plays bride-to-be Sophie Sheridan and gets the chance to show off another side of her vocal talents, her Broadway belt. Last week I had the pleasure of chatting with Burkhardt, whose theatrical credits also include the Reprise! staging of Li'l Abner (as Daisy Mae) and the international tour of Jekyll & Hyde: Resurrection (as Emma); my interview with the former Miss America contestant follows.

Question: How did the role in Mamma Mia! come about for you?
Brandi Burkhardt: After A Tale of Two Cities closed, I did a reading called Silas. The musical director was Wendy Bobbitt Cavett. I knew she was [musical director] for Mamma Mia!, and I asked her — and, actually, my Sky [in Mamma Mia!], Chris Peluso, was in that reading as well. I just asked her, "Hey, are you guys seeing Sophies?" And she said, "Yeah, we're actually seeing Sophies on Monday. But you're not really a Sophie, are you?" I was like, "Well, I think so." I think she said that because she had only heard me sing legit, high-soprano stuff and playing sad English ladies. So, essentially she called casting and said, "Hey, maybe you should see Brandi." I went in and… history!

Question: When did you start rehearsals?
Burkhardt: I started on the sixth of January, right after Black Sunday. It's been great. I've never been put into an existing show before, so I didn't really know what to expect in terms of how much time I would get and whether I'd get time onstage with Carolee [Carmello] and the other people in the show. I was really excited that they've given me a lot of time and I've gotten to work onstage because I've never been on a rake before.

Question: How is that different for you as an actor, performing on a raked stage?
Burkhardt: It's funny, you just tend to put it out of your mind. They say that there are exercises I should do to make sure my knees don't get damaged, or my back, etcetera, etcetera. But I haven't felt any of that yet.

Question: How would you describe Sophie?
Burkhardt: She is very energetic and feisty, and she acts before she thinks a lot. She does a lot of backpedaling — she's a lot of fun. I wish I were more like her, actually! [Laughs.]

Question: In what way?
Burkhardt: I always think before I speak, and I always think before I act. I'm very deliberate in those ways, and she's not. She just goes right from the gut, right from the heart. She just goes with her instincts. I think there's something to be said for that.

Question: Were you an ABBA fan before this? Were you familiar with this music?
Burkhardt: I was familiar — I sang in a wedding band for a time. It was always my favorite when I got to do "Dancing Queen." Of course, I don't sing it in the show, but it's so much fun. The music is infectious, and you just want to get up and dance and bop. The tunes are so catchy. I was a fan of ABBA, but not to the extent that I am now. [Laughs.]

Question: Do you have a favorite moment yet for Sophie? A favorite song?
Burkhardt: I think it changes pretty frequently. I like so much of it. I think that's also the fun in playing the character. There are so many moments to have fun in. I really love the "Slipping Through My Fingers" scene with Carolee. . . . . Getting into the wedding dress... that's kind of profound for me as well. I was raised by a single mother, and I get that. As a little girl, you grow up asking yourself, "Who is going to walk me down the aisle?" For me, it rings very true.

Question: You mentioned legit singing versus the belting that you do in this. Is one more fun than the other?
Burkhardt: In theatre it has a lot to do with the character's voice for me and where the music takes the character. The fun thing about this is that it does stay so true to those pop records, which I love. That's a challenge in itself, to make that work theatrically and also to keep the integrity of the piece of music, which is where the show was derived from anyway. I love belting though. There's nothing like a big old note coming out of you, barreling down on it, opening up and singing to God, you know? [Laughs.]

Question: Why do you think the show has been so successful?
Burkhardt: I think it's a credit to the music. I had first seen the show in London back in 2000 or 2001. It was my first time in London, [and] I had expected — I knew it was ABBA — but I guess I just expected it to be like stuffy London theatre. And it wasn't that at all. It was so much fun! The dancing in the aisles. People get up on their seat and have just a great time at the end of the show. I think that's what is so infectious about it. And, again, it's those pop melodies that you just can't get out of your head.

	Brandi Burkhardt in A Tale of Two Cities
	photo by Carol Rosegg

Question: You mentioned before Tale of Two Cities. What was that experience like for you?
Burkhardt: I feel like I went through such a big growth spurt in that experience. It was based on a novel, and the story is so big, so you have to cover a lot of ground in a short amount of time. It was such a joy. I got to work with Gregg Edelman, who played my father. I think it's just ironic that Carolee, his wife, is now playing my mother. [Laughs.] I said I should compare notes with Zoe, their daughter.

Question: Since it was your Broadway debut, did it live up to what you thought your Broadway debut would be?
Burkhardt: It was so much greater than I could have imagined, working on beautiful material and such a classic story with people that really became family. I just felt very lucky and blessed to be in the company of so much talent. And, [director] Warren [Carlyle], it being his first show [as a Broadway director], and taking a chance on me. I was just very grateful.

Question: Did the show get recorded?
Burkhardt: I think that's still in the process of being talked about. It's still a possibility.  Continued...