Tony nominee Carmen Cusack brings new meaning to the opening number of her breakout turn in Bright Star with a music video of “If You Knew My Story.”
The video, starring Cusack and the cast of the new production of Bright Star now playing at Los Angeles’ Ahmanson Theatre through November 19, showcases the song from Tony-nominated writing duo Steve Martin and Edie Brickell as we watch Cusack transform from herself into Alice Murphy. Captured by filmmaker Ezra Hurwitz, the video takes viewers behind the scenes.
Bright Star opened on Broadway at the Cort Theatre March 24, 2016, and earned Tony nominations for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical (Martin), Best Original Score (Martin and Brickell), Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical (Cusack), and Best Orchestrations (August Eriksmoen). The show was inspired by a small newspaper clipping about a baby found abandoned in a suitcase beneath a train track. The show marked Cusack’s Broadway debut, though she had been an accomplished performer already.
Read More: THE MANY FACES OF BRIGHT STAR’S LEADING LADY CARMEN CUSACK
The Ahmanson engagement features Cusack as well as original cast members A.J. Shively and Jeff Blumenkrantz. Patrick Cummings, who understudied the role of Jimmy Ray on Broadway, takes over the role full time for this run; similarly, Maddie Shea Baldwin and Billy Cane, who also served as understudies in the Broadway run, play Margo and Billy, respectively, in L.A.
The cast will transfer to play the Curran in San Francisco from Novemer 28–December 17.