September 22, 2024 • 38 mins
Welcome to "Making It Happen, a Career in the Performing Arts," where we discuss how to break into the performing arts industry for yourself or your child, teen, or young adult. Join host Leesa Csolak as she chats with professionals passionate about helping talented individuals land professional representation and have successful careers in the arts.
In this episode, Leesa interviews Dan Rosales, a talented performer currently starring in "The Great Gatsby" on Broadway. Dan shares his journey from his early days in afterschool drama programs and choir, to his collegiate training at the Boston Conservatory, and ultimately, to his Broadway debut. Learn about the importance of staying open to opportunities, the value of collegiate programs, and the significance of kindness and collaboration in the industry.
Discover how Dan navigated his career path, the serendipitous events that led him to Broadway, and his advice for aspiring performers. Whether you're a parent of a talented child or an adult pursuing a career in the arts, this episode offers valuable insights and inspiration.
Don't miss this engaging conversation that sheds light on the dedication, hard work, and passion required to make it in the performing arts industry.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Music.
(00:05):
Welcome to Making It Happen, a career in the performing arts where we discuss
how to break into the performing arts industry for yourself or your child, teen, or young adults.
Guests include professionals who are passionate and share my vision of helping
talented individuals land professional representation and have successful careers in the arts.
My name is Lisa Solak and my guest today is Dan Rosales.
(00:29):
Hi Dan, how are you? Hey Lisa, Lisa, I'm good. How are you?
I'm really good. I'm enjoying this nice, crisp fall weather that we're having, honestly.
Yeah, it's been great. So I am really thrilled about talking to you today because
your journey, I think, is really going to be a great kind of informational story
(00:51):
journey that you can share with the listeners.
And as I mentioned to you previous, our listeners are primarily parents of talented kids,
teens, and young adults, and also young adults who are in college and
some who have graduated and even older adults who have
been in the city maybe for you know eight ten years and
are lost and never really found that agent that manager got
(01:11):
connected to the right people so um yeah i'm
interested to kind of hear all about your
journey to broadway because you are presently in
the great gatsby yes yes and
and many times starring in in this you
know performing the starring roles which is so crazy and exciting
(01:32):
but we'll get there so my first question
is can you talk about your beginnings like when did you know that you were that
you were talented that you had interest in this that there was some kind of
spark in you was it your parents was it a teacher like did you you just know
when you were super young? Like when did it all start?
(01:54):
Yeah. I mean, I guess I'll take you back to the very beginning.
I mean, this all kind of stemmed out of a place of necessity.
You know, when I was really young, my parents split up.
So afterschool programs were paramount to keeping me busy and keeping me at
school and focused on something else.
So the first programs that were available to me were the choir program,
(02:18):
were afterschool drama programs.
So I think it it started as early as elementary school. I got involved in some
theater troupe where we danced terrible routine to the Men in Black theme song.
And I think that was my first performance in the basement of a church.
I remember it being all dressed in black baggy clothes that were too big for us.
(02:39):
And literally since that moment, I literally think that's when I got bit by
this acting bug, like the need to perform and just the love of it all.
When I got to middle school.
I had the choice of joining all of the, I transferred to my middle school.
So all of the programs electives were already full, except for a few.
(03:00):
And I think the two choices remaining were color guard and choir.
And the way color guard was explained to me when I was in the office, I have a vivid memory.
And she was like, oh, you know, you get to run around with rifles and like play in the field.
And I was like, oh my gosh, I'm a, you know, 12 year old kid.
That sounds amazing. I'd love to do that.
First day color guard, I got there. it was
(03:21):
all girls who were much taller than me and they
were all like super athletic and like waving these flags around
I was the only boy I was so intimidated that I ran back to the I don't think
this is right for me is choir still available and it and so I joined the choir
and since that moment it's something unlocked in me where I just found like a passion for singing
(03:46):
and found my into the arts like that way.
And ever since then, you know, I consider myself like a vocalist first.
I've always been a vocalist first.
And then I loved the acting side of it. And then I got involved in the dance side of it.
So that's how I found my way into like musical theater that way. Okay, interesting.
Yeah. So that's interesting, because I always ask people, even when people that
(04:08):
I'm working with them, how do you identify? Like, what do you how do you identify?
What do you identify with first? And it's interesting, was there one teacher
that inspired you in that way that you knew, like, were they giving you compliments,
giving you opportunity to do solos in the choir, that type of thing?
Like, how did you know that you were that good? Because I know a lot of times
in, especially in grammar school, when you have someone who can,
(04:30):
in this case, sing really well, the teachers are trying to make everybody blend.
And so sometimes I find that there are children who will hold back and they
won't really perform what they really know how to do, that their God-given talent
doesn't come out because the teachers,
of course, their job is to teach the whole group, you know, and they don't want someone to stand out.
Like what was your experience when you first started and you found that you've had that voice?
(04:54):
Yeah. I mean, well, similarly, like in elementary and middle school,
it was all about that group feeling, right?
It was like having just one voice and singing as one and kind of honing your
skills throughout those classes.
It wasn't really until I got to high school, my high school drama teacher,
her name is Cameo Fasulo.
Cameo, perfect name for a high school drama teacher. who's also the dance instructor.
(05:17):
And it wasn't until I got to like,
you know, high school theater and it sounds a little silly to say,
but that I really recognized that I had something different that wasn't just
an elective or something that I was doing at school.
And she kind of brought that out of me in a way that she told me,
(05:38):
she was like, look, it's, it's great that you're You're doing community theater
here in high school and you're doing some of the high school plays.
But you need to be right now. You're like a big fish in a small pond.
You need to go be a big fish in the ocean and you need to go study this.
You need to go to school if you want to, because you have the talents to really make it work.
(06:01):
And so at her urging, you know, I had started to look into it more seriously.
And I, you know, applied to a bunch of theater programs.
I got into a lot of them and I, it was, it stemmed from her really encouraging
me that way that she noticed something that was a gift that could be something more, could be a career.
(06:25):
I think you do need someone who is a professional or semi-professional to give
you kind of that push, especially for parents, because they feel like it's my kid.
Of course, they're good. Of course, I'm going to think they're good because
I'm biased. Are they really good?
Like, what's the real story here? You know, and I hear that all the time,
you know, where people are like, are my kids really ready for this? I don't know.
But did you start doing any training with professional teachers and like private
(06:48):
instruction as a child teen?
Did you do it at that time or you waited till college? No, I waited.
I as soon as I kind of knew that this there was something more and I happened
to be I was cast in everything and I was doing everything.
And then I started to get attention from like the local theater community.
And where I'm from Thousand Oaks, California, there's a huge regional touring house there.
(07:11):
It's usually like the second or third national tour that comes through there.
But it's like a 3000 seat house. I think our regional theater there like we
would put up shows, you know, I did a bunch of regional shows there.
That was more than community theater, you know, because it was elevated.
And through that community that I found in high school, I started taking professional
voice lessons that weren't at school, wasn't in choir. Right.
(07:34):
Through a voice teacher. His name was Paul Fagundes. Shout out to Paul,
if somehow you hear this.
But he was the first real voice teacher that I had that was like,
oh, this is how you warm up.
This is how you cool down. This is how you stretch your voice.
This is some repertory that you should sing.
We are going to do a class concert at some venue.
(07:54):
And he had all his students perform. And it was my first recital ever of me
singing very stereotypical tenor musical theater songs.
But it was so necessary to have that type of training and that type of teacher
that was like, you can do this.
You want to do this. So I'm going to put all of this information in front of
you and you do with it what you will and hoping that something sticks.
(08:18):
And it did, luckily. And that kind of opened the door for me to start working professionally,
no longer as like a student actor, but hired on contract at those regional theaters
that were, you know, I remember working with like Sally Struthers and Debbie
Gibson when I was 16, 17. No way. That's amazing.
So you had that opportunity so early. You know what I think is great?
(08:42):
One thing that you mentioned about that teacher is that when,
and this happens, I think, quite often when you get with an instructor,
a teacher, coach, who is in the industry in that regard or at a higher level,
like in the Broadway space, and they give you opportunities right away.
Way, like you're saying you had a recital or, you know, sometimes it's a cabaret
someone puts together or whatever.
(09:02):
And I think that's opportunities to go, okay, now you're on,
things are on the line here.
This isn't like, you know, this is no joke. Like you have to bring it.
Yeah. And it's a whole different situation.
And I, and when you started that instruction, did you feel like a fish out of
water or was it just something natural that you felt like, okay,
hey, this is where I belong. I get this guy.
(09:25):
How did it feel just as the performer when you started with that more advanced teacher?
Right. I think looking back on it, Dan, I want to say now that,
oh yeah, it felt so easy and it was fine because now I'm so used to it.
I'm sure starting it back then, there was a little trepidation.
Be like, what's happening?
What is this? Why am I paying so much money for this? Am I good at this?
(09:48):
There's a lot of the the, it's like when you first start there and then it kind
of quickly went away when we started doing, you know, the work,
which is really cool because the kind of that inner voice shuts up and you're
just like, I want to get better at this.
Oh, this was really good this time. Not, not so great in this way this time,
but my next voice lesson, I'm going to work on this praise so I can really get,
(10:09):
you know, so it kind of, it's that inner saboteur that like kind of talks you
down from like, I don't think you should be doing this.
I don't even think you should be doing this, but you're good enough to push
past it and be like, oh, actually, I am pretty good at this.
So I think it felt right once...
Once I was critical of myself in the way that I wanted to get better and not
(10:33):
just thinking the best at it, you know? Yes. Isn't that so true?
I feel like when you're a beginner, you think you're really great.
And then when you get to that intermediate level, you have to get over this
hump of like, okay, like exactly what you said that you, you love it and you want to get better.
And you kind of have this, I think an inner voice saying, no,
no, I can do this. I'm going to do it.
(10:55):
It propels and it still propels me to this day.
It's like, what can I improve upon this last time?
Because I mean, perfection is impossible and unattainable, but practice makes
perfection or practice makes performance better.
It's just that constant need to improve upon what you've just done in a way that's attainable.
(11:18):
Absolutely. I'm so glad you just said that. Let's jump to now,
just because of what you just said.
Okay, let's jump to today just for a second. Okay, so I'm going to let you talk about Gatsby,
but how I want to relate it is now you are in a Broadway show,
a very big, epic Broadway show, and you're not only part of the ensemble,
(11:39):
but you are understudying big lead roles.
So now talk about that and how you prepare and are you continuing to train and
how does that relate to what you learned when you were younger?
Yeah, yeah, of course. I'm going to take you through the whole Gatsby situation.
So I came about my Broadway debut in a very weird way.
(12:00):
And I'm not sure, actually, if you know this, but I was actually,
Mark Bruni is the director of The Great Gatsby on Broadway.
And we had met years ago previously when I was in Final Callbacks for the beautiful
tour for the first national tour. Okay.
Ended up going my way, which was fine, which is great.
It's a learning experience. But then I met him again when we did this Broadway
(12:20):
musical called Trevor, which is about a young kid coming to terms with,
you know, his desires and his changing body and his queerness as a young kid in a rural town.
And I was the dance captain and the adult male swing for that.
There are only two adult male roles.
So I covered the two adults in that show. Sidebar.
(12:41):
I have to interrupt you a second.
Sidebar. So one of my clients from when she was very, very young,
she was like four or five years old when I got her signed with a big, big, bi-coastal agent.
Echo Picon was in that show. Oh, yeah. Of course, Echo. Yes.
Oh, my gosh. She's so talented. So lovely. Right? With the red hair.
(13:02):
Yeah, with the red curls.
She's amazing. I can't believe she's a senior in high school now.
It's crazy. I know. It's crazy. Yeah.
Yeah, we should talk more about Trevor because that's kind of a big deal.
But go ahead, go on with your story.
Yes. So Mark was the director for that.
And through a weird series of circumstances,
I ended up becoming the resident director for that production off Broadway,
(13:25):
along with being the dance captain and being in the show, like noting the show
when I was noting the show as
dance captain, but also as the director of resident director, excuse me.
And then this another huge
covid surge hit omicron remember that yes
and it closed a bunch of shows we were unfortunately one of
the shows that closed i remember that i remember that
(13:47):
that's a great opportunity though to be acting as the director yeah it was amazing
and so mark then you know i had another job opportunity for me he was like he
was doing the show called 50 years of broadway at the kennedy center which is
huge huge like a-list broadway talent singing the songs that made them famous.
You know, LaChanze, Norm Lewis, Stephanie J. Block. It was huge names. Oh, wow. Okay.
(14:11):
And he asked me to be his associate director for that production.
So I was like, you know what, the show, Trevor just closed.
I have nothing going on. This is always something that's been interesting to me.
I've never necessarily felt a calling to be a director or something like that,
but I love theater in all its forms.
So I'll go work at this iconic Kennedy Center. That's incredible.
Do you feel like, I don't know, like the universe was kind of calling you to
(14:35):
head in that direction at all during that time? time. It's so funny you say
that because so getting back to Gatsby, so I did that production, right?
And then the first time I ever heard about The Great Gatsby was when Mark,
again, asked me to be his associate director after we've done a couple of projects
together for this reading of The Great Gatsby, which was, you know,
(14:56):
Broadway bound musical,
it hadn't found Jeremy Jordan or Eva yet, didn't find it stars,
just working on the material in the book.
And so I I agreed and I was the, I read the stage directions and I helped,
you know, kind of facilitate what an AD does in a reading, which is just a lot
of admin work and bookkeeping and making sure everything's eyes are dotted and T's are crossed.
(15:17):
As soon as it started to go forward, I knew that the paper mill production of
Great Gatsby was happening because I'd seen press about it.
And Mark reached out to me.
So a lot of very serendipitous things happened on one day.
I booked the company national tour the same day that I had my final callback
(15:39):
for the great Gatsby in an ensemble track.
But this is after Mark Bruni had emailed me asking me to be his associate.
And so I was kind of torn, right?
Because there's two very similar but different.
And the performer side of me was like, I've always wanted to do this.
And this is like one of the closest shows that I know that has the potential
(15:59):
as a star power has the producing behind it to actually make it on Broadway,
which I've always dreamed of.
I responded back very quickly to his email and very professional was like,
Mark, I love working with you. I'm so grateful for all the opportunities that you've done.
You've given me as a director and as an actor, it okay with you,
if we put a pin and being your associate, because I just got an appointment
(16:22):
from my agents the same day he asked me to be his associate. to be in the show.
And he was nothing but respectful. He was like, Oh my God, of course, absolutely.
I won't bias the team one way or another. I won't say anything,
you know, rooting for you to be in the show or rooting for you for not being in the show.
Just know that one way or another, we're happy to have you involved.
(16:43):
And I, it was the biggest blessing of my life.
So I ended up booking the company national tour on the last day of my final callback.
I had forgotten my water bottle at Ripley Greer after I went to company after
coming from Gatsby across the street.
I went back to Ripley Greer upstairs and I saw Kate Kerrigan and Mark Bruni
(17:04):
in the elevator and I was like, oh my God, this is so awkward because I know
them both. We've known each other for a long time. Oh my gosh.
I was like, I was just your associate on a reading. And then I just went in
for this ensemble and covering the lead role.
So it got a little I was like, and it all was amazing.
Because as soon as we got out of the elevator, we were outside.
(17:26):
And they couldn't keep it in. They're like, you're gonna be in the show,
you're gonna be in the show.
And I just like being outside of Pearl Studios, like starting to cry because
it was just it the universe was pointing me in the right direction.
But only because I had been open and receptive to all the different opportunities
(17:46):
that were presented my way, even if they weren't necessarily what I thought
would be the first choice I would make or the best choice. You know what?
This is such an amazing story. I'm so
glad you're sharing this because I feel like
I have so many adult clients
that really are lost and they have
have a hard time because in their heads they
(18:09):
see that like my son kurt coined the golden
castle on the hill broadway that they
think that that's what they want and they want it so bad instead of like
letting you know loving the art form loving
all the opportunities letting those doors
open and even if they're open they're a jar and they sneak
their big toe in and kind of get in and play over here
(18:29):
and play over there it all it's not a straight linear line to broadway i don't
think for anyone and certainly it wasn't for you but but that's so exciting
that you know what you have to to I think you have to look at with that situation
you're in everyone wanted you.
For directing for this this national tour for you know like everyone wanted
(18:53):
you which is very exciting and you have to kind of when you're in those situations
I think it's very nerve-wracking,
absolutely because you don't want to burn any bridges and you don't want to
make a mistake and And you don't want to hurt anyone's feelings.
And like you said, you want to be grateful. And it's wonderful that he...
He gave you that opportunity and understood where you were coming from,
(19:14):
which I think at the top of the industry, I think most directors,
choreographers, you know, creatives, they do understand that,
that, you know, you have to kind of, you know, feed that.
And in that moment, I'm sure, I mean, when you were young, did you think of
Broadway as something that, you know, was like, oh, the Golden Castle?
Or was it just, I love the art? Like, where was your head? I think it was more
(19:36):
I love the art and I have a good time doing what I'm doing when I was younger.
Because for me, like I had never heard of the Jimmy Awards.
I'd never really heard of a Broadway show.
And granted, we had some tours come through. But you know, my family didn't
really have the means to go take all of us to go see a show that's expensive.
So for me, it was just kind of like, oh, I'm doing this after school program
(19:59):
and I'm good at doing it and it makes me happy.
And in sort of that way of doing it. And then it wasn't until really I moved,
I started college and I moved to Boston.
I started school at the Boston Conservatory that I was like,
oh, oh, there's a whole other world to unlock. All of these Broadway shows,
all of these famous actors and actresses and people I want to emulate.
(20:20):
And I kind of fell in love with the theater like that way on the opposite, if that makes sense.
Yeah, it does make sense completely because I think there's a lot of people
who, or a lot of children and teens who just find out exactly like what happened to you.
You realize that, okay, I have this affinity, I have this talent,
this God-given ability, and now it's being nurtured and you just kind of live
(20:44):
in the moment of what's coming at you.
And, you know, unless you're someone who is really a super fan of Broadway,
like you're saying, have parents and the means to go to Broadway shows.
Like I know for my son, Kevin, his first Broadway show was being in How the
Grinch Stole Christmas at the age of 10.
And he had been, you know what I'm saying? And he had been in so many...
(21:06):
Theaters just with doing, he was a competition dancer first.
So he had been in a lot of different theaters. And I remember we were going
into, I think it's now the Lyric Theater at the time, it was the Hilton.
And, you know, the first day in the theater and, you know, we're kind of,
the whole cast is going in. Of course, parents were there because he was a minor.
And he's like, this theater is pretty cool. The chandeliers are nice.
(21:28):
Like the lights are, like he had no idea. did. He just was so used to living
in backstage areas, you know, from when he was a baby and he really didn't have any idea.
And then, you know, like yourself, when he got a little bit older,
he thought, oh, wow, this is like, there's a whole nother space here that I
need to learn about, which is another reason why a collegiate program is a great
(21:49):
thing because there is an academia to it. Right.
Like, so how, so let's talk about, about Boston. How did you land there?
Was that that your first choice?
Did you, cause I also have many young, young adult clients trying to get into school.
I've had a college program for years. You know what I mean? So like I help all people do that.
And many times they're submitting and now's the time, right?
(22:11):
This is it right now, you know, September, October, they're getting all their
pre-screens done and they, you know, they're, they've got 12,
15, 16, 18 schools on their list. Like how was that process for you? do?
It was a little different because I'm a millennial.
So like we're at the advent of social media and everything, right?
Like we got in, I think at the right time, fortunately.
(22:32):
Yeah, agreed. But we didn't have many like pre-screens back when I was applying to school.
We had unifieds, which you would go to a hotel.
If you were from the West Coast, you'd go to LAX and you'd go to the LAX Hilton
and it'd be a giant ballroom and every single top program would be there.
And you'd go for a day or two.
(22:52):
And you sing, you dance, you'd bring your little boombox or bring a burned CD
with your tracks on it. That's right.
You would play it for them and you would sing.
And, you know, the way I went about going to school was I actually went to a
state school to Cal State Fullerton for a semester.
And that program ended up not being right for me. I think now they've really
(23:16):
like honed in on what they're doing.
But I, we were the first class, I think, for a BFA program.
So it was kind of a little confusing when we first got there.
And I decided to take the a year off.
So I went back to my hometown, I worked at that theater that I was talking about.
And I just took classes at a community college and kind of had a moment to it
(23:36):
was like, Okay, what do I want to do?
Do I want to do this? Am I going to go to school for this?
Do I go to school for something else and do this as a minor?
I really want to do this. So I applied again to schools that I got into the first time.
And the way that I chose my top choice was kind of like, how much scholarship money can I get?
(23:58):
Because that was very important for me if I got any. And Mm-hmm. Yeah.
By the grace of God, like Boston Conservatory gave me an incredible package.
And so as soon as I got that email, I was like, well, this is my first choice.
So it's great that I got my first choice. That's great. That's great.
Yeah. Yeah. And it's so nice because you have Berkeley there and you have all
the music, you know, people, students, and I know they're like sister schools, right?
(24:23):
So talk a little bit about your experience at Boston Conservatory,
because I think there are some students out there that aren't interested in the collegiate path.
You know, they just want to jump right to auditioning. And certainly some of them can,
because in this, as you, you know, going back to what you're saying now with
this world that is so small for all of us because of these tools that we have,
they do have more access, right, to training via Zoom, blah, blah, blah, all of that.
(24:48):
And so they want to skip it. So like, give us a little bit of an idea how that
training was for you and, you know, how important it was for you,
maybe people who inspired you along the way, that type of thing.
I mean, I will always say that you will always find successful people in any
industry that studied your chosen field and didn't study and that went to a
(25:08):
collegiate program for it and that did not go to it.
You have everyone across the
board always. There's not one linear path to success in your chosen field.
For me personally, I needed in my young age, I needed a program.
I needed a training center where I was forced to go to class.
I was forced to go to school.
(25:29):
And I, that was essentially like a Broadway bootcamp for me.
I mean, I'm kind of dumbing it down a little bit. It's such a prestigious institution.
It's the oldest media school in the United States. And I think in,
I think in the Northern hemisphere, actually, anyway, it was an incredible school
and I would not trade a single second of it.
(25:50):
I met my dearest, dearest lifelong friends that I consider family now,
and that alone was worth the price of admission.
And along the way, I happened to get some also incredible training from people
that are doing it professionally in Boston, people that worked at Boston Ballet,
people that had been on Broadway, people that had been off.
You know, it was kind of it ran the gamut of professional teaching artists that
(26:12):
were at the school at that time.
And I had never really seen coming from my hometown.
I'd never seen facilities like that that were dedicated to just three things.
It was music, dance and theater.
And that's pretty amazing what these schools offer. Yeah.
So for me, for what I needed, it was a perfect blend of finding myself as an
(26:32):
individual in a big city alone for the first time,
and also giving me this incredible toolbox of unlocking my voice,
unlocking my acting potential,
unlocking things in my body for dance and movement that I wouldn't necessarily
have had the opportunity to if I decided to maybe do it a la carte,
(26:53):
if you will, and do it myself,
you know, alone in a city.
Not saying that that's not a feasible way to do it, but for where I was,
I benefited so immensely from being around like-minded people in a class of
people that were also going through the same thing, also getting the same tools,
just using them in a different way and learning from watching them grow,
if that makes sense. Yeah, it absolutely makes sense.
(27:15):
I was just going to interject that, yeah, you're with like items,
you're with your tribe, you're with people who also have those same aspirations
and the love and the passion and the work ethic for that field,
which is what all collegiate programs are about, right?
And the hope is that you can go to school for something that you love.
Hence the reason I'm doing what I'm doing to try to make parents understand,
(27:36):
no, let your child who is talented try this, you know?
You know, they can always get their undergrad in, you know, in drama or voice,
you know, performance or musical theater and get a master's in,
you know, in another field.
But, you know, you have to give them a chance.
And yeah, it's just you're submersed, right?
(27:56):
No, you're totally immersed in it, which I think was beneficial for me. Yeah.
Now, it took me, I think, 10 years.
I've been in the city for almost 11 years. It took me 10 years to get to Broadway.
But those 10 years, no one's path is the same, but those 10 years were filled
(28:19):
with so many incredible opportunities.
And just because I didn't reach that golden castle on the hill until the 10th
year doesn't mean that those 10 other years weren't worthwhile.
I was on TV. I was on two different TV shows. I did a national, I led a national tour.
I worked at the Ken, you know, I did all of these incredible opportunities that
sometimes get outshined by the glow of that castle that are equally as important
(28:40):
to your growth as an artist and your growth as a human being.
And now I happen to be on that castle, which is an amazing place to be,
but I'm looking at it from the lens of someone like, oh, this is,
this is actually more of the same. It just happens to be in New York.
And now that I have all of these other experiences from doing that same thing,
just not in New New York city, it just becomes a job, a great job,
(29:03):
but something that I'm prepared to do and something that I'm ready to do eight times a week.
Yes, absolutely. I, oh my gosh, I love that.
That needs to be like a billboard on the way to every empty building at college universities.
No, because everybody, a lot of people feel like, okay, I went through this college program.
My parents are like, I spent all this money on my child and now you want them
(29:25):
to continue training. Now you want them to continue to take voice lessons, dance, whatever it is.
And they do. They feel like, why am I not on Broadway?
Why isn't this a thing that just happens? And I think you make such a good point
that all of these things that you did led you to where you thought you wanted
to ultimately be, possibly, or people think they want to be.
(29:47):
And then exactly what you just said, you get there.
And it's not much different from the other theaters. It's just,
it happens to be like this, everyone puts it on such a pedestal, right?
And it's so true, like your development went in so many different directions,
which honestly becomes very palatable to the directors on Broadway,
(30:08):
the creative teams on Broadway, because you know how to handle yourself in so
many different situations because you've developed as very much an adult artist.
And you don't always see that.
So I'm going to segue to something.
Sure. If that's cool. I want to segue to something. Can we talk about the culture within,
like the culture within a cast, the culture within a rehearsal room,
(30:33):
maybe something that you experienced or, you know, there's some advice that
you might have for people once they get there and they arrive.
It's always interesting to me, you know, how people act and react once they book something.
And maybe some people were all, you know, we're all trained differently and
that's based on the teachers and the people that we've had.
(30:54):
And I very much was always someone who, when I'm working with people,
I'm always trying to interject how this industry works and how their behavior
needs to be a certain way or that they need to,
you know, give respect in these moments and in other moments kind of understand
when they can ask a specific question, those types of things.
And we talk about, obviously, the specificity of all of that.
(31:16):
But if you could kind of talk about because of
all these experiences you've had what that
has been for you like what did you learn from say first project as a 16 year
old doing regional theater and getting paid for it to now and and and how did
you develop all of that from those experiences something along those lines would
(31:37):
be great i think the the thing that's always stuck with me and it.
It's because I started this. Everyone starts as a newbie, right?
Everyone starts something for the first time.
And so because I did this for the first time, I always treated it like I was
a student. I was always a student and I was always learning something.
So when I was in that gigantic rehearsal hall during tech and we were getting
(32:00):
notes from the director, and even though I was the tiny ensemble part and it
was like, actually, can you do that? I've had my notepad out. I was taking notes.
I said, yes, I listened. And it's just something that I take with me from those
days is that I never want to feel like I'm always the smartest or the best person in the room.
Someone always has something to teach me or to share.
(32:22):
And I think that's so important. So something that I've taken from that little
16-year-old experience to now is that I always enter a rehearsal room or a new
project ready to learn and willing to listen.
And it's just something that is so important because a lot of times,
if you have a certain amount of talent, you have a certain amount of expectations maybe.
(32:45):
And so I just never let your ability to learn, you know, always let your ability
to learn outweigh your expectations because, you know, you might expect something
else, but someone says something or you get a note from someone that you're
like, oh my gosh, I never thought of it that way.
You know there's because it's so collaborative theater is so collaborative and
if you enter the one-minded process it's you're going to butt a lot of heads
(33:08):
along the way and it's not going to be a full experience biggest thing that
I've learned is to always just be.
Ready to learn ready to bounce ideas off of
each other be prepared and just be kind it's so
easy to be kind so easy to be kind yeah yeah that's
that although all great points oh my gosh yeah i think i think too you have
(33:30):
to go into every project with a certain amount of respect that the producers
are the people who are funding this right ultimately they are paying your salary
if it's a paid position, right?
So they've been put at the helm for a reason.
And then those producers have chosen the creative team for specific reasons
(33:50):
that are very much about what they want their end product to be.
And you as the artist can't always be privy to that. It's not the lane you're
supposed to be in, right?
So I think, yes, once, and I totally agree with you, The whole collaborative
process, that's what I loved, loved, loved.
I worked for Madonna for her 2012 world tour doing some choreo for her.
(34:15):
And that was such an amazing experience because everyone at that level knew the lane they were in.
And yet those lanes crisscrossed and worked together to get us to that common
goal in a very coordinated way.
And you had to understand and read the room to know that, okay,
(34:36):
in this moment, I need to stay here.
Now we're in a different setting and we're having a conversation.
And they opened the door to me being able to give my opinion on the changes
in the music and what the musical director was creating because of what I was
writing. And that's what's beautiful.
That's what's magic. And if you can be patient, if you are talented enough and
(34:57):
you think, okay, one day I could be a creative, then be patient in those moments,
stay in the lane and read the room enough.
So those skills, do you feel you learned those skills as a 16 year old?
I think I started to learn those skills as a 16 year old, and I'm still learning
those skills because now, you know, I've had the opportunity to work with people
(35:20):
of name, people who are notable.
And so part of that mindset is that I, I look at the people who are in the principal
positions as people of power or people in star roles.
And I'm like, how do they approach this? How do they talk to the director?
How do they take notes? Do, are they receptive?
Are they rebutting against it. Like what, how do I want to approach me starring
(35:43):
in a Broadway show one day?
And what is the type of performer and person and personality do I want to bring into that room?
And what is the most fruitful version of that?
How is, what is the most unifying version that everyone is synchronous and the
room is happy and everyone's laughing.
So it's like taking things from every single, every single job that I've done
and shutting my mouth in some where I'm like, well, I'm never going to do that.
(36:06):
I'm never going to talk to a director that way. I'm never ever going to take a note that way.
Or I'm not, you know, it's, it's so everything is right in front of you.
If you just listen and, and hear it and you can take everything from those experiences
and shape it into something that now I'm starring on Broadway and covering two
of the principal roles that I now bring into that of like how I treat my dresser,
(36:29):
how I treat the resident director,
how I treat the associate choreographer and things like just how you want to
be perceived as a human and an artist, they're so important, so important.
And it starts from taking it from your first professional job.
It's just taking little kernels of information and truth and suggestions, you know.
Thanks for watching the Making It Happen, A Career in the Performing Arts podcast.
(36:53):
Tune in on Sundays at 8 p.m. Eastern. And if you'd like to connect with Dan,
go to danrozales.net and follow him on socials at Dan Rozales.
Need more info and details about the professional performance industry,
visit lbctalent.com and schedule your free, no obligation consultation.
And follow me on socials at lisasolak__lbctalent. By sharing our stories,
(37:18):
we can help other talented individuals land the career of their dreams.
If you're enjoying this podcast, please like and subscribe below and hit the
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Music.
Music.
(00:05):
Welcome to Making It Happen, a career in the performing arts where we discuss
how to break into the performing arts industry for yourself or your child, teen, or young adults.
Guests include professionals who are passionate and share my vision of helping
talented individuals land professional representation and have successful careers in the arts.
My name is Lisa Solak and my guest today is Dan Rosales.
(00:29):
Hi Dan, how are you? Hey Lisa, Lisa, I'm good. How are you?
I'm really good. I'm enjoying this nice, crisp fall weather that we're having, honestly.
Yeah, it's been great. So I am really thrilled about talking to you today because
your journey, I think, is really going to be a great kind of informational story
(00:51):
journey that you can share with the listeners.
And as I mentioned to you previous, our listeners are primarily parents of talented kids,
teens, and young adults, and also young adults who are in college and
some who have graduated and even older adults who have
been in the city maybe for you know eight ten years and
are lost and never really found that agent that manager got
(01:11):
connected to the right people so um yeah i'm
interested to kind of hear all about your
journey to broadway because you are presently in
the great gatsby yes yes and
and many times starring in in this you
know performing the starring roles which is so crazy and exciting
(01:32):
but we'll get there so my first question
is can you talk about your beginnings like when did you know that you were that
you were talented that you had interest in this that there was some kind of
spark in you was it your parents was it a teacher like did you you just know
when you were super young? Like when did it all start?
(01:54):
Yeah. I mean, I guess I'll take you back to the very beginning.
I mean, this all kind of stemmed out of a place of necessity.
You know, when I was really young, my parents split up.
So afterschool programs were paramount to keeping me busy and keeping me at
school and focused on something else.
So the first programs that were available to me were the choir program,
(02:18):
were afterschool drama programs.
So I think it it started as early as elementary school. I got involved in some
theater troupe where we danced terrible routine to the Men in Black theme song.
And I think that was my first performance in the basement of a church.
I remember it being all dressed in black baggy clothes that were too big for us.
(02:39):
And literally since that moment, I literally think that's when I got bit by
this acting bug, like the need to perform and just the love of it all.
When I got to middle school.
I had the choice of joining all of the, I transferred to my middle school.
So all of the programs electives were already full, except for a few.
(03:00):
And I think the two choices remaining were color guard and choir.
And the way color guard was explained to me when I was in the office, I have a vivid memory.
And she was like, oh, you know, you get to run around with rifles and like play in the field.
And I was like, oh my gosh, I'm a, you know, 12 year old kid.
That sounds amazing. I'd love to do that.
First day color guard, I got there. it was
(03:21):
all girls who were much taller than me and they
were all like super athletic and like waving these flags around
I was the only boy I was so intimidated that I ran back to the I don't think
this is right for me is choir still available and it and so I joined the choir
and since that moment it's something unlocked in me where I just found like a passion for singing
(03:46):
and found my into the arts like that way.
And ever since then, you know, I consider myself like a vocalist first.
I've always been a vocalist first.
And then I loved the acting side of it. And then I got involved in the dance side of it.
So that's how I found my way into like musical theater that way. Okay, interesting.
Yeah. So that's interesting, because I always ask people, even when people that
(04:08):
I'm working with them, how do you identify? Like, what do you how do you identify?
What do you identify with first? And it's interesting, was there one teacher
that inspired you in that way that you knew, like, were they giving you compliments,
giving you opportunity to do solos in the choir, that type of thing?
Like, how did you know that you were that good? Because I know a lot of times
in, especially in grammar school, when you have someone who can,
(04:30):
in this case, sing really well, the teachers are trying to make everybody blend.
And so sometimes I find that there are children who will hold back and they
won't really perform what they really know how to do, that their God-given talent
doesn't come out because the teachers,
of course, their job is to teach the whole group, you know, and they don't want someone to stand out.
Like what was your experience when you first started and you found that you've had that voice?
(04:54):
Yeah. I mean, well, similarly, like in elementary and middle school,
it was all about that group feeling, right?
It was like having just one voice and singing as one and kind of honing your
skills throughout those classes.
It wasn't really until I got to high school, my high school drama teacher,
her name is Cameo Fasulo.
Cameo, perfect name for a high school drama teacher. who's also the dance instructor.
(05:17):
And it wasn't until I got to like,
you know, high school theater and it sounds a little silly to say,
but that I really recognized that I had something different that wasn't just
an elective or something that I was doing at school.
And she kind of brought that out of me in a way that she told me,
(05:38):
she was like, look, it's, it's great that you're You're doing community theater
here in high school and you're doing some of the high school plays.
But you need to be right now. You're like a big fish in a small pond.
You need to go be a big fish in the ocean and you need to go study this.
You need to go to school if you want to, because you have the talents to really make it work.
(06:01):
And so at her urging, you know, I had started to look into it more seriously.
And I, you know, applied to a bunch of theater programs.
I got into a lot of them and I, it was, it stemmed from her really encouraging
me that way that she noticed something that was a gift that could be something more, could be a career.
(06:25):
I think you do need someone who is a professional or semi-professional to give
you kind of that push, especially for parents, because they feel like it's my kid.
Of course, they're good. Of course, I'm going to think they're good because
I'm biased. Are they really good?
Like, what's the real story here? You know, and I hear that all the time,
you know, where people are like, are my kids really ready for this? I don't know.
But did you start doing any training with professional teachers and like private
(06:48):
instruction as a child teen?
Did you do it at that time or you waited till college? No, I waited.
I as soon as I kind of knew that this there was something more and I happened
to be I was cast in everything and I was doing everything.
And then I started to get attention from like the local theater community.
And where I'm from Thousand Oaks, California, there's a huge regional touring house there.
(07:11):
It's usually like the second or third national tour that comes through there.
But it's like a 3000 seat house. I think our regional theater there like we
would put up shows, you know, I did a bunch of regional shows there.
That was more than community theater, you know, because it was elevated.
And through that community that I found in high school, I started taking professional
voice lessons that weren't at school, wasn't in choir. Right.
(07:34):
Through a voice teacher. His name was Paul Fagundes. Shout out to Paul,
if somehow you hear this.
But he was the first real voice teacher that I had that was like,
oh, this is how you warm up.
This is how you cool down. This is how you stretch your voice.
This is some repertory that you should sing.
We are going to do a class concert at some venue.
(07:54):
And he had all his students perform. And it was my first recital ever of me
singing very stereotypical tenor musical theater songs.
But it was so necessary to have that type of training and that type of teacher
that was like, you can do this.
You want to do this. So I'm going to put all of this information in front of
you and you do with it what you will and hoping that something sticks.
(08:18):
And it did, luckily. And that kind of opened the door for me to start working professionally,
no longer as like a student actor, but hired on contract at those regional theaters
that were, you know, I remember working with like Sally Struthers and Debbie
Gibson when I was 16, 17. No way. That's amazing.
So you had that opportunity so early. You know what I think is great?
(08:42):
One thing that you mentioned about that teacher is that when,
and this happens, I think, quite often when you get with an instructor,
a teacher, coach, who is in the industry in that regard or at a higher level,
like in the Broadway space, and they give you opportunities right away.
Way, like you're saying you had a recital or, you know, sometimes it's a cabaret
someone puts together or whatever.
(09:02):
And I think that's opportunities to go, okay, now you're on,
things are on the line here.
This isn't like, you know, this is no joke. Like you have to bring it.
Yeah. And it's a whole different situation.
And I, and when you started that instruction, did you feel like a fish out of
water or was it just something natural that you felt like, okay,
hey, this is where I belong. I get this guy.
(09:25):
How did it feel just as the performer when you started with that more advanced teacher?
Right. I think looking back on it, Dan, I want to say now that,
oh yeah, it felt so easy and it was fine because now I'm so used to it.
I'm sure starting it back then, there was a little trepidation.
Be like, what's happening?
What is this? Why am I paying so much money for this? Am I good at this?
(09:48):
There's a lot of the the, it's like when you first start there and then it kind
of quickly went away when we started doing, you know, the work,
which is really cool because the kind of that inner voice shuts up and you're
just like, I want to get better at this.
Oh, this was really good this time. Not, not so great in this way this time,
but my next voice lesson, I'm going to work on this praise so I can really get,
(10:09):
you know, so it kind of, it's that inner saboteur that like kind of talks you
down from like, I don't think you should be doing this.
I don't even think you should be doing this, but you're good enough to push
past it and be like, oh, actually, I am pretty good at this.
So I think it felt right once...
Once I was critical of myself in the way that I wanted to get better and not
(10:33):
just thinking the best at it, you know? Yes. Isn't that so true?
I feel like when you're a beginner, you think you're really great.
And then when you get to that intermediate level, you have to get over this
hump of like, okay, like exactly what you said that you, you love it and you want to get better.
And you kind of have this, I think an inner voice saying, no,
no, I can do this. I'm going to do it.
(10:55):
It propels and it still propels me to this day.
It's like, what can I improve upon this last time?
Because I mean, perfection is impossible and unattainable, but practice makes
perfection or practice makes performance better.
It's just that constant need to improve upon what you've just done in a way that's attainable.
(11:18):
Absolutely. I'm so glad you just said that. Let's jump to now,
just because of what you just said.
Okay, let's jump to today just for a second. Okay, so I'm going to let you talk about Gatsby,
but how I want to relate it is now you are in a Broadway show,
a very big, epic Broadway show, and you're not only part of the ensemble,
(11:39):
but you are understudying big lead roles.
So now talk about that and how you prepare and are you continuing to train and
how does that relate to what you learned when you were younger?
Yeah, yeah, of course. I'm going to take you through the whole Gatsby situation.
So I came about my Broadway debut in a very weird way.
(12:00):
And I'm not sure, actually, if you know this, but I was actually,
Mark Bruni is the director of The Great Gatsby on Broadway.
And we had met years ago previously when I was in Final Callbacks for the beautiful
tour for the first national tour. Okay.
Ended up going my way, which was fine, which is great.
It's a learning experience. But then I met him again when we did this Broadway
(12:20):
musical called Trevor, which is about a young kid coming to terms with,
you know, his desires and his changing body and his queerness as a young kid in a rural town.
And I was the dance captain and the adult male swing for that.
There are only two adult male roles.
So I covered the two adults in that show. Sidebar.
(12:41):
I have to interrupt you a second.
Sidebar. So one of my clients from when she was very, very young,
she was like four or five years old when I got her signed with a big, big, bi-coastal agent.
Echo Picon was in that show. Oh, yeah. Of course, Echo. Yes.
Oh, my gosh. She's so talented. So lovely. Right? With the red hair.
(13:02):
Yeah, with the red curls.
She's amazing. I can't believe she's a senior in high school now.
It's crazy. I know. It's crazy. Yeah.
Yeah, we should talk more about Trevor because that's kind of a big deal.
But go ahead, go on with your story.
Yes. So Mark was the director for that.
And through a weird series of circumstances,
I ended up becoming the resident director for that production off Broadway,
(13:25):
along with being the dance captain and being in the show, like noting the show
when I was noting the show as
dance captain, but also as the director of resident director, excuse me.
And then this another huge
covid surge hit omicron remember that yes
and it closed a bunch of shows we were unfortunately one of
the shows that closed i remember that i remember that
(13:47):
that's a great opportunity though to be acting as the director yeah it was amazing
and so mark then you know i had another job opportunity for me he was like he
was doing the show called 50 years of broadway at the kennedy center which is
huge huge like a-list broadway talent singing the songs that made them famous.
You know, LaChanze, Norm Lewis, Stephanie J. Block. It was huge names. Oh, wow. Okay.
(14:11):
And he asked me to be his associate director for that production.
So I was like, you know what, the show, Trevor just closed.
I have nothing going on. This is always something that's been interesting to me.
I've never necessarily felt a calling to be a director or something like that,
but I love theater in all its forms.
So I'll go work at this iconic Kennedy Center. That's incredible.
Do you feel like, I don't know, like the universe was kind of calling you to
(14:35):
head in that direction at all during that time? time. It's so funny you say
that because so getting back to Gatsby, so I did that production, right?
And then the first time I ever heard about The Great Gatsby was when Mark,
again, asked me to be his associate director after we've done a couple of projects
together for this reading of The Great Gatsby, which was, you know,
(14:56):
Broadway bound musical,
it hadn't found Jeremy Jordan or Eva yet, didn't find it stars,
just working on the material in the book.
And so I I agreed and I was the, I read the stage directions and I helped,
you know, kind of facilitate what an AD does in a reading, which is just a lot
of admin work and bookkeeping and making sure everything's eyes are dotted and T's are crossed.
(15:17):
As soon as it started to go forward, I knew that the paper mill production of
Great Gatsby was happening because I'd seen press about it.
And Mark reached out to me.
So a lot of very serendipitous things happened on one day.
I booked the company national tour the same day that I had my final callback
(15:39):
for the great Gatsby in an ensemble track.
But this is after Mark Bruni had emailed me asking me to be his associate.
And so I was kind of torn, right?
Because there's two very similar but different.
And the performer side of me was like, I've always wanted to do this.
And this is like one of the closest shows that I know that has the potential
(15:59):
as a star power has the producing behind it to actually make it on Broadway,
which I've always dreamed of.
I responded back very quickly to his email and very professional was like,
Mark, I love working with you. I'm so grateful for all the opportunities that you've done.
You've given me as a director and as an actor, it okay with you,
if we put a pin and being your associate, because I just got an appointment
(16:22):
from my agents the same day he asked me to be his associate. to be in the show.
And he was nothing but respectful. He was like, Oh my God, of course, absolutely.
I won't bias the team one way or another. I won't say anything,
you know, rooting for you to be in the show or rooting for you for not being in the show.
Just know that one way or another, we're happy to have you involved.
(16:43):
And I, it was the biggest blessing of my life.
So I ended up booking the company national tour on the last day of my final callback.
I had forgotten my water bottle at Ripley Greer after I went to company after
coming from Gatsby across the street.
I went back to Ripley Greer upstairs and I saw Kate Kerrigan and Mark Bruni
(17:04):
in the elevator and I was like, oh my God, this is so awkward because I know
them both. We've known each other for a long time. Oh my gosh.
I was like, I was just your associate on a reading. And then I just went in
for this ensemble and covering the lead role.
So it got a little I was like, and it all was amazing.
Because as soon as we got out of the elevator, we were outside.
(17:26):
And they couldn't keep it in. They're like, you're gonna be in the show,
you're gonna be in the show.
And I just like being outside of Pearl Studios, like starting to cry because
it was just it the universe was pointing me in the right direction.
But only because I had been open and receptive to all the different opportunities
(17:46):
that were presented my way, even if they weren't necessarily what I thought
would be the first choice I would make or the best choice. You know what?
This is such an amazing story. I'm so
glad you're sharing this because I feel like
I have so many adult clients
that really are lost and they have
have a hard time because in their heads they
(18:09):
see that like my son kurt coined the golden
castle on the hill broadway that they
think that that's what they want and they want it so bad instead of like
letting you know loving the art form loving
all the opportunities letting those doors
open and even if they're open they're a jar and they sneak
their big toe in and kind of get in and play over here
(18:29):
and play over there it all it's not a straight linear line to broadway i don't
think for anyone and certainly it wasn't for you but but that's so exciting
that you know what you have to to I think you have to look at with that situation
you're in everyone wanted you.
For directing for this this national tour for you know like everyone wanted
(18:53):
you which is very exciting and you have to kind of when you're in those situations
I think it's very nerve-wracking,
absolutely because you don't want to burn any bridges and you don't want to
make a mistake and And you don't want to hurt anyone's feelings.
And like you said, you want to be grateful. And it's wonderful that he...
He gave you that opportunity and understood where you were coming from,
(19:14):
which I think at the top of the industry, I think most directors,
choreographers, you know, creatives, they do understand that,
that, you know, you have to kind of, you know, feed that.
And in that moment, I'm sure, I mean, when you were young, did you think of
Broadway as something that, you know, was like, oh, the Golden Castle?
Or was it just, I love the art? Like, where was your head? I think it was more
(19:36):
I love the art and I have a good time doing what I'm doing when I was younger.
Because for me, like I had never heard of the Jimmy Awards.
I'd never really heard of a Broadway show.
And granted, we had some tours come through. But you know, my family didn't
really have the means to go take all of us to go see a show that's expensive.
So for me, it was just kind of like, oh, I'm doing this after school program
(19:59):
and I'm good at doing it and it makes me happy.
And in sort of that way of doing it. And then it wasn't until really I moved,
I started college and I moved to Boston.
I started school at the Boston Conservatory that I was like,
oh, oh, there's a whole other world to unlock. All of these Broadway shows,
all of these famous actors and actresses and people I want to emulate.
(20:20):
And I kind of fell in love with the theater like that way on the opposite, if that makes sense.
Yeah, it does make sense completely because I think there's a lot of people
who, or a lot of children and teens who just find out exactly like what happened to you.
You realize that, okay, I have this affinity, I have this talent,
this God-given ability, and now it's being nurtured and you just kind of live
(20:44):
in the moment of what's coming at you.
And, you know, unless you're someone who is really a super fan of Broadway,
like you're saying, have parents and the means to go to Broadway shows.
Like I know for my son, Kevin, his first Broadway show was being in How the
Grinch Stole Christmas at the age of 10.
And he had been, you know what I'm saying? And he had been in so many...
(21:06):
Theaters just with doing, he was a competition dancer first.
So he had been in a lot of different theaters. And I remember we were going
into, I think it's now the Lyric Theater at the time, it was the Hilton.
And, you know, the first day in the theater and, you know, we're kind of,
the whole cast is going in. Of course, parents were there because he was a minor.
And he's like, this theater is pretty cool. The chandeliers are nice.
(21:28):
Like the lights are, like he had no idea. did. He just was so used to living
in backstage areas, you know, from when he was a baby and he really didn't have any idea.
And then, you know, like yourself, when he got a little bit older,
he thought, oh, wow, this is like, there's a whole nother space here that I
need to learn about, which is another reason why a collegiate program is a great
(21:49):
thing because there is an academia to it. Right.
Like, so how, so let's talk about, about Boston. How did you land there?
Was that that your first choice?
Did you, cause I also have many young, young adult clients trying to get into school.
I've had a college program for years. You know what I mean? So like I help all people do that.
And many times they're submitting and now's the time, right?
(22:11):
This is it right now, you know, September, October, they're getting all their
pre-screens done and they, you know, they're, they've got 12,
15, 16, 18 schools on their list. Like how was that process for you? do?
It was a little different because I'm a millennial.
So like we're at the advent of social media and everything, right?
Like we got in, I think at the right time, fortunately.
(22:32):
Yeah, agreed. But we didn't have many like pre-screens back when I was applying to school.
We had unifieds, which you would go to a hotel.
If you were from the West Coast, you'd go to LAX and you'd go to the LAX Hilton
and it'd be a giant ballroom and every single top program would be there.
And you'd go for a day or two.
(22:52):
And you sing, you dance, you'd bring your little boombox or bring a burned CD
with your tracks on it. That's right.
You would play it for them and you would sing.
And, you know, the way I went about going to school was I actually went to a
state school to Cal State Fullerton for a semester.
And that program ended up not being right for me. I think now they've really
(23:16):
like honed in on what they're doing.
But I, we were the first class, I think, for a BFA program.
So it was kind of a little confusing when we first got there.
And I decided to take the a year off.
So I went back to my hometown, I worked at that theater that I was talking about.
And I just took classes at a community college and kind of had a moment to it
(23:36):
was like, Okay, what do I want to do?
Do I want to do this? Am I going to go to school for this?
Do I go to school for something else and do this as a minor?
I really want to do this. So I applied again to schools that I got into the first time.
And the way that I chose my top choice was kind of like, how much scholarship money can I get?
(23:58):
Because that was very important for me if I got any. And Mm-hmm. Yeah.
By the grace of God, like Boston Conservatory gave me an incredible package.
And so as soon as I got that email, I was like, well, this is my first choice.
So it's great that I got my first choice. That's great. That's great.
Yeah. Yeah. And it's so nice because you have Berkeley there and you have all
the music, you know, people, students, and I know they're like sister schools, right?
(24:23):
So talk a little bit about your experience at Boston Conservatory,
because I think there are some students out there that aren't interested in the collegiate path.
You know, they just want to jump right to auditioning. And certainly some of them can,
because in this, as you, you know, going back to what you're saying now with
this world that is so small for all of us because of these tools that we have,
they do have more access, right, to training via Zoom, blah, blah, blah, all of that.
(24:48):
And so they want to skip it. So like, give us a little bit of an idea how that
training was for you and, you know, how important it was for you,
maybe people who inspired you along the way, that type of thing.
I mean, I will always say that you will always find successful people in any
industry that studied your chosen field and didn't study and that went to a
(25:08):
collegiate program for it and that did not go to it.
You have everyone across the
board always. There's not one linear path to success in your chosen field.
For me personally, I needed in my young age, I needed a program.
I needed a training center where I was forced to go to class.
I was forced to go to school.
(25:29):
And I, that was essentially like a Broadway bootcamp for me.
I mean, I'm kind of dumbing it down a little bit. It's such a prestigious institution.
It's the oldest media school in the United States. And I think in,
I think in the Northern hemisphere, actually, anyway, it was an incredible school
and I would not trade a single second of it.
(25:50):
I met my dearest, dearest lifelong friends that I consider family now,
and that alone was worth the price of admission.
And along the way, I happened to get some also incredible training from people
that are doing it professionally in Boston, people that worked at Boston Ballet,
people that had been on Broadway, people that had been off.
You know, it was kind of it ran the gamut of professional teaching artists that
(26:12):
were at the school at that time.
And I had never really seen coming from my hometown.
I'd never seen facilities like that that were dedicated to just three things.
It was music, dance and theater.
And that's pretty amazing what these schools offer. Yeah.
So for me, for what I needed, it was a perfect blend of finding myself as an
(26:32):
individual in a big city alone for the first time,
and also giving me this incredible toolbox of unlocking my voice,
unlocking my acting potential,
unlocking things in my body for dance and movement that I wouldn't necessarily
have had the opportunity to if I decided to maybe do it a la carte,
(26:53):
if you will, and do it myself,
you know, alone in a city.
Not saying that that's not a feasible way to do it, but for where I was,
I benefited so immensely from being around like-minded people in a class of
people that were also going through the same thing, also getting the same tools,
just using them in a different way and learning from watching them grow,
if that makes sense. Yeah, it absolutely makes sense.
(27:15):
I was just going to interject that, yeah, you're with like items,
you're with your tribe, you're with people who also have those same aspirations
and the love and the passion and the work ethic for that field,
which is what all collegiate programs are about, right?
And the hope is that you can go to school for something that you love.
Hence the reason I'm doing what I'm doing to try to make parents understand,
(27:36):
no, let your child who is talented try this, you know?
You know, they can always get their undergrad in, you know, in drama or voice,
you know, performance or musical theater and get a master's in,
you know, in another field.
But, you know, you have to give them a chance.
And yeah, it's just you're submersed, right?
(27:56):
No, you're totally immersed in it, which I think was beneficial for me. Yeah.
Now, it took me, I think, 10 years.
I've been in the city for almost 11 years. It took me 10 years to get to Broadway.
But those 10 years, no one's path is the same, but those 10 years were filled
(28:19):
with so many incredible opportunities.
And just because I didn't reach that golden castle on the hill until the 10th
year doesn't mean that those 10 other years weren't worthwhile.
I was on TV. I was on two different TV shows. I did a national, I led a national tour.
I worked at the Ken, you know, I did all of these incredible opportunities that
sometimes get outshined by the glow of that castle that are equally as important
(28:40):
to your growth as an artist and your growth as a human being.
And now I happen to be on that castle, which is an amazing place to be,
but I'm looking at it from the lens of someone like, oh, this is,
this is actually more of the same. It just happens to be in New York.
And now that I have all of these other experiences from doing that same thing,
just not in New New York city, it just becomes a job, a great job,
(29:03):
but something that I'm prepared to do and something that I'm ready to do eight times a week.
Yes, absolutely. I, oh my gosh, I love that.
That needs to be like a billboard on the way to every empty building at college universities.
No, because everybody, a lot of people feel like, okay, I went through this college program.
My parents are like, I spent all this money on my child and now you want them
(29:25):
to continue training. Now you want them to continue to take voice lessons, dance, whatever it is.
And they do. They feel like, why am I not on Broadway?
Why isn't this a thing that just happens? And I think you make such a good point
that all of these things that you did led you to where you thought you wanted
to ultimately be, possibly, or people think they want to be.
(29:47):
And then exactly what you just said, you get there.
And it's not much different from the other theaters. It's just,
it happens to be like this, everyone puts it on such a pedestal, right?
And it's so true, like your development went in so many different directions,
which honestly becomes very palatable to the directors on Broadway,
(30:08):
the creative teams on Broadway, because you know how to handle yourself in so
many different situations because you've developed as very much an adult artist.
And you don't always see that.
So I'm going to segue to something.
Sure. If that's cool. I want to segue to something. Can we talk about the culture within,
like the culture within a cast, the culture within a rehearsal room,
(30:33):
maybe something that you experienced or, you know, there's some advice that
you might have for people once they get there and they arrive.
It's always interesting to me, you know, how people act and react once they book something.
And maybe some people were all, you know, we're all trained differently and
that's based on the teachers and the people that we've had.
(30:54):
And I very much was always someone who, when I'm working with people,
I'm always trying to interject how this industry works and how their behavior
needs to be a certain way or that they need to,
you know, give respect in these moments and in other moments kind of understand
when they can ask a specific question, those types of things.
And we talk about, obviously, the specificity of all of that.
(31:16):
But if you could kind of talk about because of
all these experiences you've had what that
has been for you like what did you learn from say first project as a 16 year
old doing regional theater and getting paid for it to now and and and how did
you develop all of that from those experiences something along those lines would
(31:37):
be great i think the the thing that's always stuck with me and it.
It's because I started this. Everyone starts as a newbie, right?
Everyone starts something for the first time.
And so because I did this for the first time, I always treated it like I was
a student. I was always a student and I was always learning something.
So when I was in that gigantic rehearsal hall during tech and we were getting
(32:00):
notes from the director, and even though I was the tiny ensemble part and it
was like, actually, can you do that? I've had my notepad out. I was taking notes.
I said, yes, I listened. And it's just something that I take with me from those
days is that I never want to feel like I'm always the smartest or the best person in the room.
Someone always has something to teach me or to share.
(32:22):
And I think that's so important. So something that I've taken from that little
16-year-old experience to now is that I always enter a rehearsal room or a new
project ready to learn and willing to listen.
And it's just something that is so important because a lot of times,
if you have a certain amount of talent, you have a certain amount of expectations maybe.
(32:45):
And so I just never let your ability to learn, you know, always let your ability
to learn outweigh your expectations because, you know, you might expect something
else, but someone says something or you get a note from someone that you're
like, oh my gosh, I never thought of it that way.
You know there's because it's so collaborative theater is so collaborative and
if you enter the one-minded process it's you're going to butt a lot of heads
(33:08):
along the way and it's not going to be a full experience biggest thing that
I've learned is to always just be.
Ready to learn ready to bounce ideas off of
each other be prepared and just be kind it's so
easy to be kind so easy to be kind yeah yeah that's
that although all great points oh my gosh yeah i think i think too you have
(33:30):
to go into every project with a certain amount of respect that the producers
are the people who are funding this right ultimately they are paying your salary
if it's a paid position, right?
So they've been put at the helm for a reason.
And then those producers have chosen the creative team for specific reasons
(33:50):
that are very much about what they want their end product to be.
And you as the artist can't always be privy to that. It's not the lane you're
supposed to be in, right?
So I think, yes, once, and I totally agree with you, The whole collaborative
process, that's what I loved, loved, loved.
I worked for Madonna for her 2012 world tour doing some choreo for her.
(34:15):
And that was such an amazing experience because everyone at that level knew the lane they were in.
And yet those lanes crisscrossed and worked together to get us to that common
goal in a very coordinated way.
And you had to understand and read the room to know that, okay,
(34:36):
in this moment, I need to stay here.
Now we're in a different setting and we're having a conversation.
And they opened the door to me being able to give my opinion on the changes
in the music and what the musical director was creating because of what I was
writing. And that's what's beautiful.
That's what's magic. And if you can be patient, if you are talented enough and
(34:57):
you think, okay, one day I could be a creative, then be patient in those moments,
stay in the lane and read the room enough.
So those skills, do you feel you learned those skills as a 16 year old?
I think I started to learn those skills as a 16 year old, and I'm still learning
those skills because now, you know, I've had the opportunity to work with people
(35:20):
of name, people who are notable.
And so part of that mindset is that I, I look at the people who are in the principal
positions as people of power or people in star roles.
And I'm like, how do they approach this? How do they talk to the director?
How do they take notes? Do, are they receptive?
Are they rebutting against it. Like what, how do I want to approach me starring
(35:43):
in a Broadway show one day?
And what is the type of performer and person and personality do I want to bring into that room?
And what is the most fruitful version of that?
How is, what is the most unifying version that everyone is synchronous and the
room is happy and everyone's laughing.
So it's like taking things from every single, every single job that I've done
and shutting my mouth in some where I'm like, well, I'm never going to do that.
(36:06):
I'm never going to talk to a director that way. I'm never ever going to take a note that way.
Or I'm not, you know, it's, it's so everything is right in front of you.
If you just listen and, and hear it and you can take everything from those experiences
and shape it into something that now I'm starring on Broadway and covering two
of the principal roles that I now bring into that of like how I treat my dresser,
(36:29):
how I treat the resident director,
how I treat the associate choreographer and things like just how you want to
be perceived as a human and an artist, they're so important, so important.
And it starts from taking it from your first professional job.
It's just taking little kernels of information and truth and suggestions, you know.
Thanks for watching the Making It Happen, A Career in the Performing Arts podcast.
(36:53):
Tune in on Sundays at 8 p.m. Eastern. And if you'd like to connect with Dan,
go to danrozales.net and follow him on socials at Dan Rozales.
Need more info and details about the professional performance industry,
visit lbctalent.com and schedule your free, no obligation consultation.
And follow me on socials at lisasolak__lbctalent. By sharing our stories,
(37:18):
we can help other talented individuals land the career of their dreams.
If you're enjoying this podcast, please like and subscribe below and hit the
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