From the Mouth of Stephanie J. Block II

I love reading interviews with Stephanie J. Block because she always shows herself to be a thoughtful and intelligent woman in addition to being a phenomenal Broadway talent. Her latest interview on Playbill with Andrew Gans is no different.

In the old days, the big Broadway talents all toured; Carol Channing, Mary Martin, John Raitt, Julie Harris, and even Ethel Merman all made their way through the provinces, as Lynne Fontanne called them to Carol Channing. In an interview, Carol Channing explained that an actor should tour because, to paraphrase, if you visit them at home, they’ll visit you when they come to New York.

Much has changed since those days—it’s harder to become a big-name Broadway star that is known outside New York theatre audiences to name one—but I found what Ms. Block had to say very interesting.

Andrew Gans: It's also a great way to get your name to different parts of the country that wouldn't necessarily know you.

Block: I had no idea what sort of fan base you could gain by going out on the road until we were out there. I still get emails from people that had seen it in Denver or St. Louis. It was really remarkable to me. I didn't understand that until we were on the road for the year, and those sort of fan relationships are still existing.


In fact, I have only seen Stephanie J. Block on tour in Wicked during her stop in Los Angeles. And when I get to New York again, I would love to stop and visit her latest performance.

the Broadway Mouth
December 14, 2007