"Hello, Little Girl" has been kind of a controversial song depending on the way it's portrayed. I remember specifically working on my scene with Gavin Creel, who plays the Wolf and Cinderella's Prince. But something that I was really grateful for was the time that Lear took to talk to us about our characters when time permitted. I did have to come in prepared because there's not a lot of time to dive into things the way you would during a normal show process. Since this whole process has been so fast, did you have to come in with your Little Red ready to go, or were you able to work with your director, Lear deBessonet, on your character in rehearsal? Lester in a scene with Gavin Creel as the Wolf in the Encores! production of Into the Woods. While we were doing that show, I would rewatch the PBS special taped performance daily with my sisters. And then I have two older sisters, and my middle sister was Little Red and my oldest sister was Baker's Wife. I was actually Milky White, which was one of the best parts I've ever played. My community theater did Into the Woods when I was about 9, so I have this sort of familial bond with the show. He was such a huge supporter of everything since day one so I could really go into the show thinking, "I guess I really do belong here because Steve himself saw my tape and wanted me to play this part."ĭo you have any personal history with Into the Woods? But it's been amazing feeling his presence throughout every performance that we've done. He passed away before we started the Encores! production so unfortunately I never got to meet him or thank him for this incredible opportunity. So I sent in a tape and about two weeks later my agents called me and opened the conversation with, "Stephen Sondheim wants you to play Little Red." I burst out crying. And I know that Little Red and Jack were two of the only, if not the only parts that they held auditions for. It was Into the Woods at City Center with Sara Bareilles and all these amazing people. But of course this time it wasn't just another self-tape. It was just another one of those self-tapes that came through. How did the opportunity to play Little Red at City Center originally come your way? Julia Lester taking her first bow on Broadway as Little Red in Into the Woods.Ĭongratulations on your Broadway debut! Take me back to the beginning with this production. And as Sondheim taught us all, that's what woods are for. For one peculiar passing moment, Lester's magical worlds are colliding in the woods. Not only is the character made in Bareilles's image, but Lester landed the life-changing role with a performance of Bareilles's "Gravity." She now finds herself going Into the Woods with Bareilles eight times a week, just as High School Musical's third season, landing on Disney Plus July 27, takes her and her TV castmates to summer camp. Lester first stepped into the spotlight on Disney's High School Musical: The Musical: The Series as Ashlyn, an aspiring singer-songwriter who took center stage as Belle in season 2's rendering of Beauty and the Beast. To top off this Broadway fever dream, Lester also shares the stage with her lifelong musical idol, Sara Bareilles, who may still not know the extent to which she has shaped the life and career of the young woman playing her hungry, mischievous neighbor. James Theatre for a limited summer run where Lester now performs alongside a dream cast whose list of Tony Awards and nominations could choke a giant. When Stephen Sondheim chose Julia Lester for the two-week Encores! run of Into The Woods, he didn't know he was both handpicking his last Little Red, and poising the then 21-year-old to make the most auspicious Broadway debut a young actor could dream of.įollowing rave reviews and overwhelming demand for more of Lear deBessonet's picture-perfect revival, the production has moved over to the St.
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