artist who has played the title role in
Phantom of the Opera
more times
than any other actor, had such humble beginnings: in the orchestra pit
at Dos Pueblos High.
I asked Howard to take me back to those early days. “I was
playing clarinet in the pit for
Sound of Music
. My big brother had the
lead,” Howard remembers. “Sitting in the orchestra pit during dress
rehearsals, I thought ‘that looks like a lot of fun up there.’”
He cited the late
Amer Lincoln
and the late
Irwin Maguire
as drama and music teachers at DP that had inspired him to take
the leap from the pit to the stage. “They had a huge impact on my
almost instantaneous interest in the theatre,” Howard added. “
Pope
Freeman
and the late
Bradford Dillman
became major mentors,
and
Sharon Currier
was my first voice teacher. She sparked my
understanding of how to give voice to a song. And of course without
the late
Jack Nakano
and Santa Barbara Youth Theatre, I can’t
imagine I’d ever have the nerve or blind stupidity to think I could
have a life in the theatre,” exclaimed McGillan.
Howard’s life in the theatre has been and continues to be rich. The
list of his Broadway shows and concerts are too many to note here but
in addition to
Phantom
, some highlights include the recent
Gigi
,
Kiss of
the Spider Woman
,
Secret Garden
,
Anything Goes
with
Patti Lupone
and
Grey Gardens
with
Christine Ebersole
. Howard is regularly featured in
concerts from Carnegie Hall and The Kennedy Center to Café Carlyle
and The Oak Room at The Algonquin. If you are in New York March
23
rd
, 2016 catch Howard in an Evening of Song and Romance at
Broadway’s Supper Club 54 Below.
TONY, MARE, AND CAROL
Tony Edwards lives in New York, as does his partner, the talented
screen and stage actress and songwriter
Mare Winningham
. Mare
and Tony worked together co-starring in the 1988 film
Miracle Mil
e,
the apocalyptic cult thriller shot in Los Angeles. They both received
critical acclaim for their performances of a couple that falls in love,
hours before the decimation of the city due to a nuclear blast. They
worked together on
ER
, the series which catapulted Tony’s career, and
have remained close friends all the years since. Mare is back for another
season starring in the series
American Horror Story: Hotel
, flying
between L.A. and New York on breaks.
I sat with Mare at The Kaufman Music Center as we watched
Tony perform at a reading of
Hollywood Arms
– the play based on
Montecito resident
Carol Burnett
’s childhood and rise to fame,
written by Carol and her late daughter Carrie Hamilton. Carol
introduced the play, along with The Sundance Institute’s theatre
program artistic director
Philip Himberg
(where the play was
originally developed). Tony portrayed Carol’s compassionate but
absentee alcoholic father. In addition to Tony, the cast featured
Emmy and Tony Award-winner
Tyne Daly
,
Michelle Pawk
– who
Howard McGillan, who grew up in Santa Barbara,
has played the role of the Phantom in Broadway
productions of
Phantom Of The Opera
more often than
any other actor; (prior page) seen with Sandra Joseph
as Christine
(photos: Joan Marcus)
38
winter
|
spring
– ON THE ARTS
