Understudy gets her big break in comedy hit

  • By Theresa Goffredo Herald Writer
  • Thursday, October 4, 2007 11:23pm
  • LifeGo-See-Do

It’s really one of those feel-good stories that would, well, be perfect as the basis of a Broadway musical: A young actress pays her dues by being an understudy for a year, then gets her big break to take over the leading-lady role and goes on tour with the show.

Such is Esther Stilwell’s story. She was understudy for the role of The Lady of the Lake in the blockbuster musical “Spamalot,” and now she will be playing that lady.

Stilwell and the other members of Arthur’s Round Table will bring thisTony-Award winning comedy to Seattle’s Paramount Theatre on Wednesday. The show runs through Oct. 28.

In an interview during a tour stop in Denver, Stilwell quickly gets to how lucky she is to have this job. She went on to say how amazing it is playing the part of an “aquatic diva.”

“Just to sing these fun songs is just amazing, and I get to wear gorgeous costumes and stand center stage,” said the 26-year-old Stilwell. “It’s a diva role, and it’s not really my personality. But I’ve learned to embrace this other side of me.”

Stilwell described The Lady of the Lake as the heart of the show. Yes, “Spamalot” is a story about men, in particular King Arthur’s knights, all fumbling around. But the diva is the love story part of the show. And any Broadway musical worth its salt has got to have a love story — and women, Stilwell said.

Preferably lots of beautiful women.

“You can’t really just have men on stage for a big, Broadway musical,” Stilwell said. “So we have the sexy dancing girls, many of them have been Rockettes and they are all amazing and we’ve created this diva character.

“At the end it works,” she said. “It’s lighthearted and you realize it’s taking you on this journey and it’s uplifting.”

“Spamalot,” which won Best Musical in 2005, is an irreverent parody based on the Monty Python comedy troupe’s movie “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” It tells the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and their quest for the Holy Grail. The musical is directed by Mike Nichols and features a book by Python member Eric Idle who collaborated on the music with John Du Prez, who has composed scores for more than 20 feature films including “A Fish Called Wanda,” and “The Meaning of Life,” another Python movie.

The title comes from a line in the movie that goes “We eat ham, and jam and Spam a lot,” all silly rhymes for Camelot.

Admittedly no expert on Python, Stilwell recognizes how the appeal of this type of absurdist comedy can have on an audience, the kind of comedy that involves killer rabbits and The Knights Who Say Ni, who demand a shrubbery that is “nice. And not too expensive.”

“For those who haven’t seen (Monty Python) they still have a great time once they get adjusted to the bizarre and wacky humor,” Stilwell said. “And those who love musicals love this because it’s a great musical; and those who hate musical theater, they love it because it makes fun of musical theater.”

A highlight of Stilwell’s performance is when she sings “The Diva’s Lament” in the second act and she does something that surprises the audience. We won’t spoil it, but let’s just say it takes musical theater convention and turns it on its head, Stilwell said.

Stilwell called The Lady of the Lake a showcase role for her that also showcases her singing range because she gets to do a little opera, some Vegas showgirl and even some gospel.

Besides the great music, the comedy and dancing girls, “Spamalot” has a reputation for keeping the audience alert for little moments of improvisation. The cast, some of whom have the done the show almost 600 times, must improvise at certain points to keep it interesting, honest and fresh, Stilwell said, adding “and this is the kind of show I would want to do 600 times.”

Preview

“Spamalot”: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Paramount Theatre, 911 Pine St., Seattle. Shows at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Saturdays and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 28. $27 to $75, 206-292-2787, www.theparamount.com.

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