It’s been a year and seven months since I last stepped foot inside TPAC for a show, so the second I heard Broadway was coming back to Music City’s beloved performing arts center, and that the first show of their revamped 2021-2022 season was The Band’s Visit, I jumped at the chance to chat with one of the members of the remarkable show’s ensemble.
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Rapid Fire Q&A with Kendal Hartse, Iris in The Band’s Visit National Tour
JHP: Before we begin, I just want to thank you for taking the time to chat with me, I know life on the road can be demanding, and I suspect, especially now, considering the past eighteen months of uncertainty where live theatre is concerned. Speaking of the global pandemic and theatre going dark, to kick off our chat, tell me how if felt to learn that the National Tour of The Band’s Visit would resume, and that you’d be part of it?
KENDAL HARTSE: Coming out of such a long period of time, not only of complete global catastrophe, but also a complete shut down of the entire industry, it was an unbelievable relief to know I had this show to return to. We shut down in Pittsburgh on March 12th and resumed again 18 months later. The idea all along was that The Band’s Visit would be remounted when it was safe to do so, and knowing that I had a job, and such an amazing job as this, waiting for me on the other side, was a life saver and helped me keep some hope on the horizon throughout everything.
JHP: What can you tell me about Iris, the character you play in The Band’s Visit?
KENDAL HARTSE: Iris is such a wonderfully complex character. She is a woman who made plans for her life, set them in motion, and is now coming to terms with the limitations of her circumstances. “End of her rope” is a phrase that often comes to mind. This is a character who receives very little help from the people in her life and has tried to push through taking care of things on her own. The night the action of The Band’s Visit takes place, Iris has reached the limit of how much she can carry on her own.
JHP: Clay Singer plays Iris’ husband, Itzik. While your onstage relationship is tense, at best, how’s Clay as a scene partner?
KENDAL HARTSE: I could not be more grateful to get to work with Clay. He is a generous, present, and exciting scene partner. It’s always a relief to get to work on tough material with actors who you know you can trust. I have to go to some challenging emotional places in the play and completely trust that Clay is there to support me and knows that I am there to support him. When the material is heavy or tense it’s buoying to have a scene partner who you really like, it makes the tough stuff much easier.
JHP: Speaking of sharing the stage, Sasson Gabay–who created the role of Tawfiq in the 2007 film upon which the show is based–is back in the role as the tour resumes. What do you admire most about his performance?
KENDAL HARTSE: There is so much to admire about Sasson both as a person and an actor. It’s an absolute gift to get to watch him every night. He fills every breath and every moment with such nuance and specificity and is always open and available to new thoughts and ideas. His performance is incredibly moving and I am in deep awe of his ability to continue to mine the material for more and more depth.
JHP: While Iris and Itzik’s marriage is, shall we say…rocky, in researching to chat with you, I discovered your real-life marriage is apparently flourishing. In fact, if my Insta-stalking, I mean…research is correct, the day before the tour comes to Nashville’s TPAC, you celebrate your wedding anniversary. Is being away from your husband the hardest aspect of life on the road?
KENDAL HARTSE: I am very blessed to be with a wonderful partner named Austin Regan who is a brilliant director and artist. Being on the road means being far away from each other for extended periods of time and yes, missing milestones like anniversaries. It is definitely one of the hardest challenges of life on the road. Luckily, since Austin is also an artist, he understands that travel and distance comes with the territory and we have gotten very good at keeping in touch and making time to visit each other as often as possible. The only thing harder than time apart is probably finding places to do laundry while traveling!
JHP: In preparing for our chat, I also discovered we have a few mutual acquaintances, among them, the remarkable LaChanze, who you appeared alongside in Summer: The Donna Summer Musical. Congrats on the Chita Rivera Awards nomination for Outstanding Ensemble for your work in that show, by the way! Aside from the Chita nom, do you have a favorite memory of your time in Summer on Broadway?
KENDAL HARTSE: Working with LaChanze was such a treat, she is absolutely fantastic. And thank you! A large portion of my career was spent as a dancer and the Chita Rivera Award nomination was truly and honor and a huge highlight of the experience. Other than that, my favorite memory of Summer would have to be experiencing the audience go absolutely wild at the end of the show. I have never heard such sheer volume of cheers and applause or seen so many people leap to their feet and start dancing along during a Broadway show. It was so fun!
JHP: Summer wasn’t your first Broadway show, having made your debut in the 2011 revival of On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, then two short years later, you returned to Broadway in the ensemble of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. How would you describe stepping onstage for the first time before a live audiences, whether on Broadway, or on tour?
KENDAL HARTSE: Something that I find very beautiful about being an actor is that it almost always feels the same before you step onstage. It could be in a community theatre or on a Broadway stage, but that moment before exists on its own. That moment, to me, is when everything else is still and I take the time to quiet my thoughts, take a deep breath, and prepare myself to tell a story, whatever that story is. It’s a special and sacred moment to me.
JHP: Just as Summer wasn’t your first Broadway show, The Band’s Visit isn’t your first National Tour, having been part of Cabaret’s 2016 outing. During your time with the show, you appeared, at various times as Texas, Fraulein Kost, Fritzie and in the lead as Sally Bowles. I’d imagine Sally would be a dream role for many actresses. Since you’ve already tackled Sally, is there a role that you consider your dream role?
KENDAL HARTSE: Playing Sally Bowles was such a dream role experience and honestly one I would do again in a heartbeat! There is just so much there. It’s interesting to consider “dream roles” to me. So much of my career has been in musical theatre and while I love the art form I am itching to focus on plays. Singing and dancing is definitely part of my skill set, but I definitely am an actor before anything else. So while I don’t know that I have a specific dream role, I’d love to tackle some Shakespeare or some Tennessee Williams one of these days. Sign me up for Rosalind or Stella any day.
JHP: Back to The Band’s Visit, in one of the show’s most heartfelt moments, the company joins Joshua Grosso’s Telephone Guy during the unexpectedly sombre 11 o’clock number, Answer Me. Yesterday while prepping for this interview, I not only stalked your socials, but I also rewatched the 2007 film and listened to the show’s cast album on repeat, and I’m not gonna lie, my eyes began to ‘sweat’ while listening to this number in particular. Has there been a time in your life when you were waiting for someone to Answer You?…and was it worth the wait?
KENDAL HARTSE: In so many ways I feel like we are all always waiting for someone to Answer. While the Telephone Guy is specifically waiting for the phone to ring, to hear from his girlfriend, the rest of us in the show are seeking and awaiting our own answer. I find that the more I seek, the more I hope for an answer to any question. Whether I’m waiting for a friend or a loved one to connect with me or waiting to hear about work, or looking inward and asking a question of myself, I think whatever answer comes it is always worth the wait as it brings a new knowledge and understanding of life, yourself, your situation.
JHP: Thanks again or taking time to chat with me. Can’t wait to see you and the entire company on The Band’s Visit on opening night in Nashville at TPAC’s Jackson Hall! Alright, our time is almost up, so one final question…is there a message, an idea or a moment in The Band’s Visit that you think/hope audiences will reflect on long after the footlights dim on the show? Oh, one last thing…the closest Arby’s is on Rosa Parks Blvd, just 2 miles from TPAC.;-)
KENDAL HARTSE: I hope that audiences will reflect on the question of hope. What does it mean to wait and wait and wait for something to change? Maybe it won’t look like what you thought. Maybe it’s something small and simple but it’s enough. Thank you so much for these lovely questions and for that Arby’s location. I’ll be celebrating our Nashville opening with some Curly Fries and a Jamocha Shake!
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The Band’s Visit begins the Nashville leg of its National Tour with a 7:30p.m. performance at TPAC‘s Jackson Hall on Tuesday, October 19. 7:30p.m. evening performances continue Wednesday and Thursday, October 20 & 21. As the tour stop continues in Music City, Friday and Saturday evening performances will be at 8p.m. Saturday’s matinee will be at 2p.m. On the show’s final day in Nashville there will be a Sunday matinee at 1 p.m. and an early evening performance at 6:30p.m. To purchase tickets, CLICK HERE.
As TPAC reopens its doors for their Broadway series, their commitment to their patron’s safety is key. To that end, attendees age 12+will be required to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test dated within 72 hours of their selected performance. All patrons age 6+ must wear masks inside the venue. CLICK HERE for more on TPAC‘s Patron Health initiative.
Not in Nashville or can’t make it to TPAC for The Band’s Visit? Be sure and check out The Band’s Visit website for details on upcoming tour stops in Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Worcester, Hartford, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco and more, throughout cities across the US through Summer 2022.
For the latest on TPAC and their upcoming Broadway Season and Special Presentations, including Disney’s The Lion King, Mean Girls, The Prom, Dear Evan Hansen, Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, What the Constitution Means to Me, Come From Away, Oklahoma! and May We All, be sure to check out TPAC online and on socials by clicking any of the following: TPAC.org, TPAC on Instagram, TPAC on Facebook, TPAC on Twitter and TPAC on YouTube.
For more about The Band’s Visit, check them out on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.
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