Making It on Broadway: Actors' Tales of Climbing to the Top

by David Wienir, Jodie Langel, Jason Alexander

Countering the misperceptions about Broadway performers leading glamorous lives, the words of more than 150 Broadway stars provide unprecedented insight into their struggle for stardom. With an introduction by Jason Alexander and candid interviews with today's most celebrated Broadway stars, this book offers stories to entertain and astonish theater lovers, as well as serve as a sobering reality check for those considering careers on the stage. This book shares firsthand accounts of professional actors' difficult yet fulfilling journeys to Broadway: moving to New York, finding survival jobs, auditioning, landing roles, avoiding pitfalls, forging a family life, and much more.


Interviews Include These Award-Winning Actors:

• Jason Alexander

• Daisy Eagan

• Heather Headley

• Wilson Heredia

• Randy Graff

• Donna McKechnie

• Donna Murphy

• John Rubinstein

• Lea Salonga

• Scott Wise

• Chita Rivera

Genres: Nonfiction, Theatre, Biography

288 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2004

About the author

David Wienir is an Associate General Counsel at HarperCollins Publishers and Head of Business and Legal Affairs at HarperCollins Productions.

Before HarperCollins, he was a business affairs executive for over a decade at United Talent Agency (UTA) and practiced law at two of the top talent boutiques (Gang Tyre & Grubman Indursky) where he represented A-List clients including Spielberg and Madonna. He began his legal career as a litigator and First Amendment lawyer in New York with the 150 year old international law firm Coudert Brothers, representing prominent book publishers along with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

He has been awarded the Outstanding Volunteer Award from Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, named a Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, named to Variety's Legal Impact Report, and is the author of several books including:

“Amsterdam Exposed: An American’s Journey Into the Red Light District” (winner of 15 literary awards, including the Grand Prize at the 2018 Hollywood Book Festival) and

“Making It on Broadway: Actors’ Tales of Climbing to the Top” (foreword by Jason Alexander from Seinfeld).

His first book "Last Time: Labour’s Lessons from the Sixties” was co-authored at the age of 23 with a member of British Parliament.

He has taught entertainment law for 20+ years, including at NYU’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, The New York Institute of Technology, The College of New Rochelle and UCLA, and is the founder of the premier online entertainment law class Entertainment Law Exposed.

He was educated at Columbia, Oxford, The London School of Economics, Berkeley Law, and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and is admitted to practice law in New York and California.

Before beginning his career as an entertainment lawyer, he was the host of the talk radio show "Estonia Today" on Estonia National Radio, worked within the Governor of California’s legal affairs office, and worked for the LA District Attorney’s office during the Menendez murder trial. Also, he worked as a speechwriter and staff member for a Member of British Parliament, as a researcher for The Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation, and as a statistician for CBS Sports.

He is a graduate of ARTA’s professional whitewater river rafting school in Idaho and guided river trips for several years in California and Oregon, and is a founder and former musical director of both Columbia's Uptown Vocal and The Oxford Alternotives, Oxford University's oldest a cappella close harmony group.

Reviews

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are debating pursuing Musical Theatre as a career, you NEED to read this eye-opening book. I read this book about 6 or 7 years ago and it literally changed the trajectory of my life, as cliche and exaggerated as that sounds. Having grown up being very involved in music, dance, theatre, singing, etc., I was completely set on going into musical theatre as a college major and then as a profession (of course, assuming that I would go to New York). This book went beyond the bright, glossy veneer of Broadway "stardom" and the performing "high" and shared REAL stories from REAL performers. It was so honest and open and it completely changed my viewpoint. I realized that I didn't want to pursue such an unsteady career, filled with so many ups and downs, rejections, 2nd and 3rd jobs just to make ends meet... Also, from some of the anecdotal stories shared, I realized that it was not a lifestyle that would have been good for me to be a part of. This book, while it may encourage others to "pursue their dream" [albeit, hopefully from a more realistic point of view], totally saved me from making a bad career decision. I am so grateful that a book like this was written.

[Joey Knightbrook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cool read to learn about the personal/professional lives of broadway actors. Should also help with my once-a-year bouts of screw-it-all-i'm-going-to-try-and-make-it-on-broadwayitis.... I was a little disappointed that the stories weren't more long form: going in I thought it was a collection of like 5-10 long stories about people's journeys, but I did end up liking the vignette format. I also worry at this point that the book might be dated so I would love to read a follow up or updated edition, but I still think it's a great read even with that concern.

[Aileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so entertaining! It's not really "educational" per se, at least for me, but I got a good laugh out of reading actor's horror stories. It's even funnier when you look at the credits ad credentials of the actors and then see that even Tony winners have endured such crazy and ridiculous things in this industry. A great light read!

[Stella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book at a friend's recommendation and it was an easy and enjoyable read.

The book is a series of anecdotes from Broadway actors sharing various aspects of their work. The stories are funny, heartwarming, sad, eye opening and everything in between.

A few of the stories really stayed with me, like Doug Storm's recounting of the little girl and the signed Les Mis poster. I loved the parallels drawn by Marsh Hanson between a Broadway career and the song "What I Did for Love" from A Chorus Line. Another favourite anecdote was the time Colm Wilkinson missed his scene in Les Miserable - really enjoyed it being told from the perspectives of three different actors.

This book reads like a cautionary tale for those who are trying to make it on Broadway but I'd recommend this book if you're simply a fan of theatre. It certainly made me appreciate theatre (and performers) more and enhanced my understanding of theatre, both as a craft and as a business.

[Cedric · Rating 5 out of 5]

GREAT BOOK! I was given this book as a gift and wasn't sure if it would be any good based on the cheesy title and goofy cover. But once I began to read it I realized it was full of treasure!
Making it on Broadway is full of interviews with working (or out of work...) Broadway actors. They talk about every imaginable aspect of their journey to making it on Broadway. They discuss their first jobs, their first apartments, living out of their car, auditioning, rehearsals, performing, and the crazy people who meet you at the stage door. It's funny, interesting and flat out amazing how the industry works.
You will love these people, feel for them and root for them as they teach you about their world!

[Karrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you think that being a performer on Broadway is easy, romantic, glamorous, or will make you rich, just read this book. Stories by many Broadway performers are chronicled, including why they became an actor/singer/dancer, how they auditioned and auditioned and auditioned before appearing on Broadway, how they tried to make ends meet in one of the most expensive cities in the world on an actor's salary, as well as an inside look taking a show on tour, and what tricks they had to make their performance interesting after months, and sometimes years, of singing the same song, doing the same dance, and standing in the background in the same scene night after night after night.

[Mica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is both depressing and uplifting. You are treated to several anecdotes about how hard a Broadway actor's path is, and it is an upsetting reality check for anyone who thinks that the lifestyle is all glitz and glamour. I also found it quite sad that so many of the actors seemed disillusioned and disappointed with the direction in which Broadway was heading (being corporatized).

On the flip side, it was very uplifting to realize that the people who have "made it" are dedicated to their craft and willing to persevere despite the seemingly insurmountable odds and challenges. It definitely renewed my appreciation for Broadway actors, not just for their talent, but for their drive!

[Aimei · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have any ambitions to be on Broadway, this is a must read! If you just love theatre in general, you will enjoy this book! This book is literally made up of quotes by those who are and have been on Broadway. Many of them, are Tony award winners and nominees. They talk about their experiences from moving to the Big Apple all the way to their Tony Award experiences. I loved reading this book because it tells you the truth behind everything and what to expect. It's also full of great stories that made me burst into laughter. This book was definitely a worthwhile read!

[Madeline Bennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I really did. The only issue is that they mainly showed the negatives of Broadway, and less than one chapter was about the positives of it. While I know that this is real life, it would've been nice if they asked the actors about any happy memories of Broadway. I was looking for inspiration, and I got that, but I was also left with a sour image of Broadway. It was still interesting to read about their experiences in the business. If you want a brutally honest review of Broadway life, this is it.

[John Porcaro · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a complete and total Broadway nerd, I loved everything about this book. I read it over the course of about 3 days and found it absolutely fascinating and fun. If you're at all interested in anything 'Broadway' I would recommend it. It's basically a series of interviews with professional actors who are sharing their stories both on and off stages.
While it's a little dated because it was written about 12 years ago, lots of the stories are still surprisingly relevant and there were a lot of really funny moments as well.

[Ginny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This book was incredible. It was so inspiring to hear from legions of Broadway actors who had BEEN THERE. They know what it's like, and hearing about the experience changed my life. I realized that unfortunately it's not as "dreams do come true" as the Season 1 finale of Smash, but it also really motivated me. And the fact that they got anecdotes from Lea Salonga and Idina Menzel just made this book even better. Anyone who has ever dreamt of being a Broadway star NEEDS to read this book.

[Josie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book for someone who knows nothing about Broadway. It's realistic and truthful and really good for a student who might be interested in pursuing this as a career.

As someone who works in the industry on the production side, I'm not really the intended audience. I didn't finish the book because it just wasn't that interesting to me...I already knew most of what was in here (and agreed with much of it). But, good for students.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this at a time when I was convinced I was going to become a musical theatre celebrity.
It gave me many realistic, practical stories about why one should never go into musical theatre unless there is nothing else one CAN do.
Even after giving up my Broadway dreams, this is still an interesting & informative read.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt this book had a lot of good insight but I've heard from a lot of contributors that they took the most negative points of the interview and stuck those quotes in the book which I find to be a bit unfair. But it was a good read and I'll definitely be referencing it again in the future.

[Ilana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book, but there were definitely parts I didn't like. For instance, I certainly hope the actors I've seen aren't half assing it! I was also disappointed by how judgemental many of the actors were of the audiences.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

To summarize this book:
1. People creating idealized hopes and dreams of "making it" on broadway and basing their happiness on the success of this dream.
2. People find out broadway is not ideal in any way shape or fashion.
3. People are unhappy.

[Caroline Strange · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book gave me a realistic view of how Broadway really is...not really glamorous, but if you can't imagine doing ANYTHING else, then theatre is for you. :)

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Takes the glamour out of the dream but it helps you to keep from being too disappointed with the reality of that dream

[Reicse O · Rating 5 out of 5]

love that it does not sugarcoat how hard the industry is, and that was the perspective 20 years ago! really makes you think long and hard about how much you are willing to sacrifice to make the dream come true.

[C.A. Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went to see an absolutely incredible touring performance of "Newsies" that left me in tears. When I was in high school and even after, I used to think that my dream life would be to be on Broadway... only I didn't have the guts (or the talent) to pursue it. So that night I googled the lives of the performers, wondering if it's really as glamorous a lifestyle as it seems. What could be better than belting at the top of your lungs and doing backflips before a standing ovation in an enormous auditorium?

Most of what I found online didn't seem to be particularly glowing -- one performer, who had played Belle in "Beauty and the Beast," said that her time on Broadway was fantastic, but it was also very difficult. They made little money, and had no time for anything else. Working conditions weren't great either. She recommended this book, so that's why I ordered it.

The book is a compilation of interviews with performers from Broadway and off Broadway shows, conducted by an entertainment lawyer and another former performer. And it's shocking, and heartbreaking. While there is one chapter on dreams coming true, and how some of them made their way to the top, most of the book is about the uncertainty of the industry, never knowing when you'll get cast again. Performers live in inhuman conditions in NYC, from places infested with rats to apartments formerly used for satanic rituals. Even the stages are dank and moldy backstage. Sometimes they put on makeup in tiny locker mirrors before their next appearances. It's all but impossible to maintain relationships with non-theater people. And even those who are fortunate enough to get a long run of a show and thus maintain consistent employment say the glitz wears off, and eventually their "dream come true" becomes just a job.

Over and over again, the performers say, "It's no life. If I could have done anything else at all, I would have."

It was eye-opening to read, because in my ignorance, I'd always imagined that the life of a Broadway performer was the best I could possibly imagine. But it was also interesting that even those who achieved their dreams would eventually say, "It's just a job." I wonder if the same is true of Hollywood stars. Are all the glamorous positions in the world only impressive to those of us looking from the outside in?

[Katie]

Trying to scare a teen out of a career pursuing musical theatre? Then this book is perfect. It takes every possible approach to attempt to convince the reader that they are not meant for this. They use filth they use unstableness. Yes it paints a realistic picture, but they didn't show how fulfilling it is for those obsessed with this career to get a break.

[Gnmsmom]

Trying to keep up with Gwen . . .

[Meredith Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

a really fascinating look into the life of broadway performers through short antecdotes on a number of topics. a lot surprised me!

[Rene · Rating 5 out of 5]

*4.5

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again
- got it from my brother
- gives great advice
- easy read