INTERVIEW: Broadway star Jana Robbins celebrates women in new musical
The brand-new musical This One’s for the Girls is set to open Friday, Oct. 27 at St. Luke’s Theatre in Midtown Manhattan. The show, written by Dorothy Marcic, celebrates the role of women over the past 100 years, and this celebration is set to the soundtrack of many recognizable Top 40 hits.
At the center of the show is Broadway star Jana Robbins (Gypsy, I Love My Wife, Crimes of the Heart), along side Traci Bair, Aneesa Folds and Haley Swindal. Audience members can expect to hear such classics as “A Bird in a Gilded Cage,” “I Am Woman” and “You Don’t Own Me.”
Marcic is no newcomer to musical theater. She’s the creative force behind Sistas, which is still running after six years, and RESPECT, a precursor to This One’s for the Girls.
Recently, Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Robbins about her new role. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
What can audience members expect from This One’s for the Girls?
The audience will be moved to laughter and tears. The older girls will have an amazing trip down memory lane, and the younger girls will have a better understanding of who they are and what the women in their lives went through before them — all while singing and dancing in the aisles.
In your opinion, why is it important to celebrate American women?
I don’t think we are celebrating just American women — but women in general using an American woman’s journey as an example through our own American music.
Do you love these songs? What are some personal favorites?
I was thrilled to be asked to be in This One’s for the Girls, especially because of the music. I love the songs of the ’50s and the ’60s, including ‘Where the Boys Are,’ ‘I Will Follow Him,’ ‘I’ll Never Fall in Love Again’ and ‘At 17.’
What’s the most challenging part of performing this musical each night?
As a Baby Boomer myself, I’m challenged and thrilled to be able to ‘almost’ keep up with the younger girls in the cast who are young enough to be my daughters and granddaughters.
Could you imagine a professional life that didn’t involve acting in the theater? What is it about theater that inspires you?
I can’t imagine a life without the theater. It has been my passion since I was 4 years old, when my mother — who had taken dance class with Gene Kelly — sent me to dancing school. Getting to express myself on stage with what I believe is a God-given talent is a true joy in my life. What inspires me about the theater is not just the sheer pleasure I get out of acting and singing, but the way theater can inspire others. It’s why I’ve committed my entire life to theater acting as well as now directing and producing theater. I developed my own producing company, Better World Productions, in order to present theater that not only entertains but educates as well and inspires us to create a better world. And [I] found that life has come full circle to me for producer Bill Franzblau to ask me to be on stage in This One’s for the Girls.
Every woman (and man) will love this show!
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
This One’s for the Girls will open Friday, Oct. 27 at St. Luke’s Theatre in Midtown Manhattan. Click here for more information and tickets.
