INTERVIEW: Jeannette Bayardelle on her ‘Gun & Powder’ journey at Paper Mill
Photo: Gun & Powder stars, from left, Ciara Renée, Jeannette Bayardelle, Liisi LaFontaine and an ensemble of actors. Photo courtesy of Jeremy Daniel / Provided by The Press Room with permission.
Gun & Powder: The Legend of the Sisters Clarke wraps up its month-long run at New Jersey’s Paper Mill Playhouse Sunday, May 5. One of the pivotal characters in this historic, but still timely, show is Tallulah Clarke (Jeannette Bayardelle), mother to Martha Clarke (Liisi LaFontaine) and Mary Clarke (Ciara Renée). To help their mother with her finances and stake their claim in the American West, Martha and Mary head out on a soul-searching journey, one that finds them passing as white and hiding their biracial identity.
Bayardelle is best known for her Broadway debut in Hair and her Tony-nominated turn in Girl From the North Country. She also appeared in the Public’s The Harder They Come. Bayardelle’s connection to this new musical, which features music by Ross Baum and book and lyrics by Angelica Cherí, goes back a few years to a workshop version of the show at the National Alliance for Musical Theatre (NAMT).
“At the NAMF Festival, I was in something else, and Gun & Powder was in this festival as well,” Bayardelle said in a recent phone interview. “And I got a chance to sit in it and watch their presentation, so when I saw that presentation in 2018, I was like, ‘Wow, that’s interesting. I would love to be a part of that.’ And then in 2022, my manager told me, ‘Are you interested in joining the cast?’ I was like, ‘Absolutely.’ I saw it at NAMF, and I loved it.”
Bayardelle said that most of her acting process is accomplished when she’s on stage and the audience is in their seats. That’s when she “finds” her character and begins to develop the role. Of course, some groundwork for her part in Gun & Powder was already present because this Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie story is actually based on a true story.
“I will tell you that most of my work is done when I hit the stage, like when I hit the stage in front of an audience,” she said. “That’s been my process. In rehearsals, it’s all about developing who this person is and how I relate to my daughters. I was just having a conversation with a couple of cast members yesterday, saying that it’s amazing how Tallulah is such a full character, and the way she relates to each daughter is different. The choices I have made based on who they are to me, it’s amazing. It feels so real. … One [daughter] I relate to mainly when I touch her near her heart. The other one I touch near the belly, and it’s all symbolic according to how they present themselves in the world. I love it.”
Even though the events of Gun & Powder take place more than 100 years ago in the American West, director Stevie Walker-Webb has the action feel profound and relevant to society in the 21st century.
“When you’re dealing with race and biracial issues, those are things that are lasting,” Bayardelle said. “I think it’s important to have the biracial perspective. There is an internal struggle there. That story needs to be told, and I feel like those who are biracial, or those who are Black or white, understanding what that struggle is and what it may look like, I think it’s important for there to be representation on stage like that. I feel like there’s no other show right now that is showing this, so it’s new. It’s fresh, and it’s something that I feel like people need in this time.”
Throughout Bayardelle’s time with the show, which included two pre-Paper Mill workshops, there have been some changes, but for the most part, the core of the musical has remained the same. And there’s an obvious hope on Bayardelle’s part that this show continues to live on, perhaps even on Broadway one day. The New York Times recently reviewed the production at the Paper Mill Playhouse and awarded the show its prestigious “Critic’s Pick” designation.
“It is an absolute joy, and I kid you not, to hear the different styles of music and to hear the different voices, there’s really no voice that sounds the same,” Bayardelle said about the show’s original tunes and its hard-working cast members. “And they’re all unique, and all they tell a story. And one of my favorite moments is when Mary and Martha are singing ‘Wide Open Plains’ to me, trying to convince me to let them go into the world and pretend to pass as white. That’s one of the best moments in the show for me because hearing Liisi’s voice and Sierra’s voice is just amazing, and their blend when they harmonize is beautiful. It’s absolutely beautiful.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Gun & Powder continues through Sunday, May 5, at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey. Click here for more information and tickets.
