INTERVIEW: Jimmy Smagula on his Monty Python education
Photo: The original Broadway cast of Monty Python’s Spamalot featured, from left, Michael Urie, Nik Walker, James Monroe Iglehart, Christopher Fitzgerald, Jimmy Smagula and Taran Killam. Jonathan Bennett and Alex Brightman now star. Photo courtesy of Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman / Provided by Polk & Co. with permission.
Jimmy Smagula was a Broadway favorite for years, appearing in seven shows and carving out an impressive career as a theater actor. Then, 12 years ago, he wanted to test his abilities in the TV and film industry, so he relocated to Los Angeles. Recently, he’s been more open to theater and has trekked back to the East Coast. One of his roles upon returning was in Monty Python’s Spamalot at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. That production sold so well that a Broadway transfer happened in short order, and now Smagula is back in Midtown Manhattan, laughing it up in a beloved musical that also stars Jonathan Bennett, Alex Brightman, Christopher Fitzgerald, James Monroe Iglehart, Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer, Ethan Slater and Nik Walker.
The cast is having a blast eight times per week at the St. James Theatre on 44th Street.
“It is so much fun,” Smagula said in a recent phone interview. “We have just as much fun as the audience. It’s a joy from beginning to end.”
Before taking on this job, which features the actor as Sir Bedevere and other key roles, Smagula didn’t know too much about Monty Python, the legendary British comedy group that was a cultural force on stage, on television and in the movies. Spamalot is an adaptation of the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail. In fact, Eric Idle, an original member of the troupe, wrote the book and lyrics for this musical, which first played Broadway years ago.
“I didn’t know much about it before I even started the show, and now I’m a huge fan of it,” said Smagula, a New Jersey native. “I feel very lucky that I’ve gotten to meet and chat with Eric Idle many, many, many times. He’s come to see the shows many times. He loves the show. He is filled with tears at the end of the show. He’s just the loveliest, nicest guy, and he’s such a legend. So many people that I know, so many huge titans of comedy say that they got into comedy because of Monty Python, because of Eric Idle, so having him around and giving us his blessing has been such a dream. He’s just the loveliest guy, and I’m now a huge fan.”
Coming back to Broadway has been a dream come true for Smagula, who previously appeared in The Full Monty, The Phantom of the Opera and To Be or Not to Be, among other shows. Smagula and his colleagues only performed 10 times at The Kennedy Center, but the buzz was big enough for the transfer to New York City.
“It’s been incredible,” he said. “It’s the dream that you hope will come true. We only did 10 performances at The Kennedy Center. Spamalot was actually my third show at The Kennedy Center that I’ve ever done. I love working there. It’s so much fun. It’s just so fast. You’re doing two weeks of rehearsals, 10 days of the show, and then it’s goodbye. That’s all you plan on. I had done Guys and Dolls there before Spamalot, and that was so incredibly well-received. But the rights for Guys and Dolls were tied up over in London with the wonderful production that they’re doing over there now.”
Then came Spamalot, and the company received excellent reviews in the D.C. area. The producing team felt it was the right time and the right climate to have a show that is pure joy from beginning to end. The musical tells the story of King Arthur’s Court, and all of the memorable scenes from the movie (“Bring out your dead!”) are present and accounted for. Smagula said the show is an opportunity for the audience to come in and forget their troubles for two hours and 15 minutes.
“[Producer Jeffrey Finn] was able to get it together in such a quick amount of time, such a short amount of time to move something to Broadway,” he said. “It’s really an amazing feat.”
Smagula wouldn’t call the work of being a Broadway actor difficult, but rather exhausting, and he’s trying to take advantage of TV offers at the same time. That’s one of the main advantages of being in New York City. When he left the Big Apple more than a dozen years ago, the TV industry was centered in Los Angeles, so he needed to get out of town to build a career in that industry. Now, there are plenty of options in the NYC area for working actors to have guest roles on a TV show, and Smagula auditions for some of them.
He’s been successful in the TV world. His family’s proudest moment came when he appeared in an iconic scene of The Sopranos. For a Lyndhurst, New Jersey, native, that bullet point on his résumé is very much revered.
“This is my eighth Broadway show,” the actor said. “I had a 12-year break in between my seventh Broadway show and this Broadway show because I moved to L.A. to do film and television. I said, I’m done with doing Broadway. I had a great run, and I’m tired. And so to be back after a 12-year hiatus has been incredible, but it also comes with a whole host of concerns, which is how do I keep my body from breaking down, my voice from breaking down, my mental state from breaking down. It’s exhausting, but it’s exhausting in the best way. I’ve heard many performers over the years always say this, ‘You really get so much energy from the audience,’ but it’s so true. The audience is so involved and so present in our show every night, and that’s really what keeps us going and keeps us funny and keeps us wanting to do 110 percent every night.”
He added: “It is an exhausting schedule to do eight shows a week, plus try to have a life outside of the show, plus do press, plus do auditions for TV and film. I just shot an episode of Blue Bloods last week, so I was doing that during the day. I had to be there at 6:15 in the morning. I got released at 5:15 p.m. and hopped in an Uber and went to the theater and did the show that night because I thought, this is like a dream day. I get to be on a television show during the day and do a Broadway show at night. Just go to the theater, and do it. You’ll remember it forever.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Monty Python’s Spamalot, featuring Jimmy Smagula, is currently running on Broadway at the St. James Theatre. Click here for more information and tickets.
