Quick Q&A: Megan Hilty

Megan Hilty has arrived in a big way as one of 9 to 5’s three leading ladies.

Did you always want to be a musical theatre performer?

I wanted to be an opera singer. My favorite singer was Frederica von Stade, I just loved everything that she did and I hoped and prayed that my voice would be like hers when I was older. I started to train in classical music with a youth opera program but when I started looking into it I found the lifestyle might not be so much fun. I wouldn’t be hired until my 30’s – that’s when women’s voices really come into their own. Also I was hearing about how awful and particular the audiences are all over the world, and about being booed off the stage if you aren’t absolutely perfect. That’s fine for some people but for me that’s not what it’s about. At the same time, opera is something that I would love to do when I’m old enough for it but not all the time. I like the dark operas. I really love Elektra. I love Wagner: I’m from Seattle and they do this amazing Ring Cycle every five years that I think is incredible. To be part of something like that would be unbelievable.

When were you first bitten by the musical theatre bug?

I would have to say it was the tour of Jekyll And Hyde. It came through Seattle and one of my friends in middle school took me to see it and I thought “Yep, that’s what I want to do!” I fell in love with musical theatre and I’ve been doing it ever since.

How is your day affected when you’re doing a performance at night?

Singing is a 24/7 job. I get a little anal-retentive about it. I get up and I kind of check where my voice is. My days are packed, I like to stay really busy, so I’ve got meetings and appointments and voice-overs and what have you. Through the whole day I’m always asking myself “Ok, where’s your voice? Does it sound rough at all, are there any holes in it, and what can you do to combat that?”. I’m constantly watching what I’m eating and I drink a lot of tea. I actually developed my own line of teas for singers. You’re always trying out new remedies as a singer and the more I researched the different properties of different teas and their benefits, I found that there wasn’t one that had a combination of everything that I wanted. Specifically it’s licorice, which is found in most throat coat teas, and crystallized honey, and pineapple which is a natural instant anti-inflammatory. It’s like nature’s Advil. That’s where I started with it, and then I wanted to make it yummy too. Because I am NOT missing any shows.

Have you missed any yet?

No. And for the first three years of Wicked I really didn’t unless it was an emergency. But something happens when you do a show for that long, the same as with athletes doing the same movement over and over again every day. There’s gonna be some wear and tear. I’ve heard of people in Phantom who’ve been in it for ten years and have serious vocal problems because they’re doing the same thing every day. So I started to have to be really careful about that since I chose to stay with the show for so long. Otherwise the longevity of my career just wouldn’t be there. If I felt vocally tired, I would put my pride on the shelf a little bit and give myself a break. To learn how to do that is very humbling. It’s okay, I’m not Superwoman. Nobody is.

What was your experience with the cult fan base of Wicked?

I definitely learned a lot from that part of the job. First of all we have to remember to thank those people because they’re the ones who come to see the show all the time, filling those seats and spreading the word. But there is a point where people forget that we’re people and they look at us as the second Glinda, the third Glinda, the good the bad the mediocre Glinda. For me, I tried to stay very separate from that and to remember that these fans are latching on to the characters that we’re playing and not to us as people. I think that also helped me from getting too much of a big head. You have all these people saying these wonderful things about you every single day but they don’t know me, and if they did, they might not really like me. That’s the reality! But that’s what theatre’s for, it’s there to give people things to talk about, it’s to bring people together and the show brought a lot of people, especially young girls, together. Whether it’s to talk trash about us or speak well of us, it’s a testament to the show and to theatre and how it can deeply affect people in their lives.

Was Joe Mantello, who directed both Wicked and 9 To 5, the connection from one show to the other?

Yes. I was up in Toronto doing the Wicked tour and got a call from Joe Mantello asking me to be part of one of the very first readings. That was two and a half years ago, and I’ve been working on the project ever since. So I guess I didn’t make anybody too mad along the way.

photo: Justin Stephens

How has the show changed since that first workshop through the run in Los Angeles and now Broadway?

Most of the huge changes happened from LA to New York because you can’t really get an idea of a show until you get it on its feet. I mean, there’s only so much you can do around a table. For Doralee’s character, they couldn’t figure out the song in the second act. Initially when Dolly wrote “Let Love Grow” my character was the one singing it. Now it’s between Violet and Joe which it should be. As with anything when you’re developing a show, you have to let things go. It’s such a beautiful song and hopefully I’ll get to sing it in a concert or something.

Doralee doesn’t have a boyfriend in the movie, but does in the show. Was that always the case or was the character added as the show was revised?

The character was there at the first reading I was involved with. Initially Norm Lewis played that role. He’s fantastic, I’m such a huge fan of his. But I had my doubts at first about the character. Initially I didn’t know how I felt about adding a storyline that says that she needs a man to be okay in the end, do you see what I mean? Eventually I came to terms with it, but around the table I didn’t think the character was necessary. I think they were thinking the same thing because it was going through a lot of transitions. When Andy Karl came on – he’s great! – something clicked for Joe Mantello and the character represented all the good men that are out there. Otherwise, every other male character in the show is a douchebag, really. So it’s really good that we have him in there.

Is 9 To 5 a feminist show?

People are saying we’re a feminist show and while it’s true, we stand for a lot of women’s issues, in the bigger perspective it’s about people who’ve been mistreated. I think anyone who comes to the show knows what it’s like to be mistreated and to want to put the person who’s made them feel that way in their place. I think that’s why it resonates. We do it in a fun way and laugh about it but I think everyone can connect to it on that level.

What was it like to have Dolly Parton involved in the show on a regular basis?

I was so nervous to do her role in front of her. The night before I don’t think I slept at all. She has this energy about her that changes a room. She is absolutely genuine in everything that she does or says and at the same time she stands firm in who she is and what she believes in. She won’t compromise that, which is why she’s the businesswoman that she is today. I’ve actually come up with a saying: “What would Dolly do?” We were doing this photo shoot for all the publicity stuff out in LA and it was while I was doing Wicked. It was 4 o’clock in the morning, I was driving there kinda pissed off, being really selfish and thinking “Why do I have to do this now, some of us have to work until midnight” and blah blah blah. But then I was like “Wait a second! How can you possibly be complaining about a photo shoot for a big Broadway musical and what is Dolly gonna be like today? She’s certainly not going to have this attitude, she’s going to look like a million bucks, and she’s gonna be there trying to make everyone else feel good. Why can’t you be like that?” There’s no reason why I shouldn’t strive to be like that every day. And I gotta tell you, that photo shoot was one of the funnest days of my whole life. Because of that I try to put myself in her little tiny shoes every day.