Find Your Why

What’s inside: 

• 0:46 : Ditch Your Backup Plan Community Facebook Group
• 2:21  : Where are you calling from?
• 2:27  : What was your day like today? 
• 3:15 : What have you been doing lately? 
  • Fun Home – Kansas City Repertory Theatre 
  • Mariand as Elphaba-interview
  • Wicked on Tour 
  • In Transit on Broadway
  • Evita at Kansas City Repertory Theatre
• 5:30 : What’s happening in your life right now? 
  • La Jolla Playhouse
  • Lempicka
  • Rachel Chavkin
  • Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812
  • Eden Espinosa
• 9:12 : What is your lifestyle now compared to when you grew up?
• 16:40:  Did you take part in musical theatre thinking it would be your future?
• 17:47 : What’s been the biggest risk in your career so far?
• 20:24 : Did you ever have a backup plan?
• 21:40 : Have there been any great rewards in your career that have surprised you?
  • Prince of Broadway
  • Harold Prince
  • Susan Stroman
  • Stephen Sondheim
  • Charles Strouse
  • John Kander
  • Jason Robert Brown 
  • Lin-Manuel Miranda 
• 26:02 : How do you personally find a balance between personal life and career?
  • Come From Away 
• 30:07 : What role has rejection and unemployment played in your career?
  • School of Rock the Musical
  • Lilli Wosk
  • Tony Awards
• 39:56 : Do you feel like you’ve “made it?”
• 47:39 : Is there anyone who inspired you along the way? See it to be it. 
• 50:08 : What advice would you give others trying to figure out what they want to do?
• 54:05 : What was your survival job in New York?
  • Blue Man Group
• 55:43 : Do you have any recommendations for anything you’ve seen lately?
  • Hadestown
• 57:52 :  How can listeners connect with you?

Connect with Mariand! 

…on Instagram! and on Twitter!

Key Quotes:

• “I had a crazy thing happen to me–I went from one Broaday show to another!”
• “I’ve done a lot of readings…sometimes they’re not super great but this one [Lempicka] just stayed with me.”
• “Never say never. You never know what’s going to come up that’s going to make you change.”
• “I want to work on shows that are led by women–that’s all I’ve been doing since I finished ‘Wicked.’”
• “Musical theatre is a very American thing…I didn’t even know it was an option for my life.” 
• “It all felt kind of sudden to major in Musical Theatre and choose this lifestyle”
• “I was doing yoga and was so balanced… I had other things going on. I think that’s why I did really good work.” 
• “Playing Elphaba…it was a dream role. I had wanted it for a long time and getting the chance to check off that bucket list thing was really big for me.” 
• “There are rewards I really couldn’t have imagined.”
• “I’ve said no and turned down projects because I made decisions that were more beneficial to my personal life–that is something that I never thought I’d be in the position to do.” 
• “Balance comes with time…it’s so hard to find it in the beginning. It takes perspective and you only gain that with time and experience.”
•  “There will always be anxiety–but I’m at a place where I feel I can trust where I’ve been and where I’m going.” 
• “Get yourself an agent who values your life and that is human–and who values you as a human first.” 
• “I don’t even know what ‘making it’ means–I think success is relative and it changes as you change as a human.”
• “I feel successful, I have a roof over my head, and I work with people I respect and I’m respected. I work and I pay my bills and I’m proud of the work I do and I have a happy heart.” 
• “When you decide to become an actor and you tell others, they think you’re crazy. And you have this strong desire to prove them wrong. They should never be the reason you pursue something.” 
• “It is more than a full-time job–my life revolved around playing Elphaba.” 
• “Are you happy? Are you fulfilled?”
• “If you do choose to pursue, find your why. Figure out your why and really be solid in that.”
• “If you do this career, you have to do it 150%. This is really hard and what gets people ahead is people willing to do the extra work and educate themselves. Really, really commit to doing it; however, be a balanced person as well. Have other interests. Don’t let your self-worth hang on whether you’re working or not. You’re an actor but you’re a human first.” 
• “Knowing about other things makes you a better actor.”
• “Sometimes we underestimate our audience.” 

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• Ask questions, make comments, express yourself freely. Email Jen, 213-915-6883 text or call

DYBP graphic design  © 2020 by Laura Gernon

DYBP theme song, “Ditch” © 2020 by Dean Keith