Regardless of rumors to the opposite, Tom Francis insists he’s not in peril when he steps out onto a bustling New York sidewalk for his chilling rendition of the title track from the musical “Sunset Boulevard,” accompanied by a digicam crew beaming the efficiency onto an LED display screen contained in the St. James Theatre.
“When you say yes to something, but you don’t know what you’re saying yes to … that’s kind of what happened,” the British actor stated with amusing. “[Director Jamie Lloyd] said to me, ‘I’m here to make you and the piece look good,’ and I trusted him and the team implicitly. There are literal points I have to hit on certain lines, so it’s about trying to hit those points and hoping my in-ear monitors don’t cut out so that I can hear what’s going on.”
“Sunset Boulevard” — tailored by composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and writer-lyricists Don Black and Christopher Hampton from the 1950 movie of the identical title — has, till now, been recognized to theatergoers as a star car for Glenn Shut and for the much-publicized authorized wrangling that almost overshadowed its 1993 Broadway premiere.
Watch the music video for “Sunset Boulevard” under.
Lloyd’s revival, which debuted in London final 12 months previous to transferring to Broadway final month, takes imaginative swings with the fabric. Along with having Francis carry out his huge solo open air, the two-time Tony Award-nominated director eschews the unique’s glittery extra for a minimalist staging.
He additionally made the surprising selection of casting former Pussycat Doll member Nicole Scherzinger as Norma Desmond, the pale Fifties actor who coerces screenwriter Joe Gillis (Francis) into engaged on a movie script that she believes will cement her Hollywood comeback. Joe and Norma quickly start an affair, however as the footage of Francis and Scherzinger drenched in stage blood at curtain name suggests, issues don’t prove nicely for his or her characters.
These gambles have paid off. The brand new “Sunset Boulevard” is one of many hottest tickets in New York, having earned rapturous reward from critics. Each Scherzinger and Francis are more likely to be front-runners on the Tony Awards subsequent spring, having already received Oliviers — the Tonys’ British equal — for his or her performances.
Francis is, after all, grateful for the raves. Nonetheless, he acknowledges he was skeptical about showing in one other musical after wrapping a run within the London manufacturing of “& Juliet.” The 25-year-old — who grew up within the city of Thorpe Morieux in Suffolk, England — was anticipating to deal with movie and TV initiatives, in addition to deal with his authentic music.
That’s, till his agent identified that “Sunset Boulevard” would give him an opportunity to work with Lloyd, who has reinterpreted classics like “A Doll’s House” and “Cyrano de Bergerac” to nice acclaim. 9 grueling auditions later, he was solid as Joe Gillis.
“It’s a timeless story, and it’s going to continue happening for some time,” Francis stated of the musical. “People come in and out of fashion, and it’s very hard to reinvent yourself. I look at David Beckham, who is one of my idols. He was a world-class [soccer] player before reinventing himself as an entrepreneur and fashion icon. But that’s really difficult, and that’s why I think this story resonates with people.”
As Francis settles into the run, he’s grateful to have “an absolute diamond” of a costar in Scherzinger, who has change into a pal. “I’ll turn up tired one day, just because eight shows a week and all,” he stated, “and when she gets to [her Act I solo] ‘With One Look,’ I’m like, ‘OK, I’ve got to match you now.’ She pulls you up to her level every time, so I just try to match her as much as I can.”
Jeff Spicer through Getty Photos
Those that have to date been unable to snag a ticket to “Sunset Boulevard” can nonetheless take pleasure in Francis and Scherzinger’s performances on the musical’s solid album, recorded dwell through the present’s London run. “That energy is something you need to feel,” Francis stated. “The sound design Adam Fisher has done with that orchestra and the way Adam Williams conducts it … the energy is insane. So they had to bottle up that feeling with a live album.”
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Although Francis is dedicated to “Sunset Boulevard” in the intervening time, he’s about to expertise a breakout Hollywood second, too. He’s additionally joined the solid of Netflix’s “You,” starring Penn Badgley, for its fifth and closing season. Although he’s not at liberty to reveal specifics, he says his character — listed on IMDb merely as Clayton — is, very similar to Joe Gillis, a “jaded writer.”
Relating to his post-“Sunset Boulevard” plans, Francis is keen to hit the studio to document an album as a solo pop musician, naming Coldplay, Keane and Harry Kinds as inspirations. “I’ve been writing and figuring out how I want to be perceived in that world,” he stated.
As for appearing initiatives, Francis want to strive his hand at Shakespeare, and names the musical “Dogfight,” written by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, as a dream mission.
“I just want to turn up, work with good people and have an enjoyable time doing it,” he stated. “So that’s the goal.”
Dave Benett through Getty Photos
