I am honored and delighted to present this interview with both Emma Walton Hamilton and her mother, Julie Andrews. What a gift they have given us all in agreeing to this interview!
As those of you who are regular readers of my blog know, my Wednesday focus this fall is the upcoming musical production, The Great American Mousical: A Musical Love Letter to Broadway, at the Norma Terris Theatre in November (full details below). Julie and Emma collaborated on the original book, which was published in 2006. Now, Julie will direct the stage production, and so is hard at work with rehearsals at this very moment. I deeply appreciate them taking the time to answer my questions in such depth.
Julie Andrews is known around the world for her stage, screen, and singing career. Rather than mention the movies she usually is linked with in biographical information, I want to highlight my favorites, which are among her lesser-known works, but which I believe deserve equal billing. The Americanization of Emily (1964), That’s Life (1986), Duet for One (1986), and Our Sons (made for television, 1991) are some of her finest work, and I highly recommend them. Julie is also a prolific author, who began writing for children in the early 1970s. Her first two books, Mandy and The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, are still in print, still in demand, which says a great deal about the quality of Julie’s writing. For the past 15 years or so, she has collaborated with her daughter Emma, and together they have written many delightful picture books and middle grade novels. Julie is also a passionate advocate for the arts, and for children’s literacy. For further biographical information, please see the website of the Julie Andrews Collection.
Emma Walton Hamilton got her start in theatre, and is now an author, freelance editor, educator (in both the arts and in writing for children), speaker, and advocate for the arts and literacy. With her mother she has written many picture books and middle grade novels. She is also the author of the excellent literacy resource Raising Bookworms: Getting Kids Reading for Pleasure and Empowerment. Emma is the director of the writing program for middle grade and high school students, YAWP (Young American Writers Project); she teaches Children’s Literature at the Stony Brook Southampton University campus; she has developed an online/home study course in picture book writing, Just Write for Kids; she is the founder and driving force behind the fantastic resource and educational online site, The Children’s Book Hub; and Emma and I co-administer the Children’s Book Hub Facebook Group. For further biographical information, please see Emma’s website.
And now, let’s find out what Julie and Emma have to say about taking The Great American Mousical from page to stage…
BETH: For any of my readers who aren’t familiar with The Great American Mousical, would you give us a brief overview of the plot? I’d very much like it if you’d also share how the idea for the book came to you. (I love that story.)
EMMA: The story revolves around a troupe of theater mice, who put on their own shows beneath a venerable Broadway theater. There are all the classic characters from a theater company – the glamorous but slightly past-it diva, the handsome cad of a leading man, the loveable character actor who can’t remember his lines, the soubrette with a heart of gold, the wide-eyed intern and so forth. The mice are busily preparing for their annual New Year’s Eve fundraiser performance, and rehearsals are in their usual state of chaos when suddenly the theater is threatened with destruction and the leading lady disappears. Somehow, the show must go on, of course… and there are all sorts of love triangles and dramas and adventures, but we mustn’t give away too much!
JULIE: The ideas for the story originally occurred to me when I was performing in VICTOR/VICTORIA on Broadway. A mouse was discovered in our wardrobe department, and I asked if someone kind might put out a humane trap and release the creature in the suburbs or the countryside. Something was said about there being a number of mice beneath Broadway theaters, and suddenly a light-bulb went off in my head.
Emma was originally an actress-turned-theater producer, director and educator. We’d been writing together for a while, and agreed it would be fun to collaborate on a project about Broadway mice, since we could both write from such a basis of knowledge. We wrote the book as an affectionate tribute to the world we know and love – but we also hoped to provide young readers with some incidental arts appreciation.
After the novel was underway, I was taping for the PBS documentary “The History of the Broadway Musical” in a grand old Broadway theatre. I was in the dressing room and, brazen as you please, a little mouse popped out, wandered around and, finally, ambled out the door heading for the stage. I took it as a good luck omen for the book… (but was rather glad I wasn’t moving into that dressing room for any length of time!)
BETH: How and when did you decide to develop Mousical into a stage musical? Was that part of the plan all along?
JULIE: Not at all! If anything, we hoped it might one day lend itself to an animated film, but the challenge of the different perspectives between the mouse world and the human one, plus the potential awkwardness of actors playing mice on stage just made a musical adaptation unimaginable to us. We never even considered it, until our friends at Goodspeed Musicals reached out to us.
EMMA: The producing team at Goodspeed had been friends and colleagues of ours for years, and became all the more so when Mom’s production of The Boy Friend at our theater in Sag Harbor was subsequently produced there, before going out on National Tour. We’d sent them a copy of the book when it first came out, simply because it was about the theatre and we thought they might appreciate some of the inside jokes. Nothing could have amazed – or touched – us more than getting a phone call from Bob Alwine, the producer at Goodspeed, saying they would love to commission a stage adaptation, and to have Mom direct it.
JULIE: It took us a couple of years to find the right creative team to partner with us on the adaptation. We consider ourselves truly blessed to have found the wonderful composer/lyricist team of Zina Goldrich and Marcy Heisler, and our terrific librettist, Hunter Bell. We’ve spent the past two years working with them to develop the book and songs for the production, that are both faithful to the original novel and also bring some delightful new insights and details to our little story.
BETH: Could you briefly describe the process of taking a book like Mousical from page to stage?
EMMA: As Mom mentioned, it starts with finding the right creative team. It’s really the producer’s job to assemble that, with input from the director and, in our case, the originating authors. Goodspeed invited several different composer/lyricist teams to submit a trial song, and while they were all wonderful, Marcy and Zina’s piece was just irresistible. Then Bob recommended Hunter Bell to us for the libretto. We met him, and he was so simpatico that everything just clicked.
JULIE: We had a lot of preliminary meetings, and there were many months where Marcy, Zina and Hunter would go off and write, and then we would all get together and read or listen to what they had so far, and discuss it. We would brainstorm next steps and they would go away again and keep working. Gradually, everything began to pull into focus and our meetings became more frequent – always fun, accompanied by a lot of music, snacks and tea and grounded in a true spirit of collaboration.
Eventually we realized we needed to have production designers involved with the development of the show, since so much depends upon how we get back and forth from the human world to the mouse one, or from the theatre to the various other locations in and around New York City. Since Emma’s Dad (and my ex-husband) Tony Walton, happens to be one of the best designers on Broadway and had done the illustrations for our book, we felt it had to be him – and happily, he agreed. We were then joined by the wonderful Tony Award-winning choreographer, Chris Gatelli, and the esteemed lighting designer Richard Pilbrow, so the conversations became more specific and the work more complicated.
EMMA: We did three developmental readings of the piece along the way; the first one out at Goodspeed, before we even had a completed working draft of the show. We heard the script read by the actors who were performing in Goodspeed’s production of Mame at the time. Marcy, Zina and Hunter sang the songs that existed up to that point. Then we did a similar reading at the Southampton Writers Conference, with actors from Ensemble Studio Theatre and our creative team sang once again, and finally, we did two readings in NYC. That was the first time we heard the show read and sung by the performers who would be playing the actual roles, and it was thrilling! Each reading was hugely informative for us all, in that it revealed what was working and what wasn’t, where we needed to cut a song or a scene, or add one, and so forth. And that work continues as we head into rehearsals.
BETH: Did you ever consider doing the adaptation yourselves, or did you always intend to have someone else write it?
EMMA: We talked about it briefly – but it takes a very specific talent to adapt something for the stage. As much as we both know about theatre, we’d never written for it – and we all felt that ultimately it would be better to have another member of the creative team who understood the challenges of dramatic structure that are unique to the stage, and musicals in particular. Not to mention that it would have taken a huge time commitment, something that neither Mom nor I were really able to do, given the other professional and personal commitments in our lives at the time.
BETH: I wonder how I would feel, watching something I had written being interpreted into a new form by other writers. What was it like to watch this happen? Did you have editorial input along the way?
EMMA: It’s really thrilling. There are these characters, who live inside our heads for so long, and then they begin to exist sort of one-dimensionally on the page. They materialized on a whole new level when Dad did the illustrations for the book, so that was the first “interpretation”… but to hear them speaking and singing, and to see them living and breathing and three-dimensional is wonderful and rather surreal.
JULIE: We have had a lot of editorial input… I’m afraid we’re rather interfering in that regard, but Hunter is one of those rare individuals who is truly collaborative and non-defensive. He’s not threatened in any way, and he brings so much of his own humor and talent to the table, that it has really turned out to be a joyful collaboration for us all. Of course Marcy and Zina are hugely collaborative as well, and generous about respecting our initial vision of the book.
BETH: I know it was not merely familial loyalty that led you to choose to collaborate with Tony Walton for both the illustrations of the original book and for scenic and costume design for the stage production. He is a Tony Award winner in his own right. What are some of the differences and similarities in working with someone in the roles of co-authors and illustrator, and then director, co-author, and designer?
EMMA: Probably one of the main differences is the level of input we needed from Dad in terms of conceiving the show, versus the novel. He didn’t really begin the illustration process until after the book had been written – but we really needed his expertise in the early stages of conceptualizing the show, because the design affects everything – especially in the second act. He had some brilliant ideas about how to solve the perspective problems, for instance, which informed us as to how the scenes might unfold.
JULIE: Happily, the three of us know each other so well, and have collaborated so much, that we speak a kind of shorthand, if you will. But for me, the challenge has been when and how to separate my co-author hat from my director hat. It’s hard, because we know the characters so well, and yet we have to be willing to let go of cherished moments that work in the book but may not be particularly “stage-worthy.” It’s a balancing act.
EMMA: For me, as the only one from the original creative trio for the book whose role hasn’t changed, it’s been about supporting Mom in terms of knowing what we need to be loyal to and what we’re willing to give up, being receptive to all the new ideas that are brought to the table, and being available to answer questions along the way about through-line, character arcs, thematic issues, etc.
BETH: Building on that question, many of my readers are writers themselves, whether published or not-yet-published, so they understand some of the workings of the writing and publishing process. In bringing your book to the stage, you have added a much larger creative team, cast and crew to the mix. What is it like to see your creation interpreted and brought to a new form of life by so many other people?
EMMA: I think because Mom and I both have a background in the theatre, and also because we collaborate as authors, we are both very comfortable with – and used to – the collaborative process. We have a general rule for our collaboration that has also been the foundation of our work with the creative team of Mousical, which is “the best idea wins.” Generally speaking, everyone seems to know it when they hear it!
JULIE: Hunter and Marcy have both brought so many new insights and creative touches to our characters that delight us. For instance, the character actor, Harold, is now the uncle of Pippin, the intern, which wonderfully raises the stakes when it comes to Harold’s concern for the boy. And Hysterium, who was always something of a newsbearer in the book, now has this wonderful expression that he uses all the time – “Newsflash!” – that is even the basis of a song.
Adding actors to the mix has provided a new level of discovery for us, and we are learning even more about the characters from them. That’s one of the great joys of collaboration when it works; the thing takes on its own life and sometimes surprises everyone involved.
BETH: What are your hopes and dreams for “The Great American Mousical” beyond the run at the Norma Terris Theatre?
JULIE: The Norma Terris is Goodspeed’s second stage, so this is actually considered a workshop production, which means we will continue to work on and develop the piece all through its run. The hope is that it might go on to enjoy a run on the main stage, or perhaps go out on tour, or even enjoy a commercial run. We won’t know for sure until we see what we have… and we’re just thrilled to have come this far with it.
EMMA: That said, it would be lovely to see the show enjoy further life at other theatres, or even be licensed for school productions one day.
BETH: Is there anything you would like to add?
JULIE: I think it’s important to add that while the original book was conceived as a middle grade novel, the show has happily become a musical for all ages. The music and lyrics are wonderfully sophisticated and the story is so multi-dimensional that there is something for everyone to enjoy.
BETH: In closing, I would like to thank you once again for participating in this interview. I look forward to seeing the production in November. In the spirit of the mice of Mousical, may I say to you both, and to all involved in bringing this project to the stage, “Break a paw!”
EMMA: Thank you, Beth. And thank you for all you do to support the arts!
TICKET INFORMATION: The Great American Mousical will be on stage at the Norma Terris Theatre, Chester, Connecticut, from November 8 to December 2, 2012. Tickets may be purchased by phoning the Box Office, 1-860-873-8668.
GIVEAWAY: As with all the Wednesday Mousical posts this month, any comment on this post will be entered into a random draw to be held November 7th for one of three copies of Julie’s and Emma’s middle grade novel The Great American Mousical. (Full disclosure: these are remaindered copies, and have a small mark on the lower edge of the pages, which doesn’t interfere with readability at all. They are hardcover copies.)
Wonderful interview, Julie, Emma, and Beth! It was fascinating learning about how a novel becomes a musical and even more…watching your characters come to life! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, Tina! Wouldn’t it be wonderful to watch one’s characters come to life right there in front of you?
This was a wonderful interview of two of the loveliest women. It was interesting reading this as I was reminded of when I saw Simeon’s Gift in Sag Harbour, I remembered wondering what it would feel like to have a book you’d written suddenly become a theatrical show. Also interesting hearing Julie and Emma talking about being receptive to give up some of their ideas from the book, for new ones that adapt to theatre.
I would love for them to bring it down to New Zealand, if that were ever possible!!! All the best for their success! Thankyou Julie, Emma and Beth!
Thanks, Diane. I am so grateful to Emma and Julie for participating in this interview and giving us such great insights into this whole process.
Inspiring interview ! This mother/daughter collaborative writing partnership and the wonderful books, have always fascinated me….(and truth be told, makes me wish I had written more stories w/ my Mom before she passed away). These women know how to get the story done well and as Emma poignantly states, successful collaboration occurs when they abide by the foundation or general rules that “THE BEST IDEA WINS”. Bravo to Emma, Julie & their theater collaborators ! All of your stories and productions have inspired this writer/teacher (former student@ Stony Brook Southampton Writers College) to finish her dormant stories and then construct a visionary collaborative team to bring them to fruition. Again, thanks Beth for this inspiring interview on this sunny, crisp, October morning !
Thanks so much, Kathie, for your lovely comment. So glad you’ve been inspired by Julie and Emma to finish your own stories! And I’m grateful you popped across to join us this morning. (Have you considered joining our Children’s Book Hub Facebook Group?)
Thanks so much for this wonderful interview! I was so excited when I heard that Goodspeed was making this book into a musical! I loved reading so much of the background work involved in transforming a story from book to stage and hearing about the collaborative process – especially “the best idea wins!” What a great working relationship everyone seems to have. Thank you!
Thank you so much Michelle, for visiting here today and for your enthusiastic response. It’s fascinating to learn about this process from Emma and Julie, isn’t it?
Incredible interview, Beth. Thanks to all of you for sharing your creative insights!!! Wish I was in the area and able to see this show.
Thank you, Mary. I so wish you could see the show — I’m sure you’d love it!
Terrific interview! Thanks so much for this enlightening post!! The Great American Mousical is one of my favourite books, so I’m delighted to read about the process of bringing it to the stage!
Thank you so much, Susan! I had a feeling you’d enjoy this interview!
what a wonderful interview,, beth. this is one of my favourite books by these two and i was wondering how they will stage it. if it is as good as ‘simeon’s gift’ that i saw in london, it will be spectacular. plus, it is fun to hear how the whole concept came about. i can hardly wait to see for my self.
Thanks, Jan! It’s fascinating to speculate how this will all work on stage.
I loved reading about the transition from page to stage of Mousical – the challenges, changes, collaborative work. Great reading about the tweaks to Harold and Hysterium’s characters. I do hope to gat an opportunity to see the show. I think this is the book by Emma and Julie of which I have given the most number of copies to young friends.
Thank you Beth, Emma and Julie for great questions and inspirational responses.
Thanks, Joanna! I hope you get to see the show — it promises to be a total delight. Julie and Emma have really whetted our appetites, haven’t they?
Oh, this was SUCH an enjoyable interview! Great work, all three of you!
Once again, inspiration pops up in the most random place 🙂
Thanks, Cap’n S! Inspiration pops up all over the place — one has to be alert to it, as Julie was.
Thank you for this wonderful and interesting interview, Beth. Julie and Emma give good answers whatever you ask them, but being asked good questions makes them really shine. You proved that here.
Thanks so much, Dorothea!
A wonderful interview!!! Answers many question I have had about adapting from a book to stage. The great questions and clear answers made it almost possible to understand how it was done. Just wish I could be there to see the wonderful results.
Thank you, Priscilla! I wish you could get to see the production. I know it will be wonderful.
A wonderful interview, Beth. Hoping I can manage a visit to Chester & experience a live performance!
Thank you, Patricia! I hope you get to see Mousical on stage!
Almost missed the interview Beh, as your post didn’t appear in my e-mail today.
An inspiring interview Emma and Julie. I enjoyed learning about the collaborative process the most. A very exciting adventure for one of my favorite books. I too have gifted the book it to many individuals. I saw the premier of “Simeon’s Gift” in Louisville and was thrilled with the adaptation of that book. I can only imagine that this will be on such a grander scale and fabulous. Wish I could attend. I hope it tours. Wishing you all much success. Oustanding interview Beth!
I’m glad you found the interview, Pat! It seems with the new system some people aren’t getting my posts until the next day. That’s not what I was hoping for!
How wonderful that you saw the premier of “Simeon’s Gift”! I, too, wish you could see “Mousical” — here’s hoping it goes out on tour!
Thanks so much for your kind comments, Pat!
Beth, that was a wonderful interview. Now, I hope it goes on tour and gets to Surrey or Vancouver!
Thank you, Norma! Here’s hoping!
Great interview! One thing I need to do know – convince my Mom to take me to the Mousical! I want a copy of the book! Please pick me! 🙂
Thanks, Erik! Every time you comment on these Wednesday posts you get another entry, so keep your fingers crossed!
Hi, Beth. What a wonderful interview…and such a memorable opportunity for you and your readers. The book sounds delightful, as does the musical. I especially enjoyed hearing how the idea for the book came about, and it was fun to learn more about the process of taking a book to the stage!
Thank you, Kerry! I was delighted when Julie and Emma agreed to the interview, and even more delighted when I saw how thoroughly they had answered my questions. It’s fascinating, isn’t it?
Thank you for a wonderful interview, Beth, Emma and Julie. It was fascinating to read about the process of transforming the book into a stage musical! Those of us on the audience side of the stage don’t always realize what a massive effort it is to put together a production.
Thank you, Heather — it is an amazing amount of work, even before it gets to rehearsal!
What an awesome way to start the day! Luv your interview Cuz….U R marvelous. Will have you planted in a special place in my heart on the 14th. Maybe you can come out to Vancouver Island for a production of ‘The Great American Mousical one day soon!?
Thank you, Norm! Love you!
Here’s hoping for a tour!
Thanks Beth. It was wonderful to have Emma and Julie come to life in front of my eyes! Excellent for my brain to begin to visualize some of the thousands of details of bringing the words and concepts to the stage. It’s a new world for me! Great gift from the three of you! Pat
Thanks so much, Pat! Glad to help introduce you to a new facet of the arts, my wonderful artist friend!
Great read! Congratulations on getting such a splendid and fascinating interview.
Bx
Thanks, Brian!
What a fantastic interview, Beth! How great to hear about the whole process of taking a novel to a stage production from two such pros as Julie and Emma. I would so love to be able to see the musical in CT, but not sure i’ll be able to. It’s kind of surreal that Julie Andrews, whose films and music I’ve long admired (and sung along to badly :)) is right here on your blog!… in a manner of speaking 🙂 Thanks to you for conducting the interview, and to Emma and Julie for participating!
Thank you so much, Susanna! I, too, found all the detail that Emma and Julie shared to be fascinating, and I’m so grateful to them both for this interview. I hope you’ll be able to see the production!
I also hope The Great American Mousical goes on tour. I would love to take my children to it here in Portland, OR. Thanks Emma, Julie, and Beth for the delightful interview!
Here’s hoping for a tour — sounds as though it would be greatly popular, judging from the comments on this post! Thanks, Hannah!
I really enjoyed this interview Beth! I am a huge Julie Andrews fan, and have enjoyed seeing her in everything from Sound of Music to Victor/Victoria. I was fortunate enough to see her onstage which was one of my favorite performances of all time. I’m thrilled that she has turned this delightful children’s book into a “Mousical,” and I think it’s wonderful that this is another collaboration with her talented daughter Emma. I’m also impressed with your involvement in such an important children’s organization. Best of luck with the play, and thanks to all!
Thanks so much, Julie. Julie Andrews has indeed touched many lives, and I am so grateful that she continues to do so through her gift for writing, as well as her theatrical skills which are certainly coming to the fore in her directorial work. I am privileged to be able to be a small part of Emma’s work with the Children’s Book Hub. I appreciate both these women so very much.
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