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ToB: Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2025 | Cassadee Pope on ‘Rolling Thunder’
00:37:07
‘Mamma Mia’ opens with a bang on Broadway, who’s who in ‘Masquerade,’ Cassadee Pope talks ‘Rolling Thunder’ Since 2016, “Today on Broadway” has been the first and only daily podcast recapping the top theatre headlines every Monday through Friday.
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Matt Tammanini
Broadway for Wednesday, August 6, 2025. I'm Broadway Radio's Matt Tammanini and I'm.
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Grace Aki
Tell Me on a Sunday podcast Grace Aki and some of my voice is back.
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Matt Tammanini
Well, interesting enough, your voice is starting to come back as is the subject for our interview today. This is going to be a hybrid episode because there's not a ton of news coming out on Tuesday. In fact, very little news at all. But I recently spoke to Cassidy Pope, who is one of the leads in the Off Broadway musical Rolling Thunder, Grace that you saw a Week or go. It is playing at New World Stages. I think, like right after you saw it, she ended up having to leave the show for a week, week and a half. I'm not exactly how long because she got laryngitis and couldn't talk. So we talked about that at the top of the interview. She is now back in the show and sounds normal and great when we were talking. So if you know Cassidy Pope from her music career, she was one of the early winners on the Voice, I think all the way back in like 2013. She's a Grammy nominee. She was the final rose in Titanic off Broadway and now she is doing Rolling Thunder off Broadway as well. So after our little news bit here, stick around for that conversation and we will, of course we'll have information in the show notes on how you can purchase tickets to see Cassidy Pope and the rest of the cast of Rolling Thunder off Broadway. But Grace, let's start with last week's Broadway grosses. In total, there were 28 shows last week, as there were the week before. But there's a little bit of a change because on July 27th we had the final Broadway performance of Pirates, the Penzance musical that was replaced with Mamma Mia On Broadway. But Mamma mia only did one performance, so it wasn't exactly the same type of 28 shows as had been the week before. So in total, Broadway dipped 5% in terms of grosses to $30,062,727 while attendance dropped 4% to 236,981 people and the average ticket price dipped by 1% to $126.86. But speaking of Mamma Mia. It only did one performance, but it was a very good one because they pulled in 200 dol extrapolated to an eight show week. That would be at 2.09 million. Again, we always say like the first preview, the first few previews, those are not necessarily an accurate barometer for what an entire run will look like. But it is interesting that that first show back on Broadway, they had a sold out crowd, 100% capacity and it did very well. So we will see if that will continue through this week and into its run. But the top show on Broadway last week was Wicked over at the Gershwin Theater. It had a gross of $2,344,841 followed by Hamilton at 2.23 million and the Lion King at 2.2 million. Next was another Disney show with Aladdin coming in fourth and maybe Happy Ending coming in fifth. The rest of the shows north of seven figures in descending order are Death Becomes Her Just In Time, mj, the Outsiders, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, oh Mary. In what was the final week for Titus Burgess and the the original cast and then Buenos Social Club wrapped up there. There were only seven shows that actually saw week to week increases. Everything else was down a bit. The only show that had an increase of more than $22,000 was death becomes Her. That probably has at least a little to do with the fact that Jen Simard was back from vacation. So it's been hit or miss getting both Megan Hilty and Jennifer Simard in the show at the same time because of Megan Hilty taking some time off after the Tonys to deal with some health things and then J. Simard being on vacation. So it was back up $142,000 from the previous week to come in at just under 1.4 million. In total, 19 of Broadway's 28 shows played to 90% capacity or more. As I said, Mamma Mia along with wicked were at 100% capacity. Hamilton, John Proctor is the villain were both in between 101 and 102. The outsiders and maybe happy ending were between 102 and 103. And then just in time over at the Circle in the Square Theater continues to lead the way at 103 capacity. Now, Grace, as we go into this last month between August and into Labor Day, which kind of, even though we're already a couple months into the 20, 25, 26 season, but this is like looking forward to the fall, which unofficially kicks off with Labor Day. What's important for these shows that are still on the boards to do to make sure that they are still bringing in audiences during this last little run of summer where vacations and before schools really get started and all of that Stu stuff. Then we start to get back into that new cycle of other shows coming in and crowding up the landscape even more.
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Grace Aki
I think that so many of these shows are still, you know, continuing to run on those post Tony campaigns and you know, making sure the audiences are aware that like, let's say that they didn't get every single win, but they were nominated for several, you know, whatever awards, accolades, those always perform well for people that are kind of decision fatigued when they're in Times Square, when they're kind of like finally in New York City, a lot of people are last minute ticket buyers. And so like what is going to push them to make that purchase is going to be like street team members, people that are, you know, engaging with the out of home. Like the, the street signs that you see, the digital boards, the link screens that appear in Times Square that kind of say like, this is the five Tony nominated, you know, show. Because oftentimes if you're not in the theater community, you don't know when the Tonys happen. You don't care. So it look, it might look to you that like, oh, that was, that was just nominated for all of these Tonys. You don't need to necessarily know that they didn't win them. Like it doesn't matter, you know, so they just want to know that it's been vetted by other people and that other people seem to like it. So you might too. And so I think that you're seeing that with a lot of these shows that are rounding out the end of their summer season and moving into the fall time. So I think it's super smart. And again, like, it's not to discredit the knowledge of any theater goers in the summer. It's just to say that like, not everyone is as insular as we are. You know what I mean? Like we know when the Tonys occur, we know when the out of critics, we know when all of the award ceremonies are, but not everyone does. And so especially those visitors that were welcoming into the City for their summer breaks, maybe their students and you know, this is their one time to see shows before the school season starts. It's super smart to make sure that you're still putting out that awards messaging that you would have in April.
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Matt Tammanini
All right. Going from all of those Tony eligible shows to a show that is not Tony eligible but is certainly generating a lot of buzz thanks to street team members and a lot of things like that. We had previously talked about the fact that Masquerade had opened Off Broadway, this new immersive revival spin off a Phantom of the Opera. And we knew the full cast, but we didn't exactly know who was playing what roles. We could kind of guess, but it was never officially confirmed. But we do now know now that performances have started, who is playing what role. As we talked about, there are various people playing the Phantom and Christine Daae as well as Raul. There are six people playing the Phantom and six people playing Christine. There are three different Rauls. How this works is depending on when your entry time is, you are going to see different pairings throughout the show. So if you come in on that first group, you might see Jeff Creedy and Hayley Ferrer, or if you come in later, you might see Nick Walker and Anna Zavilson. I think, think from what I understand, although it is not said in the in the press release, Grace, I think the Phantoms and Christines though, are matched together. Unless this changes, I think they are always going to be with the same person. So they build up that chemistry together. Like I know former Broadway radio guest Nick Walker I believe is paired with Kaylee Anne Voorhees, so don't quote me on that because that has not been confirmed in any of the press materials. But that is the way it looks. The six Phantoms are Jeff Creedy, Telly Leung, Hugh Pinero, Kyle Scatliff, Clay singer and the aforementioned Nick Walker. The Christine Daez are Hayley Ferrer, Aaron Lacroix, Francesca Malhotra, Riley Noland, Kaylee Ann Voorhees and Anna Zabelson. The three Rauls are being played by Paul Adam Schaeffer, Nicholas Edwards and Francesco Javier Gonzalez. And then there's a number of different people in other roles. There are actually multiple Madame Giris as well. So the more I'm hearing about this, the more I am getting intrigued by what Diane Paulus is doing. I honestly thought it seemed like a mess and was going to be a complete disaster until I heard Diane Paulos was involved and then I had a little bit more faith in what this show could be, because she does have a history of reinventing classics in immersive ways, going all the way back to the donkey show. So I'm excited to see this where. If you'd have told me that two, three months ago, I probably wouldn't have. So what are you hearing about this one, Grace, in terms of the reaction, but also just, like, the logistic of.
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Grace Aki
How it works legitimately?
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Cassidy Pope
Nothing.
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Grace Aki
I really don't know anybody that's actually seen it. I've seen a couple of videos of people entering the. Was it Lee's Art Shop or something? Like, the facade does not look like Phantom. It's. It's very, like, Sip and Guzzle slash these kind of, like, New York speakeasies. So it looks perfect. I. I love all of that. But a lot of people have, you know, posted their selfies with them and the little black masks, which are not masks, it's a lace applique on your face, which is great because that means you can see. I really appreciate that, you know, masks. Masks are normally meant to literally mask your face. And so I'm glad that the mask that they do give you when you. When you purchase the ticket actually allow you to have your. Your vision. So, yeah, I'm intrigued to see the pathways that people take throughout their experience. Like, if people afterwards are talking about this one video that I want to shout out is that there was a. I don't know if they're a creator, maybe, but they talked about how being that close to the Phantom as you're guiding yourself through the show and the experience makes you just realize how creepy the Phantom is and how, like, because you normally are far away, you're watching it from an audience point of view when you're next to them and you're like, dude, you're, like, stalking her. Like, this is too much. Like, they're able to, like, actually dissect the piece more because it's like, you're right next to me, and, like, I'm telling you, it's weird. So it's kind of funny that people are being a little bit more discerning with the. With the content by being in close proximity. But that's what changes. Your relationship to the material changes as your proximity to the material changes. So I'm encouraged to see more of people's takeaways as they enter and exit this space.
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Matt Tammanini
All right, Grace, one space that you have already entered off Broadway is New World Stages, where you saw Rolling Thunder, I think either the night before it opened or right around opening. It has now Been running for a few weeks and yesterday I spoke with Cassidy Pope who is playing Linda in the show. If you remember, this is the show that takes a bunch of iconic rock songs and intersperses them with actual real life stories of people impacted by the Vietnam War, whether those are soldiers, loved ones waiting at home and many other people across the Vietnam War era. It is now playing at New world stages through September 7th. I will have information of course in the show notes on where you can purchase tickets. Grace, real quick, give people kind of a reminder as to what they're going to be seeing. How was the music? How are these iconic songs? How are they interweaved to the story of Rolling Thunder?
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Grace Aki
Yeah, there's so much of like kind of like a documentary style in the musical. They take real letters written by real people that were writing to and from Vietnam and the U.S. they have a lot of like first hand accounts. They interviewed a lot of people for these kind of like soliloquies asides. And so like Cassidy specifically plays kind of like one woman that represents so many women that stayed behind and still communicated with, with those soldiers that were in, that were deployed to Vietnam. So it's really interesting. Like her POV throughout the piece is really unique in that like so much of the, of the show is about like what was going on in Vietnam. But like she's writing to and from to say like, hey, my life is moving on, like I might start seeing someone else and, and all these things. Like she plays like a mother and a girlfriend and a sister and all these different parts. So it's really interesting. And I think that like, you know, the more people that have been seeing it, they've had more takeaways of like oh, like my family went through this and like, you know, I have this perspective on the piece and I like that they give her so many opportunities to kind of like shine a light on a lot of people's experiences back home.
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Matt Tammanini
I love that. So many great songs in the show. Gimme Shelter, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Black Magic Woman, Killing Me Softly, what's Going On? Many, many more. So check out Rolling Thunder over at New World Stages and stay tuned for my interview with Cassidy Pope and we will get to that as soon as I thank you for listening to today on Broad. You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram rodwiradio. And if you want more Broadway radio, head over to patreon.com broadwayradio Grace, where can people find you?
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Grace Aki
You can find me. Reysaki.
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Matt Tammanini
All right, everybody have a wonderful Wednesday. And here's my conversation with Cassidy Pope. Well, Cassidy, I know that you've been a little under the weather. We missed a few shows. How are you feeling? How's the voice?
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Cassidy Pope
It's good, but it's taking forever. Laryngitis takes a while, and I haven't lost my voice like that in years. It was incredibly frustrating. Very, very. You just feel helpless, especially when you have just the laryngitis, like your body feels fine. I wasn't sick. I wasn't bedridden. I was, like, wanting to do the show, and I just physically couldn't. My voice was not there, so. But it's back. It's a little raspy and more of like a. It's a raspier singing tone than I'm used to, but it's. It's. It's getting there.
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Matt Tammanini
I would imagine for some of these songs in Rolling Thunder, a little rasp probably doesn't hurt. It hurt all that much. Yeah.
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Cassidy Pope
Literally, it's like the one genre where it's probably fine. And rock music, a little rasp is fine.
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Matt Tammanini
Yeah. Well, you are going to singing that rock music from singing Celine Dion songs quite. You know, for two off Broadway shows that are both, I guess, in some very different ways, jukebox musicals could not be more different, both in terms of the song styles and the shows themselves. Obviously, we're going to get into Rolling Thunder, but you were the final rose in Titanique Off Broadway. How did that opportunity come about? I know you've been on some TV shows, but always kind of like as yourself. So how did this opportunity come about to not only join this production, but to close an incredible, historic off Broadway run for that show?
- [15:26]
Cassidy Pope
Oh, man. It really happened, like, in a very serendipitous way. I had been taking class acting classes in Nashville for about three years. I was really just, like, heading in that direction, wanting to focus more on acting, really having to step away from music to make things happen. And just by doing that and creating that space for myself, I ended up meeting people in the industry. And I met Eva Price, the producer of Titanique and many other shows, and, like, she got me into audition for one of her Broadway shows. I got really far in the process and would love to go back in for it eventually when it's opened up again. But it was such an amazing experience. I didn't get it. I guess I looked too young to play the part, which there's worse reasons, I guess, to not get the gig. And then she was like, look, I have another show. That I think you would be really great. And so would you want to come see Titanique? And you know, Rose is open for auditions, so, like, you can see if you like it. I came through town on tour in New York City. I had an off day. I went to see Titanic. Absolutely was blown away. I just like, I was like, I have to at least try to get in this. So I sent in a self tape from tour probably like a couple of weeks later. And then by November, I think it was November 2nd, I got word that I got the gig. So I was still living in Nashville. I was already planning on moving here with or without a job. I was like, I'm making this happen. I had gotten a couple of availability checks for other shows. So it just kind of started feeling like I need to get to New York because something is happening. Like something in the universe is like pulling me here. So I got here and started rehearsals literally January 2nd of this year. And I haven't stopped. Like, I had some. I had some double duty action for about 10 days that almost killed me. But rehearsing for Rolling Thunder and like closing out Titanique, so it's just rolled right into the next and I just feel like, really grateful. And I'm very, very aware how not normal my trajectory has been, you know, in this industry, in theater. So, like, I feel really, really grateful.
- [17:50]
Matt Tammanini
Whether I think everybody's journey is obviously their own and very different. But like your journey through the music world and into theater kind of as a second career, how did that first half of the music and even going back to the Voice with all of those, you know, very different audition process. But did that prepare you for where you are now, diving into theater head first?
- [18:12]
Cassidy Pope
I think the endurance part for sure, I mean, tour is. Is a really grueling thing, and I have really enjoyed waking up and going to bed in the same place. That's been wonderful. But yeah, the endurance and just kind of knowing how to pace yourself. I have definitely had a trial and error with that here. It's been. It's a whole different experience. So it's not going to be the same as like on tour, what I would do to. To try and preserve my voice and stuff. But I think there is some spillover of, like, different ways that I do that and recharge and. Yeah, I mean, I think like, in general, being on stage is. It's really comfortable for me. You know, when I'm singing one of my own songs that I've written, I don't really have to act, but I Have to emote. I have to tell the story. I have to feel it. I don't want to just be up there singing with. With no emotion. So I feel comfortable being on stage in front of people, emoting and entertain. So it's like a lot of similarities, for sure.
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Matt Tammanini
Well, you're talking about similarities between those two things. You are now playing a character much different than Rose in Titanic and playing Linda in Rolling Thunder. This is a show that's been described as kind of like part musical, part documentary. How does that work? Who is Linda? How does she exist not only in the world of this show, but as either a literal person or kind of like an avatar for a bunch of people in the real world.
- [19:36]
Cassidy Pope
Yeah, I mean, these. The story, or the stories, I should say, in this show, are based on real experiences and people having conversations with our writer, Bryce Hallett, talking about their experience, whether they were a veteran or a loved one. And in my case, you know, my story is of a loved one, this girl, Linda, Midwestern gal, she's in high school and about to go to college, and her boyfriend Johnny, leaves to go to the Vietnam War, thinking that it's more of, like, an experience to see the world, which is so. It's so wild that that was a. That was literally a perspective for some of them. Some of them were drafted and, you know, were really unhappy about it. And people like him, he was, like, excited to go see the world. He had no idea what he was getting into. And so my character is just experiencing the missing that person. And also, like, going to college, hearing different perspectives of the war from back home, People being anti war, me hearing that, but knowing my boyfriend's over there, it's like a very complicated time for her. And she has a really cool evolution that I really enjoy bringing to life every night. I also have. I feel really connected to this character because I have had that experience where I've had one way of thinking and have been in a certain. I ended up leaving it, and I ended up having a whole different perspective. So it was really cool to, like, really dive into this character and take some of my own personal experience into it.
- [21:23]
Matt Tammanini
And it's interesting to me that, you know, now we're 50 plus, 60 years removed from the Vietnam War, yet one, the songs in the show still remain iconic and part of the musical lexicon. But as all things are in history, things are cyclical. And some of these same lessons that I'm sure are being discussed in the show, but were prevalent during that era of American and world history. Are kind of recycling themselves in here as you are. See, he's singing these songs every night and listening to the rest of the cast sing these songs. Are you not only connecting them to the stories being told from the era which the show is in, but also finding connections maybe that you didn't expect to things that are happening in real life today?
- [22:03]
Cassidy Pope
Of course, yeah. I mean, there's. It's hard to not draw those parallels. I mean, I think as people, we would. We are not doing ourselves any service if we say that, you know, some of these themes are coming up now in the modern day, but it is. I feel hopeful when I'm on stage singing these songs because I feel like we're able to put this on stage and kind of preserve the history of this, of all of these stories and tell all these different perspectives, but also kind of like, let the audience kind of take what they want from it. I think that's what the show does really well. It doesn't tell just one perspective. It tells a bunch of different ones. And I think it's important, especially when you're telling a story about something that actually happened in history, you have to do that. And. And yeah, like when. When we're singing these songs, it's. It's. Of course I'm thinking of what's happening in the world right now. Of course, it's. It kind of tugs at you and it's hard to. It's hard to ignore that. And we shouldn't ignore that. We talk about it as a cast, so it's like, it's been a very thought provoking process. And it's been like, yeah, it's. It's felt good to allow ourselves to have those, like, open conversations with each.
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Matt Tammanini
Other during that rehearsal process. During the first few weeks of the show's run. Obviously you have all the songs you're singing, which I'm sure you love all of them, and they're all incredible. But has there been a song or a moment that you really enjoy hearing? Whether it's in a rehearsal room or on stage while you're watching somebody else perform, or backstage when you're listening through a monitor, Is there a song or a moment that really stands out to you?
- [23:43]
Cassidy Pope
Yes. Deontay Goodman, he has a amazing solo, Eve of Destruction, and he's playing acoustic guitar, and it's like his own moment for until the band comes in in the second verse. But, like, his voice in that song is so beautiful, it soars. I have not heard him mess it up once. He's doing Eight shows a week. And literally every time he does it, he's, like, doing something. Some other incredible acrobatic vocal moment that I'm like, what? I love that I also really love. Nowhere to Run where Courtney Carter is like. That's her moment. And she's just. She's kind of playing this part in that moment of, like, I guess, kind of being, like, the narrator of each scene that's happening. So she's kind of, like, pretending like she's making us do things. And I just. I love watching her and hearing her do that part. She's just incredible.
- [24:43]
Matt Tammanini
And in those moments and in many other. Throughout the show, I'm sure. Are you. I guess. Are you surprised by maybe the familiarity or maybe in some cases, lack of familiarity that the audience has with these songs? Like we said, a lot of them are iconic, but in New York, I would imagine that there are audiences that are older than me and some that are quite younger than me that might not have some of the exposure to the songs that maybe you or other people in the cast do.
- [25:10]
Cassidy Pope
Yeah, I mean, and I. I'm one of them. You know, I. I knew, like, Give Me Shelter, and I knew Killing Me Softly, but, like, I had to do my research, too, on some of these songs. And. And so in the crowd, when I see someone who's older than me singing along to these songs, like, that's exactly what we want. And then when young people come in and they don't know these songs, that's also what we want. We want people to be exposed to. To new things. And it's also really fun to see people in the crowd who look like they shouldn't. Like, they're super young, and, like, maybe they're a teenager, and they know these songs. Like, that's really fun, too. So I think that's, like, been cool to see actual music fans showing up and just wanting to hear us wail on some of their favorite songs.
- [25:57]
Matt Tammanini
All right, gonna take a complete detour here because I just saw your dog stretching around behind you on the couch.
- [26:02]
Grace Aki
Sorry.
- [26:02]
Matt Tammanini
How's the. No, no, no. It's great. How is the dog adjusting to life in New York vs Nashville?
- [26:08]
Cassidy Pope
He loves it. He's like. I think because when we would go on walks in Nashville, there might have maybe been one other person walking their dog in the street here. It's just. There's people everywhere. There's other dogs everywhere. It's just like, a constant slew of, like. He's so stimulated. He's always experiencing things. He loves that there's trash on the sidewalks. He wants to get in there, and I'm always having to pull him. And. Yeah, he's. He's experiencing a lot here, and it's adorable. And he's eight, so, you know, like, he's living, like, another new life at, like, an older dog age, so I'm happy for him.
- [26:44]
Matt Tammanini
I love that. Good. Good for him. Okay, so what kind of dog? And what's. What's his name?
- [26:48]
Cassidy Pope
He's a French bulldog. And his name's Cuppy.
- [26:52]
Matt Tammanini
Okay. Yeah. Where did. Where does Cuppy come from?
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Cassidy Pope
I honestly, I really wish I had a good story here. I just thought it was funny. And he's just like. Looks like an old grumpy man. And I just think Cuppy is such a cute name, and it's such a different vibe than how he looks. He's literally about to fall asleep.
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Matt Tammanini
Yeah, he's got the frown. He's got the. He's got the bulldog droopy face. Yeah. Yeah, I love it. Okay, well. Okay, so that's his adjustment to living in New York City. What's it been like for you? I mean, obviously, going from Nashville to New York is very different, but also going from being on the road as much as touring and working musicians are, to being in New York now for the past August, I guess, eight months now. Like, that's gotta be quite a big change for you too.
- [27:40]
Cassidy Pope
Yeah, yeah. Being in one place in general is definitely new. It's definitely, like, this is the longest I've gone without traveling probably since, like, Covid. And even in Covid, I was, like, trying to take road trips to keep myself sane. But, yeah, like, being in one place has been wonderful. I've settled into a really great routine. I feel healthier. I feel more rested. And then living in New York City, like, this is my dream city. I've always wanted to live here. I just always had stuff going on. I would have, like, you know, maybe a significant other that I was living with, and I couldn't just up and move. I just. I would always have a reason to stay put wherever I was. And then, you know, as. As of, like, May of last year, a lot of personal changes started happening. A lot of, you know, just, like, redirecting my energy was happening, like, career wise. So it just all happened at the perfect time. So, like, being here, getting here, moving here, driving here with all my things, I didn't run into a single issue. It was, like, the smoothest.
- [28:45]
Matt Tammanini
Oh, wow.
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Cassidy Pope
Yeah. And, like, even finding my perfect apartment, like, and I Just started to feel like I'm supposed to be here. Like, usually I'm met with a lot more obstacles and I don't know, I guess I'm just supposed to be here. So. I have loved living here. It's so fun. I've just. I've met so many incredible people. I feel really focused, really driven. Everybody's super creative around me, so I'm always just inspired. And the food is so good. Everything is great. Everything is wonderful. I love it.
- [29:18]
Matt Tammanini
Well, when you're balancing first Titanic, then a little double duty into Rolling Thunder, how are you? Are you. I guess, are you still engaging with the music side of your career? Are you still writing? Are you? I know. I think. I think I saw you're going out to Vegas this weekend for a show. So how is that kind of fitting into this new world as a theater artist?
- [29:38]
Cassidy Pope
Yeah, I love that I can have that when I want it. You know, that's like the thing that I've been striving for is I want to make acting my main gig and have music there when I want to, because it's so. For my whole life, music has been the only thing I've done. So I really love the versatility. I'm feeling creative versatility. There was like a songwriting camp that came to town last month, and I did three days straight of writing songs before going into Titanic at night. And that was so fun because it was just something different. I feel like writing songs is kind of like a muscle. If you don't work it long enough, you get a little rusty. So it was really nice to like, clear the cobwebs there and get in some collaborative rooms. And also, like, I have some songs coming out this year with other artists for their projects that I'm featured on. And that's like the perfect thing for me to do right now because I just. I get to pop in on a song and then they deal with the stuff that I absolutely got sick of dealing with. Like, how do I make this a viral moment? How do I promote this? So, yeah, I feel like I'm getting the best of both worlds right now.
- [30:49]
Matt Tammanini
That's awesome. Well, I've got a couple questions and we'll wrap up with. With Rolling Thunder. But you said you ran into no issues moving to New York? No flat tires, no things in the. In the drive up. You found the apartment. So following the run of. Of Rolling Thunder, what's. What's the five year plan here? What is the goals that if things go continually as smoothly as they have been what's that vision? When you decided to make the change from music to acting, where do you hope that this goes?
- [31:19]
Cassidy Pope
I hope I just. I keep getting gigs. Like, I really, really love getting on stage and getting to tell. Help tell a story with. With an ensemble. I love not being the only one up there and. And creating with, like, a bunch of people. And, like, if a crowd sucks, I'm not the only one up there by myself. Having to. That's been great. But I just. In general, like, I would love to also do film and tv. That's. That was a majority of what I studied in Nashville was. Was filmic acting, like, more subtle acting. So that I would be. I mean, honestly, that's. My goal is to end up doing more stuff on camera. I would love to do. I would love to do plays where I get to kind of, like, not focus on singing for once and focus just on the acting. I think that would be really special. But I'm also, like, holding it very loosely. Like, I know to get to where you want to get in life, like, you can't get there only one way. You have to kind of be open to lots of different avenues. And, you know, I never expected to be back in musical theater. I did it as a kid, and I never expected to be back. And I'm so glad that I, like, I didn't shrug it off because, you know, like, I'm having the best time, so I'm kind of. Kind of, kind of just really open and surrendering to what other opportunities could come. But, yeah, I've got my sight set on film and tv.
- [32:47]
Matt Tammanini
Yeah, Well, I mean, it's one of those things where in my old age, like, I've learned, like, the more you plan, the less things actually, like, come. So the more you're just kind of open to, hey, this is really interesting. I'll say yes to this, even if it's not necessarily on my vision board. That often leads to the best opportunities. But one thing you said, like, that collaborative nature is something, whether that's working with other people or having other people there to shoulder the load when the audience isn't as responsive as you want. Is that the biggest transition for you from, like, being a solo artist into theaters where you have that group of people that you're not only working with, but playing with and creating with as well? I mean, music is not an isolated thing in total, but as the front person, I'm sure that's got to be quite a bit different than being on stage with a full cast. Yeah.
- [33:37]
Cassidy Pope
And I think I didn't realize how stressful it was for me until I got into musical theater. And there was like one night at Titanic where the crowd just wasn't really giving us a lot. And afterwards I was like, if that were my show and I felt like the crowd wasn't giving me any energy back, I would feel so depleted right now. I would feel so sad. I would feel so. I would just. I would feel like I'm not good enough. They didn't like me and I don't feel any of those things because we did our job together and I still had fun. So, like, it. The. The difference is that it's. It's that, you know, you're not up there wondering, like, is it because my songs aren't good enough? Oh, like, did I sell enough tickets? Because you are playing a show where it's about you and people are either coming to see you or they're not, or they're coming to see you and they aren't jumping up and down singing all the words and you're left being like, maybe I'm not good enough. And it is not like that in an ensemble kind of situation. So I've really been enjoying that.
- [34:47]
Matt Tammanini
Yeah. Definitely a different vibe, I'm sure. All right, well, let's wrap up a little bit talking about Rolling Thunder a little bit more. This is a cast that has some really incredible vocal talents. How similar are the versions they're going to hear to those originals? How much is the music direction and the arrangements kind of changing things up. What's the presentation of these songs, which, as we've said, iconic numbers, but seen in a very different light through the lens of this story.
- [35:15]
Cassidy Pope
Yeah, I mean, most of them, I would say, are really true to the recordings because everybody in the show has an insane voice. There are moments of ad libbing and maybe opting up to. For certain melodies. And there's really, I would say maybe like two or three songs where there is some dialogue spliced within it, but most of the songs are like top to bottom. This is. This is the song that you're used to hearing and this is how it's played. You know, we've got an amazing band up there. The drummer, like, there's no drum shield around him. He's just wailing up there. And we have two guitar players, a bass player, keyboardist. So. So it's a full on rock show. So, yeah, the songs are there the way you would hope to hear them.
- [36:05]
Matt Tammanini
Yeah. And so the way you hope to hear them. That's one thing, but what do you hope when an audience comes and sees this show that they take away from it? Whether it's the music, the message, the characters, the story. What are you hoping that an audience at New World Stages leaves with?
- [36:21]
Cassidy Pope
Having seen Rolling Thunder, I hope they leave feeling moved. I think what people expect to come and see in the show is they expect to see a rock show and probably to rock out with us and sing along. But I think the majority of people, when they leave, the thing that they're surprised about is how moved they were. And I hope that people can relate to any of these characters. There are so many different stories being told, so it's hard for me to imagine someone doesn't relate to at least one of the characters. And I think that's the beauty of having a show about so many different stories is like, you can really grab onto at least one. So I hope that happens as well. The relatability part of it.
- [37:04]
Matt Tammanini
Yeah. Well, Cassie, I have been a fan for, I mean, a long time at this point, dating back to the early days on the Voice. So I'm thrilled that you're in the musical theater space now and cannot wait to see this show and everything that comes in the future, whether it's on stage or screen, whichever way way the acting career takes you.
- [37:21]
Cassidy Pope
Thanks, Matt. I appreciate.