Name
Kate Loprest
What is your role in THE SOUND OF MUSIC?
I play Elsa Schraeder. Fans of the movie remember her fondly as “the Baroness.” In the original stage production of the show, however, she is not a Baroness — she is a wealthy widow from cosmopolitan Vienna who is the president of her deceased husband’s corporation.
Can you tell us a little bit about the show & your character?
Elsa arrives at the von Trapp estate after her courtship with Georg in Vienna. They both know they want the relationship to move to the next level, but Elsa is still curious about what kind of relationship their marriage would be: will it be a “business deal” or a romance?
Elsa is very independent. She’s president of a corporation (as a woman in 1937), she still runs her previous husband’s estate, and has a glittering social life. Moving forward with Georg would mean taking on a second household, splitting her time between Vienna and Nonnberg, and raising seven children between the ages of five and sixteen.
I think she’s actively trying to figure out if she could do it all and if taking it on is what she wants. The film adaptation gave Elsa a bad rap. There’s no “boarding school” talk from Elsa in our script. All evidence points to the fact that she genuinely cares for the children, staff (including Maria), and Georg.
So when people ask me what it’s like playing the “villain,” I always respond by asking, “How many more jobs do you want this woman to do for free?” Frankly, I think a lot of women can really relate to Elsa.
Do you remember your first experience to THE SOUND OF MUSIC?
My mother has a distinct memory of singing “My Favorite Things” to me on a plane when I was a fussy infant. Naturally, it was a cross-country flight, and this was the 1980s, so there was still smoking on planes (can you imagine???).
The Sound of Music was also the first community theatre production I was in as a kid. There was a large children’s chorus cast to accommodate the many children who auditioned. I like to say I was child denizen #73. I’ve never been a von Trapp child (sigh).
Kate as Child denizen #73 in the Deerfield Children’s Theatre production of The Sound of Music, second row from the bottom, on the left.
How was the rehearsal process?
In a word: QUICK.
I believe we only worked together as a company for two weeks before heading to Utica, New York, to tech our show out of town. We were infinitely lucky to have had the guidance of Jack O’Brien, Andy Einhorn, and Danny Mefford for those few weeks. They’re the best in the business, and working with them makes it clear why.
Eight months into tour, Jack still insists that he isn’t done with “the work.” He says there’s still more to uncover, and I agree. People tend to think that The Sound of Music is about nuns and kids in lederhosen. We have learned that in its outward simplicity, the original script is complex, dark, and also full of wit.
We have not yet hit our best show and, all this time into our run, I believe this cast is still working to make this the best production of The Sound of Music audiences have ever seen.
How is life on the road? Any favorite spots you’ve visited so far?
I’m really enjoying being on the road! Yes, constant travel and packing can be a drag, but there’s excitement in it as well.
One of the things I’m working on is separating my personal time from work time. Before 4 p.m. is my time. I don’t have to think about work. I can go to the gym, sleep in, explore the city, make phone calls, grocery shop, get lunch, enjoy my life, etc.
4:01 — it’s time to start focusing in.
I’m someone who would normally spend all day prepping for work. Splitting my time gives me permission to be a human being instead of an acting machine.
Kate at sound check at the Nederlander Theatre in Chicago, where she also performed in WICKED.
What is your pre-show ritual / warmup?
Elsa doesn’t enter the stage until 48 minutes into Act 1. Luxury, right?
However, I am on deck every show as the curtain rises. There is no overture to our show. It begins with church bells and then the voices of the nuns singing a cappella. That’s right: no orchestra, just women’s voices. It’s beautiful and unique.
Even though I’m not mic’d at the top of the show, I always sing along from the wings. It’s a grounding ritual for me: “I’m entering the world of the play.” And, not for nothing, it’s a great vocal warm-up.
Do you have a favorite moment in the show?
Without fail, in each city we travel to, the local crew always gets into it. I can’t explain it. This show has five or six of the most popular musical theatre songs in the musical theatre canon. That’s a lot of bops! And no matter where we travel to, by the end of the week, the local crew is always backstage swaying to “Lonely Goatherd” or humming along and crying to “Climb Ev’ry Mountain.”
We’ve even had local crew members learn the lines and recite them along with us because they love the show so much. Watching them enjoy our work always brings me joy.
Kate Backstage in Elsa’s Gold Ballgown
Where are you from originally?
I’m originally from Deerfield, Illinois. It’s a small northern suburb of Chicago.
Can you tell us about how you got into performing arts?
I watched movies like The Sound of Music, ha! What can I say?
I grew up in the 1980s watching Disney movies, musicals, and The Muppets. I had a vivid imagination and my parents supported it. Also, there is a great history of art in Chicago and its suburbs, and I am certainly a product of that.
The woman I took dance classes with as a child was the choreographer of the first professional play I was cast in at 15, and the choreographer of the show I did right out of college that gave me my Equity card: Chicago’s Marla Lampert.
I have a great respect for and connection to my Chicago theatre roots. Up until two weeks before, I still wasn’t sure I was going to leave Chicago to try the Big Apple. My parents insisted that I try: “If you don’t like it, you can come home.”
As irony had it, I did come home — three months later to join the sit-down company of Wicked in Chicago. I moved to New York to move back home.
Do you remember your first role either professional or amateur?
First actual role: I was the “stable” in the Christmas play. That’s right. Two pieces of plywood crossed over my head. “I am the stable where baby Jesus came to be born because there was no room at the inn.” So that’s no Mary. No Angel Gabriel. No von Trapp children. No wonder I’m still in the business 40 years later.
What piece of advice would you give to young aspiring performers?
Stay in school and keep learning. Your education does not stop when high school or college is over. Being a student of the world, a student of life, will make you a better actor. Our job is to become a mirror to existence — how can one expect to do that if they’ve never experienced anything? Take the trip, learn something new, read a book, turn left instead of right, fail, win. An education as an actor can and will last your whole life.
Is this your first time performing at Playhouse Square?
This is my debut at Playhouse Square, and I’m very happy to be back in the Midwest. This is my second appearance in Cleveland after working on a small out-of-town show called Fat Camp in 2011… or was it 2012?
Kate backstage with the von Trapp Children
Why should audiences come and see this production?
My father remembers his grandfather’s advice: you need someone to love, something to love, and something to look forward to.
I think this applies to great theatre as well and is part of the reason The Sound of Music continues to be a success 65 years later. Everyone can find someone to love, something to love, and something to look forward to in it.
I believe with all my heart that this is the best production of The Sound of Music that audiences will ever see. I’m so proud of our show.