Good question! Hard to answer! It was like this: I was studying at the Musical school in Göteborg in Sweden and suddenly there was this opportunity when a friend of mine who was doing Phoebus in "Der Glöckner von Notre Dame" in Berlin, gave me a call saying "You have to do an audition here!" And then there was an audition for "Glöckner" in Stockholm, and just like that I was on my way to Germany. I auditioned in Stockholm and got a call back for Berlin, auditioned there again, and that's it. If you are lucky it can go pretty fast.

And what was it that made you become a musical performer and not an opera or operetta singer?

I'd like to do it all but that's impossible. So musicals are a perfect mix of each category. There is pop, rock, afro and also classical elements. So, I got educated in musicals, but also did some pop music.

At the moment "Mamma Mia" is quite successful!

Right!

What do you think of pop musicals in general like "Mamma Mia" and "Saturday Night Fever"?

Well, honestly I prefer it when something is especially written to tell a story more than when hits of a certain star are simply added to a story. It might be fun and Mamma Mia seems to be fantastic. I guess it is. But in general I think this idea turns kitschy and cheap pretty quickly. Not in this case, I know it's not like that, but it could be.

In "Elisabeth" you are not only doing Rudolf but Death as well. Which role do you prefer to play? Is it possible to choose one?

No, I can't say which role I like better. It's so much fun to do them both. But since I'm the principal cast for Rudolf and the understudy for Death, I've played Rudolf more often then Death, of course. Yet I've done Death quite often too...but I can't tell which I like more. They are two totally different roles! But what I can say is that it's so much more varied to do two roles within one production. It means more fun for me instead of having just one role. Otherwise it might get a little boring in a long running show.

But isn't it boring and tiresome in general to hear the same melodies and to sing and act the same day after day?

No, not for me. But I understand the question, I'm often asked about that. But as a performer you have a different point of view. Every day is a new day, you feel differently every day and there is always a new audience down there. The orchestra plays differently, the conductor changes the tempo and so you are not doing the role as you did it the day before. So, each show is a little bit different. It's funny, but it's actually really varied. Okay, you can't do a role for 15 years, everything must come to an end, every role has its limits. But for about a year, that's no problem.

...or for 2 years?

For two...yes. So I'm glad that I had two roles, I think it would have become a little bit more boring for me. But it wasn't like that. But now I feel it's time for me to leave. It wouldn't make much sense to stay any longer, because you always have to move ahead. You always have to find new challenges, that's really important. You need to find fresh inspirations.

So it's not too hard for you to leave "Elisabeth" to do "Miss Saigon" in St. Gallen?

No, in this case I do it with much love. I had two fantastic years here, really. I did a lot for myself and my career and it was a good step for me to come here. I wasn't aware of it before since I never knew "Elisabeth" till then. I only knew the big shows like "Les Mis" and also "Miss Saigon" was something I heard before. So St. Gallen will be quite exciting, I hope.

What excites you about the role of Chris?

Well, hmmm, I think it's something totally different. It's a... well, I don't know yet. I have to go and find out. I know the music but I haven't seen the show yet, so I can't say too much about it. I'll see where the challenges are. I have the feeling that it's a good part for me. It suits my profile, it fits with my age and my voice. That's it, and now I have to see what I can do with it and that's exciting. A new time, a new town, a new theatre, new colleagues, a new show.

What are your plans? When is your first show as Chris?

We'll open the show on February 8th.

And your final show with "Elisabeth" is on December 31st, right?

That's right. That's my last show. That will be sad. It will be really sad. That's what I hate about theatre. You have a job for a long time at a certain place, close to all your colleagues and then suddenly you have to leave. This means good bye and who knows when there will be another occasion to meet again. Of course you see them all again some time, I don't want to sound too overdramatic. But it's a fact that you won't see colleagues that you've grown close to that often.

So the cliché of the big theatre family is true?

Yes, I think so. Especially when you come over from Sweden. I have no family or friends over here. At "Glöckner" I did 8 shows a week, over here it's 7 shows. Performances are in the evening, which means you have no ordinary working day when you have lunch or go to dinner with friends. You only have the job. So you are very close with your colleagues, it's like living together.

What do you like best about "Elisabeth"?

*laughs* To do the show, to perform in those two roles on stage, it gave me so much. The show runs so well, also from the audience's point of view. It's a game with the audience. With Death and with Rudolf: Those are two living characters, they are totally alive, full of creativity. That is very entertaining, for me as well. And of course I found wonderful colleagues here and it's an amazing theatre. It wasn't like that at "Glöckner". There was the cast, we made the theatre. But beside that there weren't any personal connections and over here it's much, much better. The audience is important. There is a good atmosphere, great vibes.

So, what does an ordinary day in the life of a musical performer look like?

I like it. You have a lot of rest in the morning. You really have some time then. So I get up quite late, about 10 am would be pretty early for me. Okay, I get out of bed around 11 am. Then I take some time for breakfast. That's my "evening". Things that other people do in the evening, I do then. I check my mail, do the things I have to do. Hopefully there are no rehearsals that day. But there are always some, or any interviews or other things about the show. It's a living show, so cast members leave, new members come and they have to be integrated into the show. So we have to be there as well to give support. We have encountered that now a number of times since a lot of colleagues have left.

And is it easy to integrate new members?

Yes, I think so. We've done it quite often here. We've lost ten colleagues to other shows and that's quite a lot. We are just a cast of 36, so 10 people is a lot. But it's okay, although it's difficult for the show and the cast. I think we did it very well. We have a lot new and good cast members.

How long does it take to make a new member feel comfortable for the show?

That's hard to say. I guess 2 or 3 weeks at least. We had 2 months of rehearsals in the very beginning of "Elisabeth". That's okay. But that was a new production. For a single member it's about a month.

Really, that fast? With the words and music and everything?

Yes, it is fast. It's pretty hard.

But what if, although you rehearsed that much, there happen to be mistakes on stage?

Then you are in trouble. Then you hear the stage manager swear. But of course mistakes just happen. Always. Today we were rehearsing the prologue. There are so many movements within that scene, it’s difficult. It must become a unit, everything has to fit together. We have to rehearse this quite often so it works out on stage. And if something goes wrong we have to discuss it in rehearsals.

So is there anything funny or embarrassing that ever happened to you on stage?

Well, yeah but it wasn't my fault. But it's a nice story. It was my very first show as Death. And there is that wonderful scene with the bed. Elisabeth, back then it was Pia Douwes, is sitting on the bed and gives her ultimatum to Franz Josef. It's the "Elisabeth, mach auf mein Engel" scene. Elisabeth is sitting on the bed and Death, in that case me, should come. But in that night suddenly there was no bed and it was my first show. And the crew were just saying: "Now go out there. Improvise, that's what you're paid for!" (laughs) and I was just saying: "Okay, okay, I’m going!" Well, then I set Pia on the floor and we were acting on the floor instead of the bed. That was strange but very, very funny. And exciting. My God, there was a lot happening.

And has it ever happened that you forgot your lines?

The lyrics? Well, sometimes I've mixed them up, maybe, but not that often. And that's strange, since I find it's easier for me to sing in German. Then I'm really fixed on the words. If it was Swedish, it would be more difficult since I would forget to be really concentrated on the words, since obviously it should be easier of course. And definitely if I lost my concentration I might get in trouble with the phonetics. That would be embarrassing for me. Not too much but those things can happen. But fortunately not too often.

Speaking of the language - you learned German especially for "Elisabeth" and "Glöckner"?

Yes! I couldn't speak it before. I studied French in school, sadly. And then I sung a lot in German. I was singing in a choir and we sang the Matthäus & Johannes Passion. And those things are in German. I also sang some songs in German during my voice lessons. So I had an idea of the sound of the language but nothing more. And I never spoke it when I was in Berlin. There were 16 nationalities in the cast so we were all speaking English all the time. And then I came over here. Here we HAD to speak German, and that's a good thing. It's important for the show. We are in Germany. We are doing musical theatre, a musical drama, the pronunciation in that show is and always was good. Let's hope that it'll stay that good, but I´m sure it will.

Do you remember what went through your mind when you got the confirmation for your first job?

No! I simply knew that I would get it. No, not like that! But I was quite sure. You never know it totally. It's an adventure. But with "Glöckner" I was quite convinced, I simply had to do it. My teacher in school said "That sucks, you shouldn't do that. That isn't any good for you." But at that time there was nothing special for me in Sweden. I could have done "Oliver Twist" or anything in a local theatre. So I said "No, I'll go now, I'll do that, I'll go to Berlin" and I got one of the lead roles there. It was great. And what a challenge. Even a new language to learn, so that convinced me totally.

And were your family and friends also against your decision?

Not really. They are happy for me and about the path I've taken. Of course they are also sad when I'm not there. I miss my family and friends in Sweden, but they are glad. I see them quite often, very often.

But is it possible to keep up life with a family if you always have to change locations?

It's possible, but it's difficult. Over a longer period of time, I think, it won't work out. I couldn't move along with my family. My life is like the life of a gypsy. You always go where your work is. No matter where that is, no matter what it is, whether in the ensemble or whatever. That's hard. I don't think that it would work out like that. I don't want to have it that way.

So, you are not a family man?

I am and I will be. Definitely. But when I have my own family, it will simply happen. I'll have to figure new things out then. I'd rather do different things then. But that's hard when you are an artist, of course.

At the moment, you are thinking about recording a solo CD.

Right. I'm planning that. We are working on it, I already have a lot of demos. I recorded a lot of songs, now I'm trying to find my style. That's not easy, since I have a wide musical background, so I have to decide what I really want to have. But my aim is to release it next year, let's hope so.

Now you asked your fans what they think about a solo CD. What was the response?

It was funny. They said I should never do a Latin or folk CD. Thank God. Of course they also asked for a musical CD since most of the fans know me for my work in musical theatre. So they'd like to have a musical CD. But a Pop Album got nearly the same votes. And that's a good result. 50 / 60 percent would like to have a pop album with me. That's a good result for the poll. I was really satisfied with it.

How important are the fans in musical theatre?

They are important, I think. They are making the difference between a normal show and an energized show, for example. Then you can feel it. When they are cheering. You feel how they love it. Young people who are really enjoying the show. That's important, I think.

So what matters more? The feedback by the audience and the fans or the reviews in the newspapers?

Actually, the most important feedback for me is the feedback from my colleagues. That's number one. If your colleagues appreciate your work then you are really doing a good job. Then somebody is talking who does the same thing as you and who can really judge it. Then all the others come, without any priorities. Everything is important, of course the audience is the boss. If you are not getting any applause, what then? Alright, maybe you are playing the villain, so maybe that’s why you are not getting applause. There are of course popular as well as rather ungrateful roles.

What would have happened if you were not working in musical theatre?

Musical theatre is a part of music. I'm a music man, I could do some more things. I'm also a singing teacher. That's what I was trained for before I went into musicals. That would be one possibility, another one would be becoming a cook. I like to cook but I never find the time to do it. I'm living on my own over here and it's no fun to cook for yourself only.

What are your plans for the future?

I have a certain plan, and that's why I made the decision to do Miss Saigon. It's a state theatre production which means we do 3 to 5 shows per week. That's a big difference to the 7 shows we are doing over here. So I can take some time to produce my CD. My plan is a German/Swedish co-production. One half produced in Sweden, the other half in Germany. Then I have to see if I'll continue in musical theatre or if I want to have some time off. But I think there are a few shows to come.

Finally: Can you give some advice for newcomers in the musical business?

Well, you have to work really hard. I think the acting classes are very important. You have to take it seriously. That was the best thing during my education in Göteborg. We had the classes with all the actors. That's why we wanted to go onstage. It's not enough to have a good voice and a nice face, you can't think like that. You have to be aware of what you are doing on stage. And you have to finish everything you start and to take it serious from the very beginning. Keep on learning. That's the best thing in this job. The learning never ends. There are always things to learn, it never ends.

© by Stephanie Tatenhorst and Sandra Schipper. Interview posted here with the authors' permission. It may not be reproduced without the written consent of the authors. The original German text is available at www.thatsmusical.de.