by Paul Wontorek
Broadway.com
July 18, 2000

Idina Menzel, the Tony-nominated live wire that lite a spark in Rent and last season's off-Broadway The Wild Party has gone sweet for her new role as a 1940's war bride. The project is a musical adaptation of the hit flick Summer of '42 up at Goodspeed Opera's Norma Terris Theatre in Chester, Connecticut. Her rejuvinated love of the stage has put her rock career (which garnered an underappreciated pop album, Still I Can't Be Still) on hold, but Menzel hardly seems worried. Broadway.com spoke to her recently to get the scoop on her career aspirations, a fresh new look and her still-hot relationship with Rent cohort Taye Diggs.

How’s life up in Chester?
It’s slow, but I love it. It’s the perfect getaway for me. It’s a really good place to focus and get into what you’re doing. I mean, you can’t find a meal after a certain time of night. We Manhattanites are so spoiled! Otherwise, I love it. It’s small, it’s good. The air is clean…

How did you get involved with Summer of ‘42?
I was working with Jennifer Cody [on The Wild Party], whose husband is Hunter [Foster, the show’s librettist]. She would talk about it, so I knew of it and then I found out that Gabriel Barre was directing it and they mentioned it to me. It just seemed like the perfect thing. I thought it would be a great opportunity to play the type of character that I’m not given the chance to play very often and to come up and develop something exciting.

Your character is quite different from what you’ve done in Rent and The Wild Party.
Different from what people have seen, not from who I am. Thankfully, the creators saw it in me. I want an opportunity to play more traditional roles and also to use a different part of my voice. And not to always be this bombastic belter. I have a sweeter side to my voice that I’d like to use and David [Kirshenbaum]’s music has given me the chance to do that.

Which is more natural for you, the bombastic belting or this sweeter side?
As is usually the case for people who come out on stage and are larger than life, I’m actually insecure and shy. So, I just have to tap into the more vulnerable side of myself for this role and show people that I’m actually less raw than they think I am. I’ve had classical training since I was a child. I’ve noticed that going into a lot of auditions I have to work against a lot of stereotypes. I’ve had to win people over and show them that I can be more versatile. I think a lot of the Rent people have that problem. I guess the big selling point of Rent was that it was all this raw talent but the truth was that even if I hadn’t been in theater, I did have a BFA in Drama from college and I had a lot of performing experience.

So you’ve had a problem in auditions?
Some people won’t even see me for things. They’re complimentary about me, but they say, “She’s too contemporary.” They don’t realize I’m an actress first. That’s why this project is so great. Hopefully whoever sees it will see that I’m a bit more versatile. I hope.

You look gorgeous in the show. How did you hook it up?
Being a vision of loveliness takes a lot of work! My nails are always chipping. They have to be polished. I’ve never used rollers before. It takes me an hour. In The Wild Party I learned how to wear fake eyelashes and pin curls. Now I have to learn how to put rollers in my hair and keep my legs shaved all the time. It’s work! And I have to keep my breath good all the time. I don’t want this 15-year-old boy to have a bad experience!

Let’s talk about that. Your co-stars are pretty young. I thought it was funny that you were one of the older cast members!
It’s not so funny for me! It’s kind of upsetting. We were out bowling Thursday night. Thursday nights are bowling nights. You know, things are very exciting up here. Anyway, Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar On Me” came on and I asked one of the boys who sang it and he had no idea. They don’t even know who Molly Ringwald is! But actually it’s all good. Everyone’s really mature. And Matt Farnsworth, who plays my husband, is my age so we can sit in the corner and cry together.

Let’s talk about your hair in the show.
I have red hair now. Actually, here’s the story: One day before I came up here, I was having a bad day so I went to the salon and said, “Do something funky.” And I completely forgot… I thought I’d wear a wig up here and when I showed up with this crazy hair… which I paid a fortune for in Manhattan!… They said, “We need you to go back to brunette.” I thought, “Of course you do!” But then we tried on the yellow dress and they said, “Well, if we make it look more 1940s red…” So now I still have the red hair. I’m going blonde in like two months! No, I’m not. It’s so fried right now.

Since Summer of ‘42 is all about this guy’s memories of summer, what about you? Any “summer you’ll always remember”?
Well, I went to sleepaway camp for six years. I was a little camper. That has come back up here. I’m the camper girl. I’m like, “Let’s go, guys. Bowling! Get in the car!” My dream is to one day open a camp for inner city kids.

Uh, like Camp Mariah?
She stole my idea! My camp that I used to go to turned into a hasidic camp. It got bought out by a lot of religious people and we all had to leave. Now when you go and visit, everyone’s in a yarmulke. One day I’ll buy it back.

What are these Rent reunions like? I saw you at New York Theater Workshop last month…
That was nice. But I see all of them anyway. It’s always been strange. It’s hard to absorb and to allow all that attention and accolades for Rent because the rest of the country doesn’t know who we are. Once I walk out of the door of Rent, and I’m on the subway, it doesn’t matter. It’s an exaggerated sense of fame. We were just doing the job. We had another mission at hand with Jonathan [Larson] passing. Sometimes it just all felt uncomfortable and unwanted. The man who created all of it was gone and we were just there to channel it. I’m not saying we were ungrateful. It was a beautiful experience. It was just hard to comprehend sometimes.

So the reunion brings all of that back?
Yeah, but that’s great. It’s great to be a part of something like that. I’ll never have it again in that way, so it’s flattering. It’s powerful. Some of the fans are the most loyal people. They followed me on my little tour. I would be playing in the middle of bumfk and there would be three kids there who loved Rent. I’ll never forget that.

What’s it like going to big Hollywood events with Taye?
Honestly? (She laughs.) It depends. There are all different types of events. When it’s an event around one of his movies, that’s more fun. I’m there supporting him, proud of him and I get to watch him on screen. When it’s other premieres and other schmooze sessions… I’m not really tolerant. I’m a couch potato anyway. I’ve never been able to deal with social situations. That energy of people wanting things from him who don’t even know him. It can drain you more than you realize. Not to mention when you’re on the red carpet line and they said, “Mr. Diggs, can we get a picture of you by yourself?” And they’re pushing me aside. And I’m uncomfortable and they say, “Honey, it’s fine. It’s just a picture.” And then Taye feels uncomfortable. But sometimes it’s a New York reporter and they’ll ask for me. That I like!

So what’s up with your recording career?
It’s gotten a little sidetracked with The Wild Party and this. It’s taken me a little longer. I needed to come back to doing some stage stuff. It’s been good for my soul. If you’re recording, you’re not performing live very often. I need to be performing. When you’re trying to write a hit song and you’re just in a little dark studio… My performing craving starts. I just need an everyday vehicle to be in front of a live audience. Then it fuels you up and you can start to work and you’re not by yourself, stressing over stupid lyrics.

So the rock star thing is on hold right now?
When I left Rent, I thought I needed to focus on my music and that it shouldn't share the focus with anything else. I feel bad about that now. I lost the opportunity to do some things in the theater. It's hard to do music and theater at the same time. Right now, I want to do things that make me happy and fulfilled. I really like being a part of a family, a cast. It's good for me. Maybe I'm just no good by myself. I need the energy of other people around me. I'm in a better place when I'm working on a show with ten other people. I get excited to go to work. But it's also because it's not my words and music. I can't be so hard on myself if it's not mine. I just show up, my director directs me and I give what I have. Working on an album is a lonely process. You're just there with a producer or co-writer and it's just that. I can make myself a mess. I have very neurotic tendencies. It makes me want to throw in the towel and never write another lyric again.

You sang a new song at She Rocks Broadway this year that I loved. It was called "It Only Hurts When I Breathe."
Oh yeah. I have like 30 songs that I wrote last year with my record label before we parted ways. Of the 30, that's one of the five that I like.

Any lessons learned from your time with Hollywood Records?
Having a record deal was my dream. I got to make a record, someone else paid for it... And they allowed me to make the record that I wanted to make. A lot of times, artists are pushed into directions. I can say, a couple of years later, that I'm really proud of what's on that CD. I really got to make the kind of record I wanted, but then the regime changed over there. The people that signed me left, so I had to prove myself to new people. They didn't understand. They had no respect for the theater aspect of my career and for what it takes to be a performer in the theater. The work ethic and the discipline and endurance. And also the ability to touch a lot of people eight times a week. They were out in Los Angeles and they didn't have a feel for that and that's fine. I'll find another label and I'll be able to do what I want to do again rather than something that didn't feel right. Not that I fit in with the 16-year-old blond girls out there! I'm waiting for the old twentysomethings to come back in style!

The record industry is the toughest business out of all of them. It's the most cutthroat, especially these days. All they care about is creating hits for the radio. They don't give you much chance to grow, to develop, anymore. Now I'm getting to the point where I realize that I just have to do what I love and if the time is right, my own kind of music will fit. If not, then I just made music that made me happy. I mean, it wouldn't look good if I was hip hop dancing and singing "Oops... I Did It Again." I can't dance anyway. It's just not my time. And the theater is such a warmer environment for me. It's becoming such a home for me.

Any plans for the fall? Waiting to see what happens with Summer of '42?
I'm not even gonna hold my breath with that. It's just another lesson. All that talk about things moving... Some of the best things don't and the strangest choices do. I didn't come up here for that. Of course, I'd love for it to do well. But even if they move on, you never know if they're gonna take you. If some big producer came in and wanted some bigger name for ticket sales, I'd have to go anyway. So I'm just enjoying what I have right now.