A Wonderful Guy by Eddie Shapiro

Author:Eddie Shapiro
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2021-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

11

Norm Lewis

March 2016; August 2018; June 2019

It is impossible to walk through the streets of New York City with Norm Lewis without bumping into someone he knows. Usually it happens multiple times. Without fail he greets them warmly, genuinely, taking the time to truly connect. He is, in fact, sometimes called “the Mayor of Broadway.” He’s the guy everyone knows they will get along with in a rehearsal room. He’s the one least likely to create any drama. He’s the actor who will almost never say no to a benefit if his schedule allows. Ask anyone about him and watch their face immediately soften into a smile. He’s Broadway’s favorite nice guy. It’s a lovely reputation. And also a lot of work to maintain.

Born in Tallahassee and raised in Eatonville, Florida, Lewis had no connection to theater, but like so many other Broadway names, he sang in church. It wasn’t until his high school years that he got involved in theater and even then, it was just a lark, never anything he considered professionally. Once he determined to head to New York, though, his career took off, with featured roles in Tommy and Miss Saigon, before he really made his mark in the short-lived Side Show. He made notable contributions to other notorious flops (The Wild Party, Amour) before he was cast against type as the stern, uncompromising Javert in the first revival of Les Misérables (a role he repeated in London and in the show’s starry twenty-fifth anniversary 02 Arena concert). The Little Mermaid and Sondheim on Sondheim followed, but it was starring opposite Audra McDonald in Porgy and Bess that put him into the category of above-the-title star and Tony nominee. When he took over the title role in The Phantom of the Opera the following year, he was the first (and still only) black man to play the role on Broadway.

Lewis once told me that he wanted to be the black Michael Bublé, and while he has since modified that dream, his calendar is full of concert dates all over the world. He has also dipped his toe into both the TV and film worlds. He is always working, always on the go, always excitedly looking forward. Pinning him down is no easy task, but when I do, he’s always fully present and engaged. When there are other people in the room, he works hard at shifting the focus off of himself, making sure everyone’s included. Occasionally I have found it embarrassing having him recite my résumé to strangers, but Lewis, without fail, wants to make sure that everyone in the room knows the ways in which each person is impressive, not just him. How many actors think to do that?

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