PHILADELPHIA - There's a lot to sing about at the Walnut this fall! Red-headed Broadway bombshell Jennifer Hope Wills has landed in town to star as Sharon McLonergan in Finian's Rainbow. Fresh off her starring role as Brooke Shields' sexy sister Eileen in the recent Broadway revival of "Wonderful Town," Jennifer has been described by the New York Times as "truly luscious and honey-voiced." We're thrilled that this Broadway vet will be lending her sultry soprano to such standards as "How Are Things in Glocca Morra?", "If This Isn't Love," and "Old Devil Moon."
We had a chance to sit down with Jennifer before rehearsals began to find out more about this beguiling actress and to get her thoughts on theatre, family, and the magic of wishes.
A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Jennifer Hope Wills was born into a theatrical family. She made her stage debut before her first birthday and by the age of two, her parents relocated the family to the resort town of Ocean City, Maryland to open their own theatre. For seventeen years, Jennifer worked and performed alongside her mother, father, brother and sister in the family's theatre. "It was truly a 'mom and pop' operation," Jennifer says. "My parents wrote the scripts and music, built the scenery, acted, directed, and made the costumes." When asked how this unique childhood has influenced her, Jennifer beams: "Performing alongside my family was one of the best experiences of my life and my mother and father are truly my inspiration for continuing in this crazy, unpredictable business."
With such a theatrical upbringing, it seems Jennifer was destined for a career on the stage. She attended Salisbury State University and began her college career as a History Education major but gradually gravitated to her true love: music. After performing many lead roles with her college theatre, she ended up graduating with a degree in Music Education. At the encouragement of her teachers, Jennifer attended graduate school at Indiana University and earned a master's degree in Vocal Performance. But a career on the stage was still off in the future. "My first thoughts out of school were to get away from acting to do something else more worthwhile." She began a very short career as a teacher, but by the year 2000, "the theatre was calling me back," she says. "I had one of those 'ah-ha' moments. I thought to myself if I don't go now I'll never go and the chance will pass me by." Like so many before her, Jennifer boarded a bus for New York City with two suitcases and a dream. She didn't have to wait long, however. Jennifer was cast in productions from her first two auditions in New York and by the end of her first year, she had been cast in lead roles up and down the east coast.
She has since gone on to play a variety of roles and made her Broadway debut in the ensemble of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, understudying and performing the role of 'Belle'. Most recently, Jennifer wowed audiences and critics alike playing opposite Brooke Shields in the Broadway revival of Wonderful Town. "Performing with Brooke will be one of my fondest memories ever," she says. "She is a true lady in every sense of the word. We really got along extremely well and were very comfortable with each other on stage. I think Wonderful Town was truly one of those 'once in a lifetime' moments." Indeed, Jennifer says her favorite role to date has been Eileen in Wonderful Town. "I was really able to relate to that role and to that character's experiences. I knew from the very beginning that I needed to play that role! I think it will be difficult to find another role so exactly suited to my personality and skill."
It may be difficult, but Jennifer is willing to try. "I would love to work on some new material," she says, "but I do dream of playing 'Eliza' in My Fair Lady, 'Guenevere' in Camelot, and 'Fiona' in Brigadoon, among others. I have a lot I want to accomplish!"
As the Irish lass Sharon McLonergan in Finian's Rainbow, this will be Jennifer's first time performing in Philadelphia. "I'm very excited about exploring a city with such a history," she says. Onstage at the Walnut as 'Sharon', Jennifer will get the chance of a lifetime to sing some of the musical theatre's best loved standards. "I'm very excited about singing this music. I have loved many of these songs for years." Since Finian's Rainbow has rarely been revived since its premiere in 1947, Jennifer admits that this is her first experience with the musical. "I really didn't know anything about the play before I read it. But it's a beautiful show with a beautiful message." When asked about how she thinks Philadelphia audiences will respond to the show, Jennifer predicts that Finian's Rainbow "will still hold a lot of relevance for today's audiences. The belief that dreams can come true is a wonderful thought. I hope the audience can leave understanding that what they do in life truly matters and the tiniest little things can truly mean the world to someone else and that perhaps believing in dreams coming true isn't a total waste of time."
And how about Jennifer's dreams? Just like the character she portrays onstage, Jennifer dreams of making one wish herself. "My brother Dan is currently in the army," she says. "He was supposed to get out in December but his unit just got orders for another deployment in Iraq and he has to go. My wish would be for my brother and for every other brother, father, son, sister, mother and daughter to come home safely and that there would be an end to all this useless violence in the world. I guess that's a pretty hefty wish," she opines.
Perhaps. But just as Sharon learns in Finian's Rainbow, wishes can come true.
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