Spamilton: An American Parody, tells the story of how Lin-Manuel Miranda decides to save Broadway theater by coming up with a new form of musical theater.
The spoof by Tony Award-winner Gerard Alessandrini (Forbidden Broadway), uses the characters of Hamilton to take apart any number of Broadway’s treasured tropes and musical stylings. The production, now on stage at Stages at The Gordy, has been so successful its run has been extended through July 5.
Mariah Baillie (Mud Row at Stages) plays the Hamilton part of Angelica as well as other characters who pop in and out of the parody of well known musical theater productions. Asked to describe Angelica she says: “Complex, caricature, high energy.”
“In the beginning I thought it was more so making fun of Hamilton before I sat down and read it and started to rehearse it.” But as she talked with co-directors Valerie Rachelle and Stages Artistic Director Derek Charles Livingston, she says she realized, “It was more so like a love letter to him and Broadway.”
“We know [Broadway] is always going to be around. Because of these brilliant shows, especially Hamilton, it’s so important because it opened up the doors for POC actors to come in and play all these white characters. It really broke down a lot of barriers.”
Which doesn’t mean it isn’t funny, she says. “I think that’s the beauty of it. We kind of know where the heart is. The audience and even the actors can feel like we can make fun but it’s all within love and nothing of malice.”
Speaking of the source material, Baillie says: “I think it connected because it was just so different. It happened 10 years ago. Things that were on Broadway were revivals or your box standard shows that we’re always used to seeing like Chicago and Phantom, so when Hamilton came out it was such a 180. It really resonated not only with people who love musical thethought ‘Oh, this ater, but it also brought younger audiences in.”
Asked why she wanted to be in this show, Baillie says she had always wanted to be in Hamilton and when she lived in London she auditioned (unsuccessfully) for a part there. “But when I saw that Derick was putting on this production of Spamilton I thought ‘Whoa , that’s as close as I may be getting,’” she says laughing. “When I listened to the soundtrack I thought ‘What did I get myself into?’”
As a sort of dessert, the two-act Spamilton is followed up by 21 Chump Street, a little known short (14 minutes) by Miranda, based on the real life story of a Florida teen who in order to impress a girl, secured some marijuana for her and ended up busted and with a felony conviction. Turns out the “girl” was an undercover cop.
Baillie grew up in Houston and went to Houston City College for an associate’s degree before going on to University of Houston-Downtown. It was while she was at HCC that she was first introduced to musical theater in Ain’t Misbehavin’. She took a long break from acting before getting into film and TV and then back to theater.
This is her first musical theater role in about 10 years, she says.
Asked what she likes best about being in Spamilton, Baillie has a ready answer. “The challenge,. There’s so many roles and trying to do every character justice. Conveying a story through song is really very hard to do. Vocally challenging myself for this role is a really big task. It’s been fun.
Her main character is Renee Elise [Goldsberry] and she is Angelica in Hamilton. “I’m Renee Elise. And then I’m Bernadette Peters for a little bit and then I go into Eliza and then I go into Liza Minnelli, Barbra Streisand, and I’m Elphaba for a little bit and a cat. I feel like I’m forgetting somebody but those are the key ones off the top of my head.”
“I think when you come to the show you should expect to laugh and cheer and possibly cry. There’s never a dull moment in the show. You’re just going to leave smiling.
‘Performances continue through July 3 at 7 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays at Stages at The Gordy, 800 Rosine. For more information, call 713-527-0123 or visit stageshouston.com. $25-$79.
