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The Theatre Podcast with Alan Seales - Ep102 - James Harkness: Ain't Too Proud, Beautiful, The Color Purple, and Navy veteran!

Ep102 - James Harkness: Ain't Too Proud, Beautiful, The Color Purple, and Navy veteran!

08/04/20 • 76 min

The Theatre Podcast with Alan Seales

James Harkness is a Broadway veteran, as well as a best director nominee, and award winning choreographer, and a songwriter. He made his Broadway debut in AIDA in 2001, and has been on a roll ever since. He is currently starring as Paul Williams in Ain’t Too Proud - The Life And Times Of The Temptations, and previously could be seen in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. Other Broadway credits include Chicago and The Color Purple, as well as the Dreamgirls national tour. In 2017, James wrote and performed his debut show, Fragments of Me, at the Metropolitan Room in New York. And on August 4th, he can be seen online performing more of his original work through the Times Square Alliance Broadway Busker’s Concert series.

Originally from El Paso, Texas, James grew up constantly bouncing around and jumping “off all the things” - including the roof of his single-story childhood home. He recalls his mother always singing and dancing around the house, and is sure he learned to move by watching her. But it wasn’t until high school that he encountered structured dance classes, which changed his life. He had found a place that made him “100% happy”. After graduation, James joined the Navy and was stationed in San Diego, and it was there that dance came back to him. Throughout his career in the Navy, James would spend his days working on a ship, and then attend dance classes in the evening. When he left the military behind, James started going on regular job interviews. He signed up with a temp agency, and got an office job. But, he also continued going on dance auditions.

James shares with us how a one-off audition for Whitney Houston’s concert tour led to him signing with an agent, auditioning for Debbie Allen, and finally meeting Kenny Ortega at an audition to dance for Michael Jackson on tour. While he didn’t tour with Michael Jackson, James would spend two and half years on tour dancing for Puerto Rican Latin pop singer Chayanne. And after continuing to pursue a career as a commercial dancer in LA, he was pulled to Las Vegas by work and friends. It was in Las Vegas he would book his first job singing and dancing as the lead in a show - “one of the best things that has ever happened” to him. And a little while later, when Broadway came calling - it called twice. James simultaneously booked Saturday Night Fever and AIDA, all without an agent. And he has been gracing stages in New York City ever since.

In this episode, we talk about:

  • The nickname his AIDA cast mates gave to him
  • How he came to find dance again when stationed in San Diego
  • The Whitney Houston concert tour gig he was offered, but couldn’t take
  • Shaking Debbie Allen’s hand
  • What a typical audition day looked like for him between LA and San Diego
  • The theater experience that convinced him to move to Las Vegas
  • The honor and responsibility he feels in portraying Paul Williams in Ain’t Too Proud

Connect with James:

Connect with The Theatre Podcast:

A very special thanks to our patrons who help make this podcast possible!

Cheryl Hodges-Selden, Paul Seales, David Seales

If you would like to see your name in this show notes or get a shout out on the pod itself, visit ttp.fm/patreon to become a member and show your support!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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James Harkness is a Broadway veteran, as well as a best director nominee, and award winning choreographer, and a songwriter. He made his Broadway debut in AIDA in 2001, and has been on a roll ever since. He is currently starring as Paul Williams in Ain’t Too Proud - The Life And Times Of The Temptations, and previously could be seen in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. Other Broadway credits include Chicago and The Color Purple, as well as the Dreamgirls national tour. In 2017, James wrote and performed his debut show, Fragments of Me, at the Metropolitan Room in New York. And on August 4th, he can be seen online performing more of his original work through the Times Square Alliance Broadway Busker’s Concert series.

Originally from El Paso, Texas, James grew up constantly bouncing around and jumping “off all the things” - including the roof of his single-story childhood home. He recalls his mother always singing and dancing around the house, and is sure he learned to move by watching her. But it wasn’t until high school that he encountered structured dance classes, which changed his life. He had found a place that made him “100% happy”. After graduation, James joined the Navy and was stationed in San Diego, and it was there that dance came back to him. Throughout his career in the Navy, James would spend his days working on a ship, and then attend dance classes in the evening. When he left the military behind, James started going on regular job interviews. He signed up with a temp agency, and got an office job. But, he also continued going on dance auditions.

James shares with us how a one-off audition for Whitney Houston’s concert tour led to him signing with an agent, auditioning for Debbie Allen, and finally meeting Kenny Ortega at an audition to dance for Michael Jackson on tour. While he didn’t tour with Michael Jackson, James would spend two and half years on tour dancing for Puerto Rican Latin pop singer Chayanne. And after continuing to pursue a career as a commercial dancer in LA, he was pulled to Las Vegas by work and friends. It was in Las Vegas he would book his first job singing and dancing as the lead in a show - “one of the best things that has ever happened” to him. And a little while later, when Broadway came calling - it called twice. James simultaneously booked Saturday Night Fever and AIDA, all without an agent. And he has been gracing stages in New York City ever since.

In this episode, we talk about:

  • The nickname his AIDA cast mates gave to him
  • How he came to find dance again when stationed in San Diego
  • The Whitney Houston concert tour gig he was offered, but couldn’t take
  • Shaking Debbie Allen’s hand
  • What a typical audition day looked like for him between LA and San Diego
  • The theater experience that convinced him to move to Las Vegas
  • The honor and responsibility he feels in portraying Paul Williams in Ain’t Too Proud

Connect with James:

Connect with The Theatre Podcast:

A very special thanks to our patrons who help make this podcast possible!

Cheryl Hodges-Selden, Paul Seales, David Seales

If you would like to see your name in this show notes or get a shout out on the pod itself, visit ttp.fm/patreon to become a member and show your support!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Previous Episode

undefined - Ep101 - Lisa Goldberg: Ballet Dancer Turned Press Agent for the Stars

Ep101 - Lisa Goldberg: Ballet Dancer Turned Press Agent for the Stars

Lisa Goldberg is the founder and owner of LSG Public Relations in New York, Los Angeles and London. She represents talent and creatives all across the board in film, television, theater and music, as well as in charity work, at bars and for red carpet events. Her clients have been nominated and won Emmy’s, Golden Globes, SAG Awards, Grammy’s, Independent Spirit Awards and Tony Awards, and participated in campaigns for multiple Oscar nominated films.

Lisa maintained a successful career in the theater for a while, but then she suddenly started getting sick. After struggling with an autoimmune disorder which made her unable to perform, she had to move back home with her parents in South Carolina for a few years to seek treatment. But New York City was still calling her name, and once she was in remission, she packed her bags, went back, and “had to figure out what she wanted to be when she grew up.” Lisa shares how a chance offer to do in house PR for one restaurant eventually turned into two restaurants, which turned into phone calls with George Clooney’s publicist. A publicist who would later become her mentor, and recommend she start her own firm. So she did, and continues to work successfully almost 14 years later.

In this episode, we talk about:

  • When her parents had to convince her to go to college, rather than NYC right out of high school
  • The curve ball her autoimmune disorder threw at her
  • Chasing down George Clooney’s publicist after beginning PR work for a restaurant
  • How she made connections and gained clients early on in her PR career
  • How her experience as a publicist has changed amidst COVID-19
  • Losing client and friend Nick Cordero to COVID-19
  • Why she enjoys and continues working for herself, rather than joining a larger firm

Connect with Lisa:

Connect with The Theatre Podcast:

A very special thanks to our patrons who help make this podcast possible!

Cheryl Hodges-Selden, Paul Seales, David Seales

If you would like to see your name in this show notes or get a shout out on the pod itself, visit ttp.fm/patreon to become a member and show your support!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Next Episode

undefined - Ep103 - Rachel Potter: The Addams Family, Evita, Wicked tour & Nashville indie artist

Ep103 - Rachel Potter: The Addams Family, Evita, Wicked tour & Nashville indie artist

Rachel Potter is not only a Broadway veteran, she is also an accomplished Nashville recording artist. She made her Broadway debut in 2010 as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family, and originated the role of the Mistress in the 2012 Tony Nominated revival of Evita, starring Ricky Martin and Michael Cerveris. Rachel has also toured with the smash hit, Wicked, where she understudied Glinda. Rachel’s television appearances include MTV’s Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods, where she placed in the top 15, and season 3 of FOX’s The X Factor as a Top 12 finalist. Rachel has been a guest soloist with many symphony orchestras, and enjoys a fruitful solo career, having released 2 solo albums and multiple singles. Recently, she released a new EP as Rachel Potter & Steel Union, a fresh country trio, made up of herself, Josh Matheny and Donny Fallgatter. And she can now be seen virtually as part of the Times Square Alliance Broadway Busker’s Concert series.

Rachel shares with us her experiences flying back and forth from Orlando to New York CIty to attend EPA’s and ECC’s after graduating college. She recounts meeting Pat Goodwin at an open call for Leap of Faith, which led to Bernard Tesley helping her get an audition for MTV’s Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods. She shares how finding her voice while singing in a wedding band helped sustain her until the audition that would lead to her booking the National Tour of Wicked. It was on this tour that she received the call to audition for Wednesday Addams, the role that would mark her Broadway debut in The Addams Family. And all the while, Rachel continued to write and explore her love of country music. A love which would eventually land her in Nashville, where she would successfully record 2 solo albums and multiple singles.

In this episode, we talk about:

  • The first album she recorded when she was 15
  • Growing up in the Baptist Church, and the events that lead to her leaving
  • How working for Disney opened her eyes
  • Discovering her voice while singing in a wedding band
  • The Glinda audition which booked her the job
  • Driving to the airport in a blizzard to get to her The Addams Family audition
  • The pull she felt to move to Nashville
  • The X-Factor experience she still recalls as traumatic

Connect with Rachel:

Connect with The Theatre Podcast:

A very special thanks to our patrons who help make this podcast possible!

Cheryl Hodges-Selden, Paul Seales, David Seales

If you would like to see your name in this show notes or get a shout out on the pod itself, visit ttp.fm/patreon to become a member and show your support!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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