Marisha Wallace may have begun her career on Broadway, but it wasn't until she moved to London that she became a star. Whereas on Broadway, she played side characters in Aladdin and Something Rotten!, in the West End, she received acclaim for playing Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, Ado Annie in Oklahoma!, Effie White in Dreamgirls, and Sally Bowles in Cabaret.
So in this return to Broadway in Cabaret, Wallace is eager to show off what she's truly capable of to her hometown audience. “I have been doing some amazing work so I feel like I’m coming home being like, ‘Here’s what I’ve done. Here’s my final exam. Here’s my homework,'" she says eagerly. "It’s been so great to come back to Broadway in my full power, after this amazing ride that I had in London.”
Wallace is currently starring in Cabaret on Broadway as Sally Bowles, opposite Tony Award winner Billy Porter as the Emcee, through October 19, the revival's final bow. See the two of them speak to Playbill's Jeffrey Vizcaíno in the video above.
Porter and Wallace's performances are notable because they are the rare Black performers who have landed the roles. Almost 30 years ago, Porter even auditioned for a previous Cabaret production and was denied because of his race. He sees his casting as a reflection of how far the industry has come.
“This literally was not possible 30 years ago for me, and it now is," says Porter, while emphasizing it's not just important for the culture, but for the generation of Black artists coming up. "It does crack open young people’s minds, it does help people to see beyond other people’s limitations of them. These are human beings, these are human stories. And anybody who is human can tell them.”
Adds Wallace: “It takes seeing yourself. Seeing someone who looks like you. Seeing someone who comes from where you come from, it makes it feel possible. And when you have one of the most iconic shows in the world, 'Yes we see you. Yes you’re valid. Yes you can be curvy and be Sally, you can be Black and be Sally….that sends a message for everyone.”
Porter finishes her thought: “We are worthy. We’re all worthy just as we are.”
Marisha Wallace in Cabaret
Billy Porter in Cabaret
Billy Porter in Cabaret
Marisha Wallace in Cabaret
