Every actor tackles every role differently, but for Jeremy Jordan, the secret to Jay Gatsby is in his hands.
"I don't really have any pockets, so I have to figure out what to do with my hands," Jordan joked on Live with Kelly and Mark during his March 21 appearance, detailing his preparation process for The Great Gatsby on Broadway. "It's the voice and the body that I have to latch on to. Gatsby has proper posture, he has his hands..." Jordan pulls his hands to his chest as if tucked into a smoking jacket "...here all the time, and he has a high-falutin, New-Englandy accent to him. You say 'Old Sport' a few times, and it just comes together."
Jordan is set to return to Broadway as the literary icon next month when The Great Gatsby officially opens April 25 at the Broadway Theatre.
"It's like halfway to Jimmy Stewart, but a little bit more refined," Jordan explained of the enigmatic accent as host Mark Consuelos tried his hand at replicating it as co-host Kelly Ripa watched on.
Led by Jordan (Newsies, Smash) as Jay Gatsby and Tony nominee Eva Noblezada (Hadestown, Miss Saigon) as Daisy Buchanan, the production also stars Noah J. Ricketts (Frozen) as Nick Carraway, Samantha Pauly (Six) as Jordan Baker, Sara Chase (The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) as Myrtle Wilson, John Zdrojeski (Good Night Oscar) as Tom Buchanan, Paul Whitty (Come From Away, Once) as George Wilson, and Eric Anderson (Moulin Rouge! The Musical) as Wolfsheim.
The ensemble includes Raymond Edward Baynard (MJ: the Musical), Austin Colby (Frozen), Curtis Holland (Mean Girls), Traci Elaine Lee (Shucked), Dariana Mullen (The Great Gatsby at Paper Mill), Ryah Nixon (Boop! The Musical), Pascal Pastrana (A Beautiful Noise), Kayla Pecchioni (Paradise Square), Mariah Reshea Reives (Funny Girl), Dan Rosales (Trevor: The Musical), Dave Schoonover (Bad Cinderella), Derek Jordan Taylor (Funny Girl), Tanairi Sade Vazquez (On Your Feet!), and Katie Webber (Rock of Ages).
Rounding out the company are swings Kurt Csolak (Funny Girl), Carissa Gaughran (Pretty Woman), Samantha Pollino (Sweeney Todd), Alex Prakken (New York, New York), Jake Trammel (The Great Gatsby at Paper Mill), and Jasmine Pearl Villaroel (After Midnight).
Video: Why The Great Gatsby at Paper Mill Playhouse Is One Big 'Crazy' Party
The Great Gatsby features music and lyrics by Tony nominees Nathan Tysen (Paradise Square) and Jason Howland (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical) and a book by Jonathan Larson Grant winner Kait Kerrigan (The Mad Ones). Marc Bruni (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical) again directs with choreography by Dominique Kelley (Mariah’s Magical Christmas Special).
Set in the Roaring '20s, the musical follows eccentric millionaire Jay Gatsby, who will stop at nothing in his tragic pursuit of Daisy Buchanan, a wealthy young woman whom he loved in his youth. To make such a classic story fresh for the stage, Kerrigan previously said she wanted to take a closer look at the female characters.
Video: Watch Jeremy Jordan and Eva Noblezada in a New Medley Music Video From The Great Gatsby
The Broadway premiere will also feature scenic and projection design by Paul Tate de Poo III, costume design by Tony winner Linda Cho, lighting design by Cory Pattak, sound design by Tony winner Brian Ronan, hair and wig design by Drama Desk winner Charles G. LaPointe and Rachael Geier, arrangements by Jason Howland, orchestrations by Howland and Kim Scharnberg, and musical direction by Daniel Edmonds. The music producer is Grammy winner Billy Jay Stein for Strike Audio.
Casting is by C12 Casting, and the production stage manager is Brian Bogin. Mark Shacket of Foresight Theatrical serves as executive producer. The lead producer is Chunsoo Shin, a prominent figure of Korean theatre.
Read reviews for the Paper Mill world premiere here.
Tickets are now on sale at Telecharge.com.
