Paul Capsis Is La Cage Aux Folles
Image: Paul Capsis as Albin/ Zaza (right) and Michael Cormick as Georges in the new Australian production of 'La Cage aux Folles'. Image: Supplied
Speaking to Paul Capsis on the phone is a thrill, not least because he is an Australian entertainment legend but also because, as someone with an interest in the craft of performance, it’s like getting a private masterclass for one – luckily I took notes!
We caught up because Capsis is again starring as Albin in the follow-up season of ‘La Cage aux Folles’, this time playing at the “glamorous” State Theatre in April, with an eclectic cast made up of industry veterans and exciting newcomers to the industry, including director Riley Spadaro.
Capsis talked about the production’s last-minute Covid postponement last year and how they lucked into working with Spadaro, “Our previous director wasn’t able to work with us on the new dates and I remember the producer ringing me and asking if there was anyone that I knew of and I said that I don’t know him and I’ve never worked with him but it’s one of the best things I’ve seen – it’s called ‘The Italians’ and whoever this young guy is, is amazing! And to my amazement the producer called him, they had a meeting and BANG, there we were – working with this fabulous new director!”
‘Musical Theatre Requires You To Be An Actor’
It was intriguing to hear that Capsis doesn’t necessarily think of himself as a musical theatre performer, preferring to be open to all areas of performance, “David Hawkins (producer of La Cage) gave me the opportunity to play the role of my career which was the Emcee in Cabaret, it was the role of my life and Albin comes very close to that for me.
“Funnily enough I never saw myself playing that role but then, when they asked I was like, ‘really? Oh ok’ and well, you know, I love it! Because musical theatre, I wouldn’t call that my area, you know, my area’s theatre and then it’s cabaret because musical theatre is like a whole other world.
“Musical theatre requires you to be an actor and also should require of you that you have some skills, as in a commitment to eight shows a week and the difficulty of that commitment and the work that’s involved, it’s really hard! Occasionally it’s glamorous, very occasionally, but the reward is your audience and knowing you did a good show but I don’t ever take it for granted.”
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES, plays at the State Theatre Sydney from April 19, tickets from $49!
