Getting In Character with Theatre MAMA in Times Square

Neon lights, mile-wide billboards, and monster screens are not the only things that make Times Square a wonderland. On the ground – far below the hi-tech spectacles, and scattered throughout the hoards who visit the theater district each day – are live actors performing for the crowds.

Dressed in striking costumes as characters from some of the most popular shows on Broadway, these animated street performers attract the attention of flocks of wandering visitors. Their draw? Live human energy. Zoned-out tourists, ambling with their eyes to the sky and jaws dropped, snap back to street level as a grinning Chicago chorus girl slinks past with Fosse flare. A family bustling past with rolling suitcases slows to share a tickled laugh with a stewardess from Catch Me If You Can as she offers the local time. John Lennon of the Beatles tribute musical Rain waves good morning to a bike messenger, and a 1950s sock-hopper skips down the sidewalk singing "Baby, It’s You."

They are all part of a street team employed by a creative promotional company called Theatre MAMA, and their mission is to distribute free discount ticket vouchers (up to 50 percent off) to several Broadway shows, while providing an impromptu, up-close preview of what it feels like to be in the audience.

Whereas so many Broadway shows are advertised in 360 degrees on big screens mounted high above the cacophonous Times Square area, this wacky welcoming committee brings theater back down to the "groundlings," out of the playhouses and onto the street, with all the magic of live theater.

Theatre MAMA hires actors and performers with a good deal of experience, a great passion and respect for the theater, and most importantly, the courage to get out on the street and improvise short performances in front of thousands of strangers. Team director Myrfy Stevens explains that the ultimate goal of the Theatre MAMA actor is "to be a character in Times Square that gives a feeling for the show, enriches the environment of Times Square, and warms people’s hearts."

An audition monologue is required during the interview process, and acting experience is a must. For the actors hired to play the parts, it can be daunting at first to perform for the more than one million people who travel through Times Square each day, but it is also an amazing opportunity.

I know this because I currently work for Theatre MAMA three days a week, dancing, singing, and handing out discounts to passersby between 44th and 47th streets in my Catch Me If You Can flight attendant duds. When I am on the job (usually from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.), I get to spend the hours doing what I love to do -- working on the craft of acting in front of a live audience. On the street, you learn to adapt quickly to the constantly changing sea of faces. The entire experience is training: challenging your improv skills, character work, dancing, and of course, street smarts.

The gig offers performers a chance to hone their acting skills at their day job, and it also means getting to perform in Times Square (not quite what they mean by "on Broadway," but literally on Broadway). And it is a chance to become a part of the Big Apple in a way that is rewarding and exciting. As my co-worker Jack Hollingsworth (more recognizable as John Lennon of The Beatles from Rain) pointed out to me on my first day, "Suddenly -- and you’ll never believe this -- you love the tourists. You love the hot dogs and the food carts and the roller suitcases in your way. It’s the culture of Times Square, and you’ve become part of it."

For the visitor to Times Square, Theatre MAMA provides a rich cultural experience and a spirit of history. Broadway lives up to its reputation as a place with magic in the air, filled with dancing showgirls, friendly faces, and a sense that you have entered into a community that welcomes you to join in.

Otto Timm, a Texas native visiting Times Square, was charmed by the Chicago showgirls when they broke into a choreographed dance routine as he passed through the square. He stopped to watch. "You don’t see them break character," he said. "You forget they’re not on stage, and you forget you’re standing in the street."

This has been the goal of Theatre MAMA since the company began. When Michelin Hall and Timothy Wooster, the owners of the company and theater enthusiasts, graduated from UVA just over a decade ago, they were dismayed by what they perceived as the weakness of the theater industry and the general public’s declining interest in the theater. Convinced that the theater was not dead, they founded Theatre MAMA. Hall and Wooster specialized in offering a creative and competitive approach to promoting shows, making the pitch more exciting by using great talent, full costumes, high energy, and live performance. After moving their headquarters to New York, producers of many Broadway shows started to catch on, many of whom hired MAMA to promote their shows.

Some of the Broadway musicals that Theatre MAMA currently promotes are Chicago; Baby, It’s You; Priscilla Queen of the Desert; Rain; Catch Me If You Can; Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark; and Sister Act; the company also worked with the recent Broadway production of La Cage Aux Folles, before it closed earlier this year. Hall and Wooster are working to add more shows to the roster, as well.

So when you get to Times Square, before heading to TKTS, look out for the bright costumes and smiling faces of the Theatre MAMA street team. You can ask for a little guidance if you’re lost, talk to a character about his or her favorite show on Broadway, or just hang around for a bit and enjoy the show!

For more info, "like" Theatre MAMA on Facebook or visit TheatreMAMA.com.

-- Noni Culotta

Comments

[Richard Wooster]

Awesome! Please keep me posted on upcoming events.

[RandyM]

Those 2 ladies in the video are FANTASTIC!!!!!!!