For 45 years and 25 Broadway shows as a performer, choreographer, and director, Jerry Mitchell has reigned as king of the modern musical comedy. With Tony Awards for his choreography of Kinky Boots and La Cage aux Folles and six additional Tony nominations, Mitchell is a master at shaping musicals that are endlessly entertaining, beautifully acted, and packed with character-specific choreography. His latest project, the highly anticipated BOOP! The Musical, may be his most ambitious ever.
In this spectacular new show, the beloved animated character Betty Boop leaps from the black-and-white world of the 1930s to the color-saturated universe of present-day New York City. Featuring a score by legendary pop music composer/producer David Foster and Tony-nominated lyricist Susan Birkenhead (Jelly’s Last Jam) and a book by Tony winner Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone, The Prom), this irresistible musical boasts a “star is born” performance from newcomer Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty. In the enthusiastic style he describes as “full-out,” Mitchell previewed BOOP! The Musical, which opens on April 5 at the Broadhurst Theatre.
You are a specialist in joyful musicals. What drew you to direct and choreograph BOOP! The Musical?
The minute I heard David Foster’s music, I got up and started dancing. Musicals are about music, and if they don’t make me want to dance for joy, what’s the point? And David’s collaborator Susan Birkenhead is one of the greatest lyricists I’ve ever worked with; she understands what it takes to bring a new show to life. Together, they absolutely rose to the occasion and made magic. And then you’ve got Bob Martin, who is one of the funniest, smartest writers, just a master at creating the kind of humor I love, which is based on truth.
What do you love about the character of Betty Boop?
She’s strong, independent, and sexy. Betty Boop was always sexy, but she was also always a character who succeeded. I’m doing this for my nieces. I want them to see that you don’t have to give up being a woman to be independent and strong.
What kind of story did you want to tell, with Betty moving forward almost 100 years?
The one thing that was missing in her animated shorts was a love interest. Love stories are an important part of any musical, and when you live a life without love, it’s very black-and-white. So, I thought, “Oh! She’s going to search for love, and when she finds it, her world will turn to color, bringing her into 2025.”
In addition to the amazing music, BOOP! The Musical boasts eye-popping production design. Give us a preview.
Wait until you see what this team has come up with. I’ve had color in Hairspray, I’ve had color in Kinky Boots, I’ve had color in Legally Blonde, but the color in BOOP! The Musical blows all of that away. The speed with which we’re able to travel from the black-and-white world to the real world is mind-blowing. The costumes change, the walls change, the whole theatre changes! The word of mouth on this show is going to be incredible.
Let’s talk about Jasmine Amy Rogers’s charismatic performance in the title role. And it’s her Broadway debut!
Can you believe it? Jasmine is incredible. She was in the first reading of BOOP! The Musical in another role, and David [Foster] loved her voice, so we brought her in for Betty, and she absolutely owned the part. I needed someone who would speak to young girls today. I always say that a lead in a musical has to make you feel the character’s vulnerability, and Jasmine does that. Her growth as an actress has been amazing.
I love the fact that there are two generations of love stories in the show: Betty and a musician named Dwayne [played by Ainsley Melham] and Betty’s grandfather [Stephen DeRosa] and his first love [Tony Award winner Faith Prince].
Faith and I go all the way back to Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, which feels like yesterday but was 36 years ago. I have a friend who reunited on Facebook with her high school sweetheart after 40 years, and they ended up getting married. I thought that story was perfect for Faith — there is no expiration date on finding love.
Are you surprised that young audiences are interested in a classic character like Betty Boop?
Oh, we found out in [the pre-Broadway run in] Chicago that there are a lot of Betty Boop fans, and what I love is that they are girls of all different sizes and colors. Ice Spice, one of the biggest rappers in the world, saw the show in Chicago and loved it. She dressed up as Betty for Halloween! There’s a whole group of girls that age who absolutely know who Betty Boop is. What are they attracted to? Strong, independent, and sexy.
BOOP! The Musical is also the rare musical that really does appeal to all ages.
My intention was that, like Hairspray, this would be a show for the entire family. It will bring the younger generation to the theatre for the first time and make them fall in love with it, and it will bring the older generation back, who’ll say, “See? This is a Broadway musical!” And will bring everybody else who is looking for love and happiness.
What is your happiest memory in the theater?
Oh god, I have so many. But as I think about Jasmine making her Broadway debut in BOOP! The Musical, I Iook back to 1980, when I stepped on a Broadway stage for the first time in Brigadoon, next door at the Majestic Theatre. I remember tears running down my cheeks as I entered stage right, singing, “Come ye to the fair.” Jasmine and Ainsley are both very young, but they’re handling everything with so much class. When the people at the top lead with grace, it makes for a wonderful place to go to work.
You’ve collaborated with some of Broadway’s greatest choreographers and directors, including Jerome Robbins, Agnes de Mille, Tommy Tune, and Michael Bennett. What did you learn from them?
Tell the story. Choreography has to move the story forward. Tell the story. Also, Michael Bennett always said to me, “You’ve got to leave the audience with hope.” No matter what you choose to do during the show, leave them with hope. I’ve never forgotten that.
BOOP! The Musical is the ultimate hopeful, feel-good show, and that’s what audiences are craving.
Yes! I do not want to go to the theatre and feel bogged down right now. I want to walk into the theatre and be lifted, but I want to sing and dance my way out. This show is a joy machine full of love.