Six-time Emmy-nominated actor Tituss Burgess is set to don Mary Todd Lincoln’s curls once again since his limited engagement run, which ended on April 6, in Cole Escola’s Tony-winning farce, Oh, Mary! , beginning June 23. Burgess returns to the show, taking on the frustrated former First Lady hell-bent on performing her cabaret act — at any cost. Entertainment journalist for Spectrum News NY1 Frank DiLella caught up with Burgess to talk about reuniting with Mary Todd, his cabaret idols, and how he’s celebrating Pride this year.
How do you feel returning to this hilarious, celebrated play?
The first go-around, I was mortified. When you see a supernova like Cole Escola so effortlessly playing such a complex and funny character at lightning speed, trying to find an entry point for myself didn’t seem possible. In fact, the first time I saw it, I had no idea they wanted me to replace them. And then when I saw it a second time, I tried to separate their performance from the role to see if I thought it was something I could do or portray — and honestly, I still couldn’t. But when I got the script and read the script in the comfort of my own home, there was much about Mary Todd that I thought I could bring some truth to. By the time I got to the stage and it was time to present it to an audience, I couldn’t believe I got so lucky. Going back into the show, there’s a certain comfort I find in it now. I’m not so nervous about remembering all the lines and remembering all the blocking. I can now just live inside her.
What’s your process as you reconnect with Mary Todd? Do you go over the script every single day to make sure you still have the show memorized?
It’s so funny you ask that. It’s been about two months now since I ended my last run, and I only ran the lines a few days ago with one of the stage managers. And I thought, “Am I going to remember this?” And it was still in my body! It’s like an opera: Once you know a role, you know it.
Cole told me their Mary Todd was partly inspired by Miss Piggy. Who inspired your take on Mary Todd Lincoln?
[Laughs.] That’s funny! Frank, I don’t know if I thought about this. I’ll go on record and say something that’s bold: I think Mary Todd from here on out should be played by Black men. What Mary Todd has to undergo — the sheer brutality and severity of a governing body telling when you can do anything — is something we as people of color in particular fight against and had to endure for years. And while the role can easily be played by several different walks of life, to me, there’s something poignant about a Black man playing such an iconic role with the backdrop of our current administration and our desire for humane efforts to be put in place. There’s some poetry there; I’m walking politics on stage.
The physical comedy for this play is intense. What are you doing physically to keep up with this role?
This morning, I woke up early and I needed to desperately clean my home. I have three floors, and I found myself winded going up and down the stairs — and I was panick-stricken. I thought, “OH GOD! WHAT AM I NOT DOING?” I think what makes part of my physical comedy so funny and relatable is a couple of things. When I first went into it, I didn’t realize how much energy it was going to take to do the show eight times a week. Cole made it look so easy — of course, they’re so tiny. And then when I put on the big hoop skirt, I thought this is like the Olympics. And when I am winded on stage, I’m winded in real life. It plays into the humor. You can equate the windedness and the fatigue and the exhaustion to what life brings. There’s something delicious about how Mary Todd carries herself and how she responds to the world with such brute force. She has nothing to lose.
Mary Todd loves cabaret. Who are your cabaret idols?
Nancy LaMott. And she would gawk if I called her “cabaret” — but she’s so grand and it’s hard to make such grand gestures honest — but Dame Shirley Bassey. In her approach to storytelling and music. And man, if living out loud were a person, her face and voice should be next to it.
You were recently an answer on Jeopardy! What was that like for you?
I never think of myself as famous or as a celebrity. So, the fact that I have done something to be a question on a show that’s so iconic and part of the fabric of American entertainment, I couldn’t believe it. “Lil’ ol’ me?” [Laughs.] And I do really mean that. I still don’t know how to respond to that. I was flattered.
What’s happening with the musical you wrote and premiered last year in Atlanta, The Preacher’s Wife?
We’re hard at work at figuring out what the next steps are and are optimistic about a commercial transfer within a year’s time.
June marks Pride month. How are you celebrating Pride this year?
I’ve embarked on a recent love affair with myself and my maker that I thought I housed and knew and had experienced. But the truth is, there has been some woodshedding that I was ambushed into doing that felt horribly uncomfortable, that now on this side of it, it brings me to my knees, and “thank you” isn’t quite sufficient to describe how intoxicating I find my spirt and my soul and my voice. I always thought there was something missing and I thought it was external. I thought it was a man, a job, me making peace with how I was raised — but what was missing was me. I feel so full, and I want for nothing. And that rainbow has many different hues and I wear them without even trying. So that’s how I’m celebrating Pride this year.