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[0:11] Martín Acuña: Hi everyone, I am Martín Acuña and you are listening to Backstage Talk.

[0:16] Martín Acuña: Jonathan Larson asked how can you make someone take off and fly in one of his songs from Tick Tick Boom, and I, for the past two years, have learned one way to through the power of community. Welcome to the Latinx in Musical Theater Special for a Season 3 of Backstage Talk, where we will be featuring artists from across all positions in musical theater, from several Latin American countries and different Latin heritages. I am proud to showcase my Latinx family. I hope you enjoy.

[0:51] Martín Acuña: Hello everyone, welcome back to another episode of Backstage Talk. Today's guest is Felipe Sánchez. He is a Colombian actor and musical theater director born in Bogotá. With more than 30 years of experience in having studied in Bogotá, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and New York City, he is the co-founder of One Stage Producciones, a musical theater and entertainment production company located in Medellín, another Colombian city, where he currently is producing The Little Prince the musical, an adaptation with Broadway's Full Force using Colombian talent to his favor. Felipe, I am honored to have you over. I have seen you on stage a couple times and I admire you a lot, so thank you for being here on Backstage Talk.

[1:42] Felipe Sánchez: Hi Martin, thank you for having me here and well, let's begin.

[1:49] Martín Acuña: Yeah, let's do it. So, first thing I want to ask you is, what made you choose the thespian path in life? What made you choose to be an artist?

[1:58] Felipe Sánchez: Well, I believe that I didn't choose this path, but this path chose me. I don't know, since I was very young, I always expressed myself through art and well, I created small plays and performed to my family when I was like only three years old and I sang all the time and well, no other way of expression filled me as much as theater did. So, I think it was very clear to me from a very young age.

[2:35] Martín Acuña: I love it. So, tell us a little bit about your journey in musical theater. How did you start performing and studying musical theater all the way to bringing your production company to life?

[2:48] Felipe Sánchez: Oh, well, as I said before, since I was like three years old, art was my way of expressing. I was a very hyperactive child and my mother discovered this place called Missy, where children just met to sing and dance and do musical theater plays. From the day one, I entered that place and I never left. Musical theater just like became my life. So, everything I am, I owe to musical theater. I have had the opportunity to perform on the most important stages in the country and in the world and I have been able to meet very important people in the industry who have given me the opportunity to learn everything I know. Also, in education area, musical theater has also taught me that it is a very important tool to change lives. It changes lives, it changes social behaviors, it teaches you to work as a team, to achieve projects. Well, my journey in musical theater has been the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me. So, it has made me who I am today.

[4:12] Martín Acuña: I love it, I love it. So, you not only perform, but you also direct and teach musical theater. So, I want to know what's your approach to directing and performing in musical theater? Where do you start?

[4:27] Felipe Sánchez: I think it's heart, heart, you know? The heart you give. I think that when you work as a professional actor and director, you take for granted that talent comes in addition, but finding the heart is really difficult. I generally try to be in productions where the cast is full of passion and love for what they do and my actors, and with my actors, I look like I'm exactly the same thing. I look for exactly the same thing. There is nothing more difficult than working on a production where there is only an environment of egos and bad vibes. So, yes, giving positivism, always having a good work, good disposition, and most of all, always listening to your actors is the best way to have an excellent show. So, I think that's always my first approach.

[5:32] Martín Acuña: What advice would you give a younger version of yourself?

[5:35] Felipe Sánchez: Well, I think that don't listen so much to what people think, don't stop doing things for what they will say, and never stop dreaming. And don't complain so much.

[5:51] Martín Acuña: Yeah, we can sometimes complain a lot as artists.

[5:57] Felipe Sánchez: So, yeah. So, you've had the chance to perform internationally. You performed at the Lincoln Center. You've performed in several stages in Argentina. So, you've had the chance to see how the industry works outside of Colombia. And also, you've performed in the most respected and known venues of the country. I want to know for you, what is visibility and representation for Latins in musical theater?

[6:25] Felipe Sánchez: Well, I think that musical theater for Latinos is growing a lot in Latin America. There are more and more schools and production companies that want to do musical theater. I think that is thanks to the legacy that people like Lin-Manuel Miranda have begun to build in the United States. But now, I think that this comes with a problem, in my opinion, because people have begun to notice musical theater more, but they don't really know everything that this brings up with it, behind it. Like the language, the education that you must have to do it. People think that musical theater is just like sing songs and do some dances and say lines and that's it. But that's a mistake because you have to study, you have to investigate, you have to surround yourself with people who know how to generate a quality in this industry. This is happening a lot, but little by little, this will change. And surely, soon the industry will be bigger and better. That's the most important thing.

[7:42] Martín Acuña: So how do you think we can increase Latin visibility and representation on Broadway?

[7:48] Felipe Sánchez: On Broadway? Well, this question is a very important question to me because we always talk about getting to Broadway, you know? That's like everyone's dream. Everyone who is in this industry dream. And I don't know, that's everyone's dream and to be on Broadway, on stage, on Broadway. And we think that is the only way or that's when we say that we're finally doing musical theater. I don't know if you understand what I'm saying. My opinion is that we should stop thinking like that because if that's the ideal at the end of the day, this will be very frustrating. First of all, to be on Broadway, you don't only have to be very talented, but also you have to have a number of conditions that just starting being from another country, you're going to have a very difficult time.

So second of all, if we think that Broadway or the West End or I don't know, yeah. Those kind of places. Exactly. Is the goal. Well, culture in our countries will never progress because first of all, we think that what is done here is not as good as what is done on Broadway. And second of all, if we all think in going out, going to Broadway, well, we'll never have quality shows in our country. So maybe my dream is that in the future, we don't have to travel to Broadway to do or see good musical theater shows. Imagine that each country had its own Broadway. Yeah. That would be so great. So yeah. But anyway, in the United States, Latinos are right now having more opportunities than before. That's for sure. And now many Latino names are in shows and they are getting more and more. Yeah. They are getting more and more important right now.

[9:49] Martín Acuña: I love it. And I agree with you. So as a director, as a creator, as an overall artist, what do you think is the most important part of creating Latin characters in musical theater?

[10:03] Felipe Sánchez: Well, I think this is very good, since by creating Latino characters, you are making our own culture known to the world. Our way of seeing the world, maybe removing the stigma and that image that has been created for us. And I also believe that this gives the opportunity to create new formats in the theater and gives an evolution to the musical theater style as well.

[10:34] Martín Acuña: I totally agree with you. I know that, as you said before, theater is a tool for social and behavioral change. And it's super important that we as a Latin community are getting more spaces to create and put our stories on stage specifically to change that image. And specifically a country like Colombia has gotten outside through everything that has happened in our country. Felipe, if someone wants to contact you, to work with you, to maybe study with you, where can they find you? How do you appear on social media and all of that?

[11:12] Felipe Sánchez: Well, my Instagram is FelipeSanchezTH, as in theater. And you can find me there. Yeah, you can write whatever you want.

[11:25] Martín Acuña: Awesome. And last question before we wrap up, which are your top five favorite musical theater shows?

[11:32] Felipe Sánchez: Oh, you can't be doing this question to me. That's a very, very difficult question. Oh, well, I have like a hundred. Yeah, like a hundred favorite shows. But let's see. Okay, let's say this is in random order. So I'm gonna say the shows where I maybe have had like the best experience being there, you know? So maybe this is Rent, Let Me, definitely In The Heights. It's a very important show in my life. So difficult. Two more. Let's say, I've seen so many shows that it's very difficult to say, but well, I have a very special show that maybe is not the best show of all, but it's very important to me. And I liked it a lot. It's one show called Thoroughly Modern Millie, because I love the music of that show. And I love Steve Foster. And I saw the show with her. Well, Wicked is a wonderful show. Newsies, I loved the show. It's impossible to say just five.

[12:58] Martín Acuña: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I agree with you. And they are amazing shows. So Felipe, thank you so much for giving us your insights as a Colombian performer and director in musical theater. As you said, this industry is growing a lot and more in our country. And I am super honored to be featuring you and your journey here on Backstage Talk. So thank you so much for being here.

[13:22] Felipe Sánchez: No, Martin. Thank you. Thank you very much.

[13:28] Martín Acuña: Everyone for listening to this new episode of Backstage Talk. Remember to follow us on Facebook and Instagram at Backstage Talk Podcast.