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[0:02] Eli Tokash: Hello everyone and welcome to episode 148 of Take A Bow.

[0:06] Eli Tokash: I'm your host, Eli Tokash, and this week, uh this week, I am so excited for this week's episode. Um, we have an amazing person on the podcast today.

[0:17] Eli Tokash: She is someone that uh it inspires me uh incredibly. Her strength is absolutely second to none. Um, it's been wild to to follow her journey and uh to get her on the podcast today.

[0:30] Eli Tokash: Um you may know by the name or the picture, however you're looking at this, who it is. We have Mary Page Nance on the podcast today. I'm so excited. She's coming directly off fresh off of making her Broadway principal debut.

[0:42] Eli Tokash: Not only is she making her Broadway principal debut, it's the first time she's ever taken a bow by herself. Um she's gotten her own solo bow and I am I'm I'm thrilled. I am so excited for you all to listen to this episode.

[0:57] Eli Tokash: Uh this is a Take A Bow Friday. Um, so it this is our last day of March. Take A Bow Friday is happening, and she literally, our guest this week, literally went on yesterday um as Marsha in A Beautiful Noise.

[1:12] Eli Tokash: Yeah, that's right. You can go see Mary Page Nance right now in A Beautiful Noise. She's on eight shows a week. Um, and she also understudies the star of the show. Um, and uh is understudy to Marsha, uh, who is usually played by Robin Herder, um, who is just fantastic in the show, and I can't I can't uh wait to see Mary Page in this role in the show.

[1:36] Eli Tokash: Um so mad that she didn't text me, but it's okay, because the next time it happens, I'm gonna be there, and hopefully you all will be too um after listening to this week's episode, and you all will become the biggest fan, as such as myself to Mary Page.

[1:50] Eli Tokash: Um, just stoked for this episode, seriously. Um, if you I mentioned that this is the last day of March, March 31st. If you've been following along this past month to every episode, you all know that I've been doing episodes with uh guests featuring women that inspire me in the industry who have had some wonderful story or made history and whatever it is in this industry.

[2:12] Eli Tokash: Um, there's been a reason for each guest of this uh industry. So I definitely wanted to uh include Mary Page in this month. Um it's been incredible because not only is it Women's History Month and Women's Month in general, I guess, uh it's also Endometriosis Month.

[2:31] Eli Tokash: Um and Mary Page is a performer who has been diagnosed with endometriosis after doing two Broadway shows. And now that she is doing a Broadway show where she is actually uh able to fully take care of her herself and her body, um, she's able to experience life as a performer in a new way.

[2:55] Eli Tokash: Um so not only do we talk about some incredible things from being in shows together um and reconnecting at the opening night of A Beautiful Noise and seeing each other again and kind of whatever whatever that was, um, we talk about uh this journey for her and and what it means to have endometriosis as a performer and the struggles um and just like the daily kind of life uh of a performer with Endo and how she kind of had to navigate and go through it all and just deal with it and still continue to perform.

[3:29] Eli Tokash: Um it was crazy. Like she never called out. Yeah, especially she talks about it, you know, like younger in her career. You have that stigma of like, oh yes, oh, I gotta do this, or I gotta show up, you know. And it's uh wonderful to kind of see that journey and talk about that journey with her um towards the end.

[3:46] Eli Tokash: So definitely stay uh for this whole episode because it's wonderful stories uh through it all, and uh hopefully you all will enjoy and just love this episode as much as I did. So um with that being said, before we turn it over to that, uh we gotta talk about some Broadway news because that's just what we do here on Take A Bow.

[4:05] Eli Tokash: Um, you know, not a ton of Broadway news this week, which is kind of great because uh we want to turn it over to Mary Page as soon as possible. And we also have a bit of a longer episode with Mary Page, which is so wonderful for me because we were just able to catch up and it was like no time had passed at all.

[4:21] Eli Tokash: Um so it was just it was great. And and you all will love this, seriously. So um first bit of news this week. I I guess I'll start off in saying happy opening to Life of Pi, which opened today when I'm doing this with you all, but uh they it opens yesterday, uh Thursday, March 30th.

[4:40] Eli Tokash: Uh congratulations. I saw Life of Pi this week. I saw it yesterday, Wednesday. This is gonna be so trippy for you if you're listening to this uh uh uh on another day, uh, which you most likely will be, um, because it doesn't come out until tomorrow. Anyway, sorry, I'm talking to myself right now.

[4:58] Eli Tokash: Um, but I saw on Wednesday, uh March 29th. This show was ridiculous. I am obsessed with this show. You all know how I feel about plays, you all know I love musicals more than plays, and um as an audience member, you know, plays kind of excite me a little bit more as an actor and everything like that, but as an audience member, um I just find musicals to be a little bit more entertaining.

[5:23] Eli Tokash: This play keeps you entertained the entire time. Um plays are so heavy, and sometimes it's like I have to be in like a like I have to be like mentally prepared to go see a play. Um I'm sure I I'm not sure if everyone feels that way, but uh I'm sure some of you listening can kind of relate to that just because you know that it's gonna be heavier, you know, unless you're gonna go see like The Play That Goes Wrong, which we have a guest coming on who has is in that, and um that's kind of completely different.

[5:54] Eli Tokash: Like I could see that any night, I could see a musical any night. But for a play, like I feel like I have to like actually prepare myself to go see a play. And so this play, I walked in and I didn't know what I was gonna get. It's a brilliant movie, it's a brilliant book. So I've heard I I did not uh know the story or didn't know anything about the show before going into it, and I love that.

[6:16] Eli Tokash: I do it for a reason. Um I can go on the journey with the actors live in person, and I just think there's nothing better than doing that. Um so when I saw this show, I I was just flabbergasted. Uh, the work of Hiran Abisak um the work of Haran Abisakara is he's making his Broadway debut as Pi.

[6:37] Eli Tokash: He's absolutely absurd. Like in this role, he's uh he does not leave the stage. Uh he leaves the stage at an intermission. He's not pulling a Ben Platt here, but he does not leave the stage. He is brilliant in this role.

[6:52] Eli Tokash: Um, and then the real stars of the show is this ensemble piece, which we don't really get a lot in plays. You know, like this didn't feel like a typical play. It was brilliant the way that it was done. Um, this full ensemble came out, and you've got puppets being uh puppeteered by like three different people, and there's a bunch of different puppets happening, and they have uh these fish and they have zebras and they have uh giraffes and they have uh monkeys and owls and and all of these brilliant things and sea turtles.

[7:29] Eli Tokash: Oh my god, the sea turtle is brilliant. Um everything about the show was iconic. And for a moment, it was like feeling as if it was like The Lion King that I was watching for a second. It was just it's wild. Um and honestly, like nothing against The Lion King, because The Lion King is iconic.

[7:49] Eli Tokash: But in uh a few ways, the puppets here were better than The Lion King, and that's simply because The Lion King's been on Broadway for 25 plus years or whatever it's been and and this show is new, and so technology and everything has changed and and whatever. So um that's a whole other thing.

[8:06] Eli Tokash: But it it's this show is absolutely brilliant. It's one that everyone needs to see. The way that they're the scenic design, if it doesn't win best scenic design uh for a play this year at the Tony Awards, I don't know. I don't know.

[8:11] Eli Tokash: If it doesn't win best scenic design for a play at the Tony Awards this year, I don't know what's gonna win. I don't even want to know what's gonna win because this show, like I I I don't even have to see any of the other plays, and I just like feel this should be it. Like this is it. Uh it was brilliant. It was so incredibly well done.

[8:42] Eli Tokash: Uh and then the puppeteers were like actual like actors who who also had important roles in the story and in the show. It was just, it was brilliant. Everyone crushed the show. Shout out to Sharika, who we give a shout-out to in the interview with Mary Page.

[8:57] Eli Tokash: She was uh one of the stage managers over at Neverland. Uh, she's currently the PSM, the production stage manager over there. So uh I I that's gotta be a show that's pretty difficult. Uh it's probably the biggest play on Broadway right now. I mean, in regards to cast set, all the things to run.

[9:14] Eli Tokash: Um, so uh kudos to to everyone involved over there and congrats on a amazing uh opening night and a successful run. Hopefully that the this we could see the show for a long time because I absolutely loved it, and I think everyone's gonna love this show.

[9:29] Eli Tokash: Um okay, I I need to stop ranting because I was like five minutes. Um, but loved the show nonetheless. Uh also congratulations to Sweeney Todd, which opened this past Sunday. Unfortunately, I was not on the Sweeney uh Todd carpet, which I am very upset about, but uh, you know, it is what it is.

[9:47] Eli Tokash: And uh hopefully we can chat with some of those folks uh at a later date. Um, but yeah, Sweeney Todd, congrats. I heard every it was great. Everyone's raving about the show. Um, of course, uh no surprise there really.

[10:01] Eli Tokash: Uh and and the stars came out, you know, the stars were there at opening night. It was wild. Um, and it seemed like such a great, wonderful opening night. So congrats to everyone involved in that show.

[10:11] Eli Tokash: Um, and then our next opening night is uh Shocked, who uh if you don't know, uh that show is going to be opening on Tuesday. Um, and uh hopefully Take A Bow will be on the red carpet for that one.

[10:26] Eli Tokash: Um I've heard great things about Shocked, so I'm excited to see it. Uh, I've heard of it, it was absolutely hilarious and uh just wonderful. Uh the cast is incredible as well. So can't wait to see that one.

[10:37] Eli Tokash: It's got some, there's some we're really lucky with some of these shows on Broadway this year. There's some great stuff on Broadway right now. I'm very excited.

[10:44] Eli Tokash: Um yeah, so that that's this kind of this week's rundown. Um we had the Ragtime 25th annual anniversary reunion concert happening on Monday. I've heard great things about that, heard it was absolutely incredible.

[10:57] Eli Tokash: Uh an experience for a lifetime to kind of witness it all, and uh just awesome stuff to to honor a show that was as revolutionary as Ragtime is is fantastic and uh you know things we'd love to see here on Broadway.

[11:11] Eli Tokash: And uh that happened at the Lion King Theater at the Minskoff Theater. So um very exciting stuff there too. Um so yeah, that's all the news I have for you folks this week.

[11:21] Eli Tokash: Uh as always, I do want to send out a reminder, you know, we're releasing a lot on YouTube right now, um, in regards to exclusive YouTube content.

[11:30] Eli Tokash: So stuff that we're not releasing here uh as audio podcast that you may be listening to this on uh Apple Podcasts or whatever it is. Um, but uh that's all on YouTube and the best way to find out if and when we're posting, which we're posting almost every day right now.

[11:46] Eli Tokash: Um, but if you don't know like when we're posting or you're excited for something in particular, um you should subscribe because that's gonna be the the best way to be notified and uh see the things that we're posting.

[12:00] Eli Tokash: Um so go to YouTube, search up Take A Bow Podcast, and we are there. Uh we have some incredible uh opening nights.

[12:08] Eli Tokash: We are thrilled with uh Bad Cinderella opening night and how that video turned out. Shout out to Tessie who uh edited that one and got that one up for us.

[12:17] Eli Tokash: So uh it was brilliant. And I think the content from that carpet, especially in particular, may have been some of the best content that we've ever gotten at a red carpet, uh, in regards to like random celebrities being there, uh being there and not only talking about a show, but also just talking about uh theater and and other things going on in everyone else's lives.

[12:40] Eli Tokash: You know, it was really like mini interviews, and it wasn't like the typical, oh, how excited are you to see the show and blah blah blah. You know, it was really it was really a fun carpet.

[12:49] Eli Tokash: So uh I highly encourage you all to check that out. And the editing and the video is ridiculous. And it's shout out Tessie again. Um, it's really well done.

[12:57] Eli Tokash: So uh really happy with how it all turned out and uh go check it out. And we're also gonna be releasing um parade content, and um we had we had another opening night up there.

[13:01] Eli Tokash: Oh, A Doll's House and all the things. So definitely go check those out. Those are all so fun and uh were just wonderful. Uh the Doll's House one was it is particularly what is up there with the like the Bad Cinderella and and this is more the Doll's House is more of an educational opportunity for you all.

[13:25] Eli Tokash: Um it's really entertaining and it's really fun and everything like that, but it's it's the it's the type of people that were there. You know, we got to talk to Jessica Chastain and and Arian Moayed and all of the you know from Hamilton, all of these wonderful people, um and and veterans of of the show um who were about to do a series play, you know, they were really just full of wisdom in talking to us.

[13:50] Eli Tokash: So um it was brilliant. So definitely check that out. And then Bad Cinderella is a lot of fun, crazy, but like entertaining and and also like educational stuff.

[14:01] Eli Tokash: So uh definitely go check those out. And that's all up on the YouTube. And we're releasing video uh episodes of these interviews here that you're about to witness.

[14:10] Eli Tokash: So uh go check them out. And uh with that being said, it's time to turn it over to Mary Page because I've talked long enough, and uh this episode is absolutely wonderful.

[14:19] Eli Tokash: So without further ado, Mary Page Nance, curtain up.

[14:35] Eli Tokash: Oh my god. So I am so excited to introduce this week's guest, one of the strongest people I know.

[14:42] Eli Tokash: Uh a true triple threat who has been a part of three original Broadway casts, including Finding Neverland, which you may or may not have heard of if you're listening to this, um, Great Comet, uh, and that extremely long title, and she's currently starring, uh, and I mean starring in A Beautiful Noise on Broadway, uh, the Neill Diamond's musical. So excited to talk to you about it. Everyone, please welcome to Take a Bow, Mary Page Nance.

[15:09] Mary Page Nance: Hi.

[15:10] Eli Tokash: Hi.

[15:11] Mary Page Nance: I'm so excited right now.

[15:13] Eli Tokash: This has been a long time uh in the making here. Um, and uh to finally get you on, I'm I'm just so excited to talk to you about all the things. I was I was so excited to catch up with you in real life because that we always are fleeting.

[15:28] Mary Page Nance: Right.

[15:29] Eli Tokash: I saw you on opening night totally there's just so much going on, like we could never actually talk.

[15:36] Mary Page Nance: That night was wild.

[15:38] Eli Tokash: The opening night party was craziness.

[15:41] Mary Page Nance: We literally not used to you being not a child. Uh everyone is, you know, like I still go out to these things, and it's just like, oh, I know you from somewhere. And I'm like, yes, we fully did a show together. Um but I just look so different, you know, and uh it's funny to see those reactions.

[15:59] Eli Tokash: I know, but like all these years later, you know, I mean I guess like the pandemic and everything, but uh it's funny to see like it's still is like happening.

[16:07] Mary Page Nance: You weren't the only one with that reaction that night. It was really funny.

[16:13] Eli Tokash: You're a pandemic, and you just came and it was this was so good to see you. So many Neverland people were there. I tried to come to this recent one he did, um he did uh like a birthday or whatever.

[16:25] Mary Page Nance: Yeah.

[16:26] Eli Tokash: Um there it is, and uh it was like 21 plus, so I couldn't get in because I don't have like anything. So I was like, Ugh, that's so annoying. But uh it's fine. It is what it is and uh but now here we are and we get to catch up and I'm so excited. So um I mean Neverland, I mean w there's so much we could talk about, but I usually like to start these things um asking, you know, how are we here today? Like what what made you wanna get in uh into musical theater and storytelling and performing in general?

[17:01] Mary Page Nance: Oh, what a question. How much time do we have? I don't know if I guess I'm like you and that my first professional show was when I was nine years old. It was not on Broadway.

[17:12] Eli Tokash: Stop.

[17:17] Mary Page Nance: But um it was a local theater, um Swift Creek Mill, we did Children of Eden. Uh huh. I'm sure I got paid thirteen dollars a week or something, you know, that I spent on ice cream. Um But I just used to it. I think I was always expressing myself in this way, and I was probably a very by probably I mean definitely a crazy child. Yes, my parents were like, put her in anything.

[17:42] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[17:43] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, I just kind of always did it. And then I worked like professionally as a young kid. I never did what you did where we would do school at the theater. Because it wasn't eight times a week. It was, you know, local stuff in my hometown in Virginia. Um, like Theater of Virginia, I did A Wonderful Life, which was actually really cool. Show my gosh. Came down and saw it, and I had like connections to New York people, but it was sure smaller scale. Um but I was doing community theater. I just kind of did everything. I I never despite doing it professionally as a young kid, I never thought like, oh, this is my career. Yeah. I want to do this. I I was never thinking that way. I just always loved it. And I try to make a practice of doing things that I love that feed me, so I just kind of kept doing it. And then here I am.

[18:37] Eli Tokash: Was it that your like parents just kind of threw you into it, or was it kind of like you saw a show and you just fell in love and were like, let's try it?

[18:46] Mary Page Nance: Ooh, that's a good question. I mean, I think I grew up in a very musical family. My mom sings and to this day performs gigs.

[18:55] Eli Tokash: Oh my god.

[18:56] Mary Page Nance: Local restaurants and farmers markets and events and things. She like I grew up singing in the church choir, I grew up singing around her, and every time we'd have like, you know, a party or something in our house, there's a piano I you know, there's a piano, and her friend Steve Rudlin, who's a mentor of mine, would come and play and I would sing with him, and my sister and I would always like perform at the end of dinner. If if we have dinner at our grandparents' house or whatever, we would like stand in front of the fireplace and put on a sh a show. Like sh it was just was very natural to us.

[19:30] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[19:31] Mary Page Nance: Did that and so I think they saw that and I can't really remember the honestly the first thing I ever saw. I remember my first audition was for a production of Gypsy at the Theater of Virginia and I didn't know that's okay. I was an eight years old and I remember seeing all these kids like who were had their like branded outfits wild names on their jacket like word downstairs and I was just like what is this? Like I don't know what this is.

[20:03] Eli Tokash: No, literally I love first audition stories because I I never forget I I wasn't the first person to audition in my family but my sister like we grew up in Pittsburgh like near Pittsburgh so we performed it to Pittsburgh CLO and um she went to her first audition and like this like what she thought was so cool like camo outfit and everyone was in their like rehearsal blacks with jazz shoes and everything.

[20:35] Mary Page Nance: I was probably wearing a sack like had like remember they had like booty shorts with their names rhinestoned on the butt. I was like stop it.

[20:46] Eli Tokash: I did not understand what was happening.

[20:48] Mary Page Nance: Well that would be perfect for Gypsy that totally seems like a mama that's hilarious. Um well that's crazy. I mean honestly like you you saying that you kind of grew up with like your family being very musically like inclined it was kind of makes sense, you know. You probably just like didn't even realize like it was just you always knew it, you know, type of thing and you always just loved it and naturally she would put on performances without even like realizing it. That's pretty neat.

[21:18] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, that's true. And I kind of I you know people talk about their aha moment of when they smell like I wanna do that. Like I don't really think I had that. I think I started doing it and I loved it and then I just would see everything and was kind of inspired by everything. I remember being very inspired by the adult actors that I was working with.

[21:37] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[21:38] Mary Page Nance: You know and just always recognizing like how amazing they were and just the culture of being in a show.

[21:44] Eli Tokash: Yep.

[21:44] Mary Page Nance: Feeling like that family and you probably felt this as a kid like they really take you under their wing and just y they're like a second family to you and you know, you're away from your parents you're eight years old doing a show and I messed up all the you know I'm like playing too we had you know those old school gangs being too loud. Um Robin O'Neill amazing actress in my hometown professional incredible um she was Eve in Children of Eden. And we did the opening of Act Two from behind the audience so we had to like you know for the Oh my god is that song is that the beginning of Act Two God don't mean there were tambourines involved I I don't know. She was right next to me and I was chewing gum oh uh uh and she like literally made me spit out my gum into her hand oh stuck it in our bra and we just did you know we just no yeah that's amazing.

She was like, no, honey, we don't do that. Like just you know, bringing us into I just witnessing like how people take care of each other and you know, just being in that community so young, just I just fell in love with that and like seeing how close they were, and you know, the the I remember the man who played um God, right? There's a god in that show, uh just feeling like actual god to me.

[23:18] Eli Tokash: Like Yeah, sure.

[23:20] Mary Page Nance: Took so much good care of us, and you know, just watching them do their thing and the practice of being in show and taking care of each other and just I don't know, watching kind of the ceremony of like getting ready and I'm so inspired by that.

[23:36] Eli Tokash: See, I love that you're saying this because like so often we hear like in our industry, like, oh, is it like a competition and like is it like that sort of vibe in like an audition room and whatever? And it can be, but like at the end of the day, like we have all we all know each other, we've all worked together in some sort of facet, we've all had each other's bags for the past however many years, you know.

[24:00] Mary Page Nance: Like it it doesn't even matter that it like it it's a competition in the sense that you're going for the same roles and some similar opportunities, but like if it doesn't work out, like we're happy for one another.

[24:12] Eli Tokash: Like people don't realize that, I don't think.

[24:14] Mary Page Nance: Like that is you're right. People often say, like, is it cutthroat?

[24:18] Eli Tokash: Yeah, like it's not really right, like the business side is, but not like performing, right?

[24:25] Mary Page Nance: No, I don't know. I completely agree. And I think maybe for you, obviously you were on Broadway, so it was a very different experience because like me doing a professional show in Richmond, Virginia was very different than like you being up for like actual TV shows. And you were on for watching all TV shows. But um But I know it's mean, and that it doesn't yeah, it's like once you're in the family, you're in the family.

[24:49] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[24:50] Mary Page Nance: And people who haven't made it to Broadway, that first of all, I think is crazy because they're so talented and should be, but they're still in the community. It's like the Broadway community, I feel like we're too specific about, but really is like the theatrical the the people going to dance class, showing up, going to auditions, like that to me is the Broadway community.

[25:11] Eli Tokash: Um, and that's something that coming back, I hadn't been on Broadway since before the pandemic since Great Comic closed, which was six years ago. I mean, so many years ago. Wild. So I felt like, you know, when I came back to A Beautiful Noise, I it felt like kind of coming home a little bit, like streets, like walking to work from 40, you know, past passing the Lunt Fontaine, passing the Imperial and seeing the old um, you know, like Terry, the house electrician at the Lunt.

[25:40] Mary Page Nance: Right, be like, Terry, like, do you remember me? How are your fishing trips going?

[25:47] Eli Tokash: Literally, have that experience of to just see crew guys like how I ran into this guy at the deli, Starlight Deli, the best deli in the world, which side note I hear is closing, which is devastating. But we're the other time there was this guy, I I think his name is Brendan or I was at Starlight, and we had this moment we were like, Hey, you look familiar. You look familiar. Uh what's how do I know you? And I was like, uh he was like, Did you do a show around here? It's like, yeah, whatever, listed. He's like, Oh, we did Finding Neverland together. And I was like, What dude? How are you? And this was eight years ago.

[26:23] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god.

[26:24] Eli Tokash: I hadn't seen him since and he was like, Yeah, I left. You'd probably recognize him. He had gone over to Lion King.

[26:31] Mary Page Nance: Oh.

[26:32] Eli Tokash: Ever since that's crazy. You know, like that's a whole other like world and community, like the whole stage hand crew. Because I saw I went to go see Life of Pi last night.

[26:43] Mary Page Nance: I saw Trip.

[26:45] Eli Tokash: I saw Shurika's doing the stage the PSM. I was like, Sharika, what are you doing here? And she's like, I'm the PSM. And I was like, what? Like I didn't know that.

[26:57] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, like it's crazy how we say that it's so like small and tight, but like it it's very large, you know, and like it goes beyond what we like perceive, you know.

[27:11] Eli Tokash: We forget how many people it actually takes to one run one single show, let alone the 40 or whatever's on.

[27:19] Mary Page Nance: Yes, you know who my teacher is right now on A Beautiful Noise, Pam Hughes.

[27:25] Eli Tokash: Shut up.

[27:26] Mary Page Nance: Remember her from Neverlands? She covered um she dressed Teal for a while.

[27:30] Eli Tokash: Yeah, of course.

[27:31] Mary Page Nance: That's crazy. Yeah, she's my dresser. Like she I walked into you know, they're like introduced our dressers first day in the studio. It's from uh Horner, who was um Kelsey Grammar's dresser.

[27:41] Eli Tokash: Yes, dresses.

[27:44] Mary Page Nance: And I was like, hi, like I hadn't seen it. So wild, and now you know they're part of they are Broadway family. I mean, they are the mates, like those people are the community, and I'm just like there's nothing like it.

[27:59] Eli Tokash: It truly, it really isn't. So when was it that you kind of realized that like, oh you could have a career in this industry? Like, you know, like you could be doing this for a job. Was it like when you first did like Neverland? Like was like was it your first Broadway show or was it like before that?

[28:19] Mary Page Nance: I think it was before that, but it was later than maybe it should have been. I remember doing I went to school for modern dance.

[28:27] Eli Tokash: Okay.

[28:27] Mary Page Nance: Um I went to SUNY Purchase and I remember.

[28:31] Eli Tokash: Yeah, so I I didn't study musical theater in college. But I always knew that I loved musical theater, but I wanted options like for concert dance if that yeah might you know things took me that way and I did love concert dance, but all that to say I wasn't doing theater really at the time when I was in school.

[28:50] Mary Page Nance: Um and so when I I missed it. So in the summers between like I would do modern dance during the year, and then in the summers I would go home, you know, live at home between the years in college, and I would do musicals at um Virginia Repertory Theater, which is a hecky house in my hometown.

[29:07] Mary Page Nance: Um and I did like the really modern or I think the first one I did was Guys and Dolls, maybe between my freshman and sophomore year, and then between sophomore and junior I did um Thoroughly Modern Millie. Actually Patty DeBeck, who's like an amazing Broadway legend director, she happened to be in Richmond teaching at VCU, but I feel like it's just a small thrill.

[29:33] Mary Page Nance: Like, well, crazy. She's brilliant. I mean, so I got to kind of do musical theater professionally, but it was like I would itch the theater bug and then I would kind of miss dancing and then I would go back to school and I would dance and then I'd be like, oh no, I miss theater. And you know, just doing those shows that a couple people have always said, you know, like, you could do this. Like you're very kind, you know, like you're very good. Like you're right, you could do this. And I remember being like, no, no, no, I don't know. I just, you know, I just kind of doing it. And I remember seeing A Chorus Line in the revival. I guess it was on Broadway in 2009, I want to say. Wow. Um, and I remember, I remember rushing it, you know, I was in college.

Wait a minute, I can do that. Wow. I think it was like, you know, when I saw Broadway shows as a young person, it was just, it was so amazing, and the people were so talented that I never, I never in a thousand years thought I could possibly ever be good enough to do that.

[30:40] Eli Tokash: Of course.

[30:41] Mary Page Nance: Yeah. You know, for I remember seeing 42nd Street moving out, and I remember being, I mean, I was blown away. I just couldn't, there's no part of me that was like, I can do that. No, zero. I was totally amazed at what they could do. And you know, when you go to school and you study and you train, something happens where you just, you get better and you get older and you learn, and then you start to see performances, and you're like, oh, the gap is closing a little bit. Like, I actually do feel like I could do that. And that was a real moment for me when I saw A Chorus Line. I was like, wait a minute, okay. And then so kind of in the middle of college of having proximity to New York and seeing Broadway shows, like I remember seeing the hype in Rent, and that's when I started getting super inspired.

I was like, no, no, I can do that, and I want to do that. Um, so yeah, I guess it was during college, and then the ironically, the first Broadway show or no, the first musical that I like job, professional job outside of college, I got was to do a fraction of A Chorus Line in New Hampshire.

[31:45] Oh my god.

[31:46] Mary Page Nance: With Brian Knowlton who was in the revival and I saw him iconic program. I looked back and I had seen him perform. He played Paul. Oh my gosh. And he directed me in that show. This is a couple years after I graduated, 'cause it took me a while to figure out the industry and figure out what I was doing. But that show, you know, is so much about who you are as an artist and what you want to do. And I remember him pulling me aside at a bar, you know, outside, you know, two in the morning.

[32:17] Eli Tokash: Yeah, of course.

[32:18] Mary Page Nance: And he's like, what are you, what are you doing? Like, you're an actress. He's like, I love you. I love that you do this modern, that you do modern dance, and I, you know, I respect that, but like there's something in you that needs to say words. Like you are an actress, like this is what you do. Kind of that never has left me. That really was a pivot point for me where I kind of came back to the city and decided, like, okay, I love modern dance, but I kind of wasn't getting anywhere in my career both. I was trying to do both things. Um, and so then I really was made the conscious decision to focus on musical theater, um, and really put that into the universe and said, like, I don't want to be in a modern dance company.

[33:05] Huh.

[33:07] Mary Page Nance: I couldn't believe it because I always thought I did. I loved, I loved, like I had like maybe I'll go to Europe and do dance theater because spoken text in modern work that I think is so cool and but I kind of had to say it out loud to be like, you know what? This is what I want.

[33:24] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[33:25] Mary Page Nance: And it kind of just, that's when like everything fell into place and then Neverland happened. And it was just, this is what I'm going to be doing.

[33:32] Eli Tokash: Insane.

[33:33] Mary Page Nance: Wow. That's so cool though. Like what a, what a journey. And I'm sure it was absolutely terrifying to like really come to, I guess like realization of just like, oh no, this is what I'm gonna do, but I don't, I don't know how, but this is what I'm gonna do, you know, type of thing.

[33:48] Um, yeah, yeah.

[33:51] Mary Page Nance: Um, but it worked out because like look at you, and uh here we are. And so yeah, for Finding Neverland came about, and uh, you know, you did it over in ART uh before doing it on Broadway.

[34:04] Eli Tokash: Um, I was not, unfortunately.

[34:08] Mary Page Nance: I did audition for it. Um, I was too young at that time because I, they had me auditioning for George, and I was like, the older brother.

[34:16] Eli Tokash: Um as like an eight-year-old at the time.

[34:20] Mary Page Nance: I was on the Mary Poppins tour, and I was like, there's no way.

[34:23] Eli Tokash: Yeah, um you played Peter a lot.

[34:26] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, well, I did them all, I did them all. I was the only one to do them all, which is crazy. I did them all for a show and a half. Um I did Michael for a show and a half, which was the highlight of my career. Um, but yes, uh it yeah, Peter was the one, but and then Peter and George towards the end, they like stopped me doing Jack because they were like, dude, you're getting too tall, like you're getting too old for this.

[34:50] Eli Tokash: Um which was like thank god, you know, like in that show there were boys where you could grow into and not like oh you're fired because you've outgrown this role type of thing, which has happened. You know, yeah.

[35:02] Mary Page Nance: Which is wild. Um, but yeah, so I was not in ART, but I'm curious to talk to me about ART because like you said, I wasn't there, so um obviously it was a very different show. Um I hear that all the time from people uh who were in ART and then came with it to Broadway. Um so yeah, what was that like?

[35:24] Mary Page Nance: And and kind of attacking a new piece of material, you know, you've done all of these uh shows that have already existed. So like what was that like for you to just jump in?

[35:34] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god, you like I could talk about that for I'm so sorry. No, it's such a good question because you know, when you grow up doing musical theater, you do shows that already exist, as you said. Yeah. Nobody trains you how to be in a new Broadway musical. It's a completely, completely different experience. And what's wild is that it's been the only experience I've ever had on Broadway is to be in an original Broadway show.

[36:00] Eli Tokash: Right.

[36:01] Mary Page Nance: So wild. Cool. Yeah, like so cool. But it's a very different thing to be in the room. David Chase is creating music. He's wild. I mean, I, I, it w I was just eyes, my eyes were this wide. The whole time I just was soaking it all in. I couldn't believe I was there. I couldn't believe, I mean to be super honest, it was a really challenging process.

[36:31] Mary Page Nance: And it was not like a very, I don't know how to say this. It was not a very like, it didn't feel like a very, I feel like the word now we use is safe because it was so stressful, and there were so many cooks in the kitchen, there was a lot of like energy coming from the top that was not necessarily like welcoming and warm, and you know, it was for sure. But it was like very challenging because in a new show, everything can change, you know. It's like if something's not working, it's an option to make a new song or cut 20 minutes of the script, or nothing is, and I've done now, I've done a ton of new work. I did Black No More um on Broadway. I've been developing that for years. Beautiful Noise I developed, I was in workshops of it for years.

And when I tell you, nothing compares to this Neverland experience. I mean, it was wild. It was, it was hilarious. It was crazy. I mean, literally every day felt like we were going into a like a war zone. It was just like, okay, what's happening now? What am I doing? Am I having? Okay, like literally, yeah. I go through all my, you know, they give you change sheets.

[37:52] Eli Tokash: Oh yeah.

[37:53] Mary Page Nance: It's like, all right, these things are going in, these things are staying the same, whatever. Our change sheets would be. It's not like like in the previews of the Beautiful Noise, it was like, okay, we changed that one cut-off. Or like there's a new harmony line for this one song.

[38:10] Eli Tokash: Right.

[38:11] Mary Page Nance: And then stay in that costume instead of the other costume, and then that would be it. I was like, yeah, no. Like literally, it would be like the entire new number is, the entire opening number is new. You're wearing a different costume, your entrance is different, your exit is different. You have a new line in the next scene, new choreography. I mean, I'm talking crazy, like every single, we all were just like this all the time. I remember famously saying to Ronnie Chodorowski, brilliant best dancer on Broadway in dancing right now. I didn't remember we got this all the time, but I apparently at one point he looked, he looked at me and I just went, wait, what?

[38:55] Mary Page Nance: That's amazing.

[38:57] Mary Page Nance: Like, wait, what?

[38:58] Mary Page Nance: And we say that all the time to each other, like Pete.

[39:02] Mary Page Nance: Like it was just it was wild.

[39:06] Mary Page Nance: Like everything was in the chopping block at all times, and you were just trying to hold on to like any sense of what you were doing.

[39:12] Mary Page Nance: And I remember him looking, I was just staring off into the distance. I remember him being like, Are you okay?

[39:16] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[39:17] Mary Page Nance: How are you feeling? And I remember just saying, I don't like to not know what I'm doing.

[39:23] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[39:24] Mary Page Nance: That was the first time I felt like I was performing in a big arena with important, not having, not knowing what I was doing. Because when you're growing up and doing theater, it's like you practice and you rehearse and you learn the choreography, you do it 40 times, and then you do it in front of an audience. But this is like take in 40 pieces of information that you've never done before and execute it in real time in front of people.

[39:50] Eli Tokash: Yeah, no, for sure.

[39:52] Mary Page Nance: But all that to say, that experience, and then moving into Great Comet, I was a swing for the first like six.

[39:59] Eli Tokash: Oh yeah.

[40:00] Mary Page Nance: I covered 20 tracks.

[40:02] Eli Tokash: No, no.

[40:04] Mary Page Nance: Right? Why that's just how Broadway was back then.

[40:09] Eli Tokash: And for you, I guess. I mean, holy moly.

[40:13] Mary Page Nance: Yeah.

[40:14] Eli Tokash: Go off.

[40:15] Mary Page Nance: Right. It was, I'm honestly still very proud of that.

[40:18] Eli Tokash: Yeah, as you should have 13 of them, I think.

[40:21] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god. Obviously, I could never.

[40:24] Eli Tokash: You could everyone.

[40:27] Mary Page Nance: But having that experience was like I had to again take in information of you're gonna be the tons of split tracks, cut tracks, whatever. Like you're gonna be this person and then change into this person and then do this solo and then come around it. Like I had again another experience of like I am performing in real time on a color stage in front of 1400 people. Something that I have never done before, and that's super new to me, and that's something that is so much a part of the Broadway culture that no one tells you about or trains you for.

[40:58] Eli Tokash: Right.

[40:59] Mary Page Nance: And now having under, now I understood your principal on Broadway, and I got to go on last week and I got a big deal twice that before it's like I'm ready for this because I've done all those other things. Like I've had practice in taking information and responding to things in real time that I've never done before. Quick changes, you know, if something goes wrong, it's like okay, we make a choice at the moment to fix it or go back to the old costume, or you know, I, you know, I have to walk out, make sure I hit 12 while singing this line, and also, you know, not blocking this person while also wearing a costume I've never had on life in front of a, in front of 1200 people who paid a lot of money to see me, you know, like I can do that now because I've had like years of experience in doing that and doing workshops and readings, and I make a lot of, I tend to get hired to make a lot of new work because I'm, I'm used to it and I can do it.

[41:59] Eli Tokash: Right.

[41:59] Mary Page Nance: But it is my god, it is a learning process, and now I love it. It really like stimulates me, and I feel very confident doing those things.

[42:08] Eli Tokash: Sure.

[42:09] Mary Page Nance: But yeah, so Boston was like a crash course in like the worst possibly ever be.

[42:16] Eli Tokash: Yeah, but that's so interesting the way that you've looked at it now, you know, like the perspective that you have on it now, and kind of being thankful for it, like because you've kind of been able to learn from that, and in a way, like it was kind of a blessing that like that was your first experience because if you, if it wasn't, you would be like, really, what the f is this, you know, type of thing.

[42:38] Mary Page Nance: Yes, and I remember um Josh Laman saying that to me before I remember him being he came up to me one day and was like, I'm so excited for you to do your next show. I love him so much. And like he was like, I was just so excited that it worked as bad as this nightmare. It was so hard, and you felt that in Broadway. I mean, it was still crazy, yeah. It was still crazy, it really was. I do opening number, like 20, 20 previews in. We made a, the whole first 20 minutes of the show were completely, no, we were changing stuff even after opening. Like I, I came in, like I was rehearsing while you guys were opening, and it was because Sawyer and Hayden ended up like leaving like a month in or whatever it was, and so that's, that's when I came.

So I wasn't with like the whole tech thing, yeah, crazy. Everyone forgets about that. I was not a part of that, that whole thing, I can't imagine, but literally I, I came and I was like, this show has opened, right? And they're like, and Josh was like, oh honey, you have no idea what you've said yes to, and I was like, oh my god. Josh Lehman has been someone who has always not been shy about talking about his experience with Finding Neverland.

[44:06] Mary Page Nance: And it makes me so it just makes me laugh. It makes me so happy about it all because he likes to call it trauma bonding of a hundred percent trauma. It's like you gotta bad he would always say, like anyone who sees that you're in this show, it's like you get a badge of like making it through like actual war. But that's like what was so beautiful about it. Like when people came to see the show, everyone was just like, you all look like you guys are having so much fun with each other. And like we we like genuinely were because we didn't know what was going on. Like we didn't actually have a consistent show because we didn't know what that consistent show was, you know. Like we were just up there and we were just playing and we like at the end of the day, like at some point in the run, we were all just like, you know what, screw it, like let's just like have fun with these things and let's do something silly, and and you know, like that was one of my favorite parts about it all, and like no one kind of like gets that, you know, because they they like see it and they're like, Oh my god, it's such a like perfectly crafted thing, and we're like, really? It is that's that's so great to hear.

[45:18] Eli Tokash: Yeah, yeah. Um never people audience owners don't know what that process is like, and right you just like I truly think nothing could ever can ever be as bad as what that was.

[45:29] Mary Page Nance: Yeah. However, I don't know if you feel this way, but I continue to do shows in my career with people that I love, and every show has its own culture, and you know, I every show I've been a part of has had its own magical like thing.

[45:46] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[45:46] Mary Page Nance: Something about the group of people that were with that it is the trauma bonding. It's that what we went through was so difficult.

[45:56] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[45:58] Mary Page Nance: I mean, the culture of Broadway was also different in terms of like our schedules work. Real. We were not treated well from the producing side of things. We were not taken care of. I remember I was the equity deputy. I remember sending an email on behalf of Hayden who had broken his arm.

[46:18] Eli Tokash: Yes.

[46:19] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god. And they made it before. Get him back. They made him come back to the show.

[46:24] Eli Tokash: Yes.

[46:27] Mary Page Nance: Yes. Oh, I'm fully aware. I was on vacation that week. I remember in the email to say that. It was it was my fault. They tried to get me back, and I was like, I can't like I have no way of getting to the show in time. There's there's nothing I can do. The amount of times Neverland called me on a vacation. I mean, I I remember being at the beach with my family right before we started, and they called us starting a dance lab tomorrow. Like, I mean it's just different like environment than the abuse that we took, like really in that pro I mean it was crazy, but it made us it made us so close because we had to get through it.

[47:10] Mary Page Nance: And there's something about that theater and about the people in that cast that it'll it'll never I hate to say it, but like it will never be like that again.

[47:19] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[47:20] Mary Page Nance: Just there's like a sp very special thing we all had to kind of get through that shit show.

[47:26] Eli Tokash: Right.

[47:26] Mary Page Nance: We had to do it, we didn't have enough pain, we didn't have enough coverage, it was always like here, Tyler, hold a script and play Henshaw, even though you don't have that part and you've never been asked to do it today at the matinee.

[47:38] Eli Tokash: Right.

[47:39] Mary Page Nance: Liter literally, we would have people with script in their hands.

[47:42] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[47:45] Mary Page Nance: Oh I'm on Broadway with cut tracks and people, I mean, it was madness. It was hilarious. I mean, like, just looking back, you kind of just have to laugh, you know. It's just like it was wild. The amount of times that we would call people that left the show to come back to do a show for like a day or two was wild. Like it was literally and you kept getting called for the tour.

[48:10] Eli Tokash: I got called for the tour 17 times.

[48:12] Mary Page Nance: I went on the tour.

[48:13] Eli Tokash: No, we talked about this.

[48:15] Mary Page Nance: Stop, Mary Page. You want to talk about a shit show.

[48:19] Eli Tokash: I know. We were doing the labs for it too when like they we were doing the show on Broadway. I was like, this is a this is crazy. Um all great people involved, and like yeah, I don't regret any of it. I'm grateful for all of it.

[48:34] Mary Page Nance: Absolutely. I s I to this day say like it's my favorite thing that I've ever done. And like it's honestly just like because of the community that was like forged, you know, like we genuinely got excited to see each other every night.

[48:49] Eli Tokash: Yeah, and there's not a single a single person in that cast or that crew or backstage that I would not like I would get caught at a event with that I wouldn't want to talk to for 20 minutes.

[49:01] Mary Page Nance: Absolutely. Every single person was like, How are you? How's your family? How like all there was not one bad egg, not a single one, and it's crazy too, cause like we had different levels of you know, the star power between Matthew and Kelsey, Laura Michelle, Carolee, and then like a bunch of like to kids and dogs, you know, like a dog take your career of taker.

[49:26] Eli Tokash: Yeah, literally.

[49:28] Mary Page Nance: And not and not one person, you know, like put themselves above anyone else, you know, like it was never an ego thing or anything. And it was it was great. We were so lucky, like with Kelsey and Matthew and Laura, like, you know, I've worked with famous people since then, and like there's always a different thing, like whether they need space or however they need to protect their kids or bodies, but like I always felt so like they were such good leaders.

[50:01] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[50:02] Mary Page Nance: Of the cast, you know, and like just cr keeping the culture alive of like, you know, having us over to their dressing room to have drinks. Grandma would host theme parties for us in his dressing room.

[50:15] Eli Tokash: Right.

[50:18] Mary Page Nance: And Laura would get it all decorated. I know we walk up the stoop and Kelsey Grammar is like mixing cocktails in the picture, and they're all cucumber sandwiches that he special words and so cute. I mean, the man hosted parties of the dressing room for us.

[50:36] Eli Tokash: The sweetest man, and same with Matt. Like, remember he we would go to Southern Hospitality.

[50:40] Mary Page Nance: Oh, yeah.

[50:41] Eli Tokash: Come on over. Like, I just bought the bar out for a couple hours.

[50:44] Mary Page Nance: Like, Tay Diggs would come by and Yes.

[50:46] Eli Tokash: Oh my god, I remember that. Like, hey!

[50:49] Mary Page Nance: It was just wild. They were so generous and like great leaders in that way.

[50:56] Eli Tokash: Yeah, for sure. I I'll never forget Matthew's going away either. Matthew's going away was pretty sick too. Um, yeah, and just absolutely like everyone sobbing, you know, like another yeah, like holy moly, what are we gonna do?

[51:14] Mary Page Nance: Oh also a cool thing. I've been thinking about this with our happy trails. We've only had one person do a happy trails of beautiful noise so far. A couple vacation twins, but like I was thinking about Finding Neverland every time we did a Happy Trails, Courtney and Paul and someone it was a song.

[51:32] Eli Tokash: Yes, a fully fully fresh lyrics and Rory, and they would write a song for a full song for each other.

[51:41] Mary Page Nance: It was wild, and we would all gather on the steps and we would song and we would all cheer and cry. Like you would like ball. We would we would no one would do well, even like literally when the dog handler left, we were all like, don't like we can't do this.

[51:59] Eli Tokash: Um literally it's wild. I completely forgot about those songs until you said that.

[52:08] Mary Page Nance: I'll never forget Sawyer's song. Sawyer's song, everyone was a mess. Um, and literally that was like so early on, because like that was kind of my introduction to everyone. And I was like, wow, like just the commu that was the first time that I was like, the community here is like something really special.

[52:27] Eli Tokash: Um, and it was it's just it's so great to be a part of it. But um, yeah, I I'll never forget in that show, just thinking back at it. One of our favorite parts of the show was literally as as the kids, we would always be so excited when intermission hit because the first thing that we were gonna do was that on track act and what we were gonna do is we were gonna come over to Miriam's like little tea cart to eat cookies and like do all the things and Miriam is who married page like that was like her character's name um and uh we would we would always be so excited because we would have like a little snack but then we'd be like oh we have to like save some for for the cart and and we have to like think of a prank and or something to do for Mary Page.

[53:11] Mary Page Nance: Um and we were always doing something messing with you that makes me so happy oh my god yeah so sweet we loved it we we the kids we had so much fun it was like with the our the costume rack in the back oh yeah everything that scene was my favorite thing to do in the entire show really yeah because we just were ridiculous I mean we got well we were so full out with our characters like Miriam a fully fleshed out yeah character and she had we I she Miriam had really every single kid as you said yeah you would come you would mess with the spoon you would take a bite of the cookie but I knew I had everything laid out of like I know this person's gonna want to cook and right like it was like we act play with a tea cart that no one ever saw I mean they would that's the stuff that makes made that show so full is like we always had such characters characters that we were fully in the whole show and like playing with you guys on oh with the different costumes.

[54:18] Mary Page Nance: I would put, you know, crazy hats on y'all and mess around.

[54:22] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[54:22] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god.

[54:24] Eli Tokash: The cowboys in Indians costumes and stuff like that.

[54:27] Mary Page Nance: Like it was it was awesome. It like literally. We as the kids too, like, you know, we never felt like we were never had that feeling of like, oh, you're just a kid, you know, type of thing that like you would get like you know, as a child in the industry or whatever.

[54:42] Eli Tokash: And we never felt like that, you know, during Neverland.

[54:45] Mary Page Nance: It was it was really it was really special. You were part of the film, you were friends.

[54:49] Eli Tokash: Yeah, no, literally, and that's what it seemed like. It was so it was uh awesome. And I think like that's why I say like that's when like that was my favorite thing, you know.

[54:57] Mary Page Nance: Like I never felt alone in that show.

[55:00] Eli Tokash: Um it surprises me to say that that's your favorite though, because I thought you were gonna say play, which I have to talk to you about because that was another fun uh little kid the kids loved to play and loved play the ensemble version that made its way onto the cast album.

[55:19] Mary Page Nance: How did that whole thing come about?

[55:21] Eli Tokash: I I don't actually know if I actually know this story, so talk to me about this story and how that kind of got to the album.

[55:27] Mary Page Nance: Wow, okay, so that that number was fun, but it was so hard that we it was always like, Oh god, I have to do play again.

[55:35] Eli Tokash: Right.

[55:37] Mary Page Nance: I'm sure it was exhausting.

[55:38] Eli Tokash: You looked exhausting.

[55:39] Mary Page Nance: I mean we were we were like shoving tapes across the stage and jumping up on them, falling off of them, like banging mugs on the I mean it was just like it was so hard. After just recovering from stronger too, I'm sure.

[55:51] Eli Tokash: Yes, exactly.

[55:53] Mary Page Nance: That number was fun, but it was like, oh god, here we go.

[55:55] Eli Tokash: Yeah, for sure.

[55:57] Mary Page Nance: That song, you know, when you're in a new Broadway show, you hear 40 versions of what the songs are eventually gonna be. And um, like uh All That Matters, Laura song in the first workshop it used to be Feels Just Like Summer.

[56:12] Eli Tokash: Oh, feels just like Summer.

[56:16] Mary Page Nance: Like she's those were the words. So fails, Jessica. And then matters, which was you know, but we saw, you know, we saw and heard all these a hundred versions of each of those songs.

[56:25] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[56:26] Mary Page Nance: And there was this like kind of, and you know, Anne Marie Malazzo, the brilliant vocal designer who is why I'm in a beautiful noise, and she did a beautiful noise too.

[56:36] Eli Tokash: Oh my god.

[56:37] Mary Page Nance: He came up with all these little like chants and you know vocal parts throughout the show, and one of them was this there were elements of it in the play version that we ended up doing. Um hey, hey-ho, here we go, down to the bottom bottle we go, hey ho, hey, we're gonna down it. We kind of added that, but that hey-ho, here we go down to the bottom of a bottle we go used to be in a version of play.

[57:01] Eli Tokash: Uh huh.

[57:01] Mary Page Nance: We had all these kind of like sound bites that we had experienced throughout the process. But to answer your original question, because I'm going all over the place, we're gonna Donovan and I both had this like affinity for folk bluegrass music.

[57:17] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[57:18] Mary Page Nance: Figured out like in our friendship that we like a lot of the same bands and sound, and he has a banjo and plays the banjo. And so we took it we all took a trip, I think during Boston to Vermont. He had like a family lake house up there. So we all like a bunch of us, like 10 of us, got in cars, drove up to Vermont and had this like weekend at at this lake house in Vermont. You know, Thane is out there on like the canoe. You know, we were like, and um, one night we were all just hanging out and we were joking about doing each song in the show as a different style.

[57:53] Eli Tokash: And then we're longer we were like, what if it was like a heavy metal song?

[57:56] Mary Page Nance: We're like, like, and so we were all like jamming on you know, jamming and laughing about what these different songs could be, like R and B or whatever, and play, we just were like riffing on playing. We're like, okay, that was bluegrass. What would it sound like? And he had his banjo out, we started playing it, and it just kinda happened, and then we kind of worked it out while we were in Vermont, and then we came back to Broadway to rehearse.

[58:20] Eli Tokash: And anytime we had extra time, you know, downtime, Rory and I would be like, Do you wanna like run into the other studio and like work work this out? And so it was a little um like a downtime thing for us to do, like something to make us feel good in all and so we came up with this version of play, just the two of us, in like that little room on the side.

[58:42] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, extra rehearsal room, and then we didn't know what it was gonna be, we just liked it and whatever, and we told Anne Marie about it, and she kept saying, you know, she wanted to hear it, and so the last day in the studio, we were at New 42 Studios, and um, we were pulling up the tape, you know, from the floor, moving into the broadcast.

[59:00] Mary Page Nance: Of course. It was a last day, and we were like, Oh, Anne-Marie, like we want to play you this song. So it was me, Rory, Amory came around, and then Elliot Kennedy, who Dick was in the room, and we played it for them, and people kind of started to like come around. I have videos of all this, it's so cool. Oh and they were like, This is incredible, my gosh, we have to like people were kind of joining in and singing, whatever, and you well, I guess you weren't there, but the boys and Diane and Mia and Laura and Matthew and all the boys, and the book writer, um James were all in the other studio. Uh-huh. With like stage managers and whatever, and Elliot Kennedy and David Chase, they're like, Come, we gotta show this for Diane.

We gotta play this for Diane. Like the whole cast and crew, you know, like Haley Bennett is now like all she was like a musical they everybody came in and we all sat down in front of Diane and you know the all the boys and we just sang it. Mia Michaels is there, you know, yeah, and everyone just kind of like joined in and it was this total magical time just celebrating uh the energy of our show, the spirit of our community and our relationships and what that song was was that moment and um it was like this is so good. I want it on the album.

[1:00:24] Yes, stop it, you know, Mary Mitchell Campbell was there who's our you know, new and they were all like okay, so wow recorded the album, and Mary Mitchell had told us before, like me and Rory, she's like she's like, you know, we wanna do this, but like if we don't have time, you know, when you record a book and you have one day and it's very timed out and you have to get everything done. And she was like, If we have time, we're gonna do this at the end of the card. Oh my god. And so Rory and I are just like freaking out. We're so excited and we're like rehearsing it in the corner, you know. I love it. I have Amy Maria, I'm like, does this harmony sound okay? You know, you know, she's like, Yeah, then um and then after that we recorded the album.

I remember like running across the street and getting a bottle of whiskey for everybody. We passed out shots. We all took a shot of whiskey, and like then we had the empty bottle, and people had like keys on journals and like anything that makes noise. Yeah. It was brilliant. Like ukulele. I mean, everyone gathered around. We had one take. We had one for me, one for Rory, and then everyone was kind of like surround sound behind us. Yeah. And they were like, hit it. And we did it.

[1:01:39] That's crazy. And it turned out amazing. Right. I mean, I if we had like really mic'd it rehearsed. I mean, we never rehearsed this thing. It was just like sing whatever comes to you. Wow. And it's it's like one of the most magical. Like it just means so much to me. I feel like this video is on YouTube somewhere. Cause I feel like I've definitely seen it. Okay. It's brilliant. Everyone needs to go watch it. Like you'll totally see what she she's saying in the sense of like the empty bottle and like the keys. Like whatever was making noise, people were just grabbing and just like doing it. Like whatever. Um it's awesome. I I'm obsessed. I had no idea it was like you and Rory, and like you guys were kind of figuring out, and then you kind of presented it.

That that's so fascinating. I love it. And then of course it ended up on the album. It it's so cool. You know Michael McElroy who um was the original like um music, I mean, created the Broadway Inspirational Voices. Uh-huh. Ran it for years, up until last year, I want to say, a couple years ago. Um he actually reached out to Carol Lee, who was in the show, he heard the version on the album and said, you know, who arranged this? Because Oh my god. Rory and I didn't really get credit. We we got credit a little bit in like the back of the album, but it doesn't say our names on if you know if you play it on Spotify, you won't see our names. Nobody knows that we made it. Um so he asked Carol Lee, because that's who she he knew in the show, like, who made this?

I wanna I want to do this for Broadway Inspirational Voices and make it arrangement with this version. Like, like can I get approval? And Carol Lee very sweetly asked, connected him with me and Rory, and so now the Broadway Inspirational Voices have an amazing version.

[1:02:15] Oh, I had no idea. That's amazing. Yeah, and it's amazing. So people should listen to that too. Oh I love that. See everyone supporting everyone here. Um so cute. Um, well, we've talked enough about Finding Everlyn, so uh and we're already like uh we've already been here forever. If you need to go, just like let me know. I know tell me to shut up and I will. I know, no, because I could literally talk to you forever, and I'm I'm loving this right now and kind of reminiscing about it all. It's it's fantastic. Um, but I do want to talk to you uh about uh what's currently going on over at A Beautiful Noise. Uh obviously you're over there right now, which is super exciting. I mentioned, like obviously before we were recording and everything, I saw the show opening night and absolutely fell in love with the show.

Um I'm obsessed with it in every way. Will Swenson is stupid. Um it should be illegal how good he is in that role. Um but here he is doing it. Um and uh you of course, you're like the star ensemble dancer, you know, front row, all of the all of the songs, and I'm like, oh my god, go MT! You know, it's like it's so good. Um it's it's a it's really like a concert, you know. It's not unlike anything like I it's so rare to have on Broadway. I mean, there's a lot of these like biomusicals coming out now that's like starting to like feel concert-y, but to this show in particular with the set and the band and where everything is placed, it literally feels like you're at like Madison Square Garden for like two hours, you know.

It's so cool. Yeah. Um so and then of course you you're understudying the lead of Marsha in in the show which it's played by Robin Herder usually um Queen of all queens fantastic it's unbelievable as well her performance is ridiculous. Um but you understudy her and just had your first ever principled bow. Like not even on Broadway but like Principal Bow. Like that is wild. What was happening what was happening in that head of yours.

[1:05:28] Oh my gosh thanks for bringing it up Eli um my gosh so many things were happening in my head and yeah it's the first time I've ever been in a musical and played a role that had their own bow. Yeah what? Ever in my life and I've been performing since I was eight years old. Like 'cause I don't I don't know how to explain it. I've just never I've never gotten parts. Like I did community theater of my entire like for ten years in a row and I, you know of course auditioned for like wanted to be Annie. And it's I ended up getting Peaches who's the like the Annie Warbox this is a sequel to Annie by the way. A role but I I had like four lines, you know and Yeah. Whatever like and then I ran Footloose and I was auditioning for like three girl you know the three friends and I didn't get a any of those parts and I ended up getting like because one person backed out and they bumped me up I get Betty Blast, which was my favorite role I've ever played honestly.

Oh it 'cause it was the first time I realized I could do comedy and it was a special moment for me, but Betty Blast doesn't get her own bow. She's in one scene. Right. So like you know in high school, I just I never I never got I never played a lead ever. Ever in my whole life. Not even a lead, but like someone that had more than five lines. Like even in Finding Neverland, I had one line, and I remember all my friends were like, You had a line! Yes, sir. Cucumber sandwiches. Oh, absolutely. It was iconic. Oh my god. But yeah, I could just feel like my whole life I've been trying to do so much with so little. Yeah. Because I'm always just in the ensemble, which I I love that work, but I've had so much practice making tiny things into huge things because it's all I've ever been given. I've always thought like, what if I was given something real to work with?

[1:07:29] Yeah. I've never I've sung full songs in cabarets or whatever, you know, like Broadway sessions, but like barely, you know, but I ha I have never I've done other types of performances, but in a musical to like I I was joking with my voice teacher, I was like, I've never had a number. Yeah, never had a number that was like my number. I've had numbers that I'm like featured in, or particularly in Modern Millie, and I played um Pearl Lady, who's like kind of gets er in Guys and Dolls. I was like the Havana dancers, like featured and tells a story in a number, but I've never been like the center of like I'm singing the song and I'm dancing the dance, and it's never, ever. I need to see you do Forever and Blue Jeans.

Like, seriously, I think I'll lose my mind. It's gonna be crazy. It's so fun. So anyway, when this show like came up, I'm really going in because you asked me, but it's like such a big deal for me, because when the show came up, really truly how I got this show is Anne Marie. Uh huh. Doing a workshop of joy of her new music. Oh my god, yeah. And I was it was like a 29 hour reading directed by Sammy Cannold, who is a huge girl now, is a good friend of mine who was on Finding Neverland in Boston. Yes. He was a PA, or like instance, and now she's rock star director. She was directing that, and I was just doing a reading, and Marie was like, Oh my god, I'm doing Neill Diamond's next week. You are you available?

Like, I need people. What? And I was like, sure, yeah. I was at the time was like, Yeah, I'll do a reading, whatever. She got me out. We did a vocal workshop. Like, I just kept hanging around. Like they kept I I thought never thought in a million years I would do the show. Yeah. Friday? Absolutely not. I was like, oh, I'm just doing a reading. Right. It kept happening, and they it kept being super interested in me, which was kind of shocking. Cause I was like, okay, okay, like this just doesn't happen in my career. I always feel like I have to fight for something or audition for something 20 times before I actually get it. Yeah. Just kept being like, Would you like to do the next workshop? I was like, oh sure, sure.

Yeah, absolutely. Who are they? I've never heard the I didn't see the script. Like, because we were just doing the music. And so they had always been interested in me doing this, and I was just kind of like, never. I feel like I've had to claw for everything in my life. And this just like they were like, Yeah, I think she's just right for it. Wow. I I was like, okay, but I was scared out of my mind once I realized what the part was. Yeah. And originally it was Sherry Renee Scott did the workshop, who is an icon. Yeah. Oh my god, I'm understudying Sherry Renee Scott. I was like, I can't do that. I'm not good enough. I don't know what I'm doing, you know. And like not doing the next thing for whatever reason, and it ended up being Robin Herder, who is Broadway's triple threat, and then the role on her, which she had in like dance and her voice, she's got this rock star voice, like they crafted this role that I ended up being really right for. So random. I mean, I d I didn't even audition for it.

[1:10:43] Wow. They just were like, you can do it. But you were always kind of set to understudy her. Even from the begin. That's wild. Oh my god. Because they didn't even know what the part was yet. Yeah, exactly. I certainly couldn't have known that I would have been good at it. Right. Stop it. Come on. It was the first time in my entire career that I haven't had to fight for something. Like they the creative team has believed in me since day zero. That's amazing. I have like nothing but wonderful things to say about being everyone on the creative team, associates, assistants. I've always felt so valued in that room. And that doesn't happen a lot in this. Um and I just was so taken by how I felt in the room and how supported and like just valued.

I I was just I felt like they were they really wanted me to be there. Um and they were really grateful that I was. And so that kind of was why I kept up with the show. And then sort of understudy this thing, it turned into this ama you know, the I got more and more intimidated as the role like became what it was. Um, but I also knew that I could do it. Yeah. And so I just worked really hard. I worked on the songs. I mean I also tend to do comedy, like the like standing still and singing a love badly sung by Barbara Strize. I'm like, kill me. That's all I do. That's like my worst nightmare. Stop it. Oh my god. I I was like I always think people can't take me seriously, or I can't do serious things like oh, I just am like meeting a person.

And so here I here I was, you know, last week on Brock Show. My hands, like the fact that I could just stand there without moving my hands, you know, and singing this song and being connected and was it wild? It was wild. It was like I I had to say it was like I have been wanting to prove to myself that I could do something like my entire life. So I had a great hope that I would be able to do it, but I really didn't have any evidence. Um you know, like I knew that I could, but I had never done it before. So to do it, and I felt so in my power. I felt like it was you know, like my dreams were coming true, and I felt ready for it, you know. Like I it felt like I I was ready, and and so I was able to like fully be there and just respond, and I felt so right.

Like I felt like I've been doing it my whole life. Yeah, even though I never had, and I just got the most amazing response from my friend. I mean, like I had like 30 people in the audience. My parents came up on an Amtrak train that almost burned down in New Jersey. They had to take a cab to get there. Yes.

[1:13:29] Mary Page Nance: They took a 300 Uber from New Jersey to get there and try it.

[1:13:33] Eli Tokash: Yes.

[1:13:34] Mary Page Nance: No, oh my god, I'm so sorry. But I'm glad they got there.

[1:13:37] Eli Tokash: Me too.

[1:13:38] Mary Page Nance: Oh, that's crazy. Almost burned down the Broadhurst Theater, which is maybe a story from another time.

[1:13:46] Eli Tokash: Stop it! What'd you do?

[1:13:49] Mary Page Nance: I put a hat on a light bulb.

[1:13:53] Eli Tokash: Oh great.

[1:13:55] Mary Page Nance: Which I do upstairs in our dressing rooms because they're LED. I shouldn't do it. Don't do that, everybody. Don't do it.

[1:14:01] Eli Tokash: Oh my god.

[1:14:02] Mary Page Nance: But I had done it since for three months because like that's where I would just put my hat.

[1:14:05] Eli Tokash: Right.

[1:14:06] Mary Page Nance: Because everyone puts stuff on their light bulbs.

[1:14:08] Eli Tokash: With your little MP hat.

[1:14:09] Mary Page Nance: I love that hat. Oh my god. It wasn't. It was like a bright orange.

[1:14:12] Eli Tokash: Oh, okay.

[1:14:14] Mary Page Nance: Carhartt. And um, I didn't know got into like Robin Herder's beautiful perfect dressing room. And I was like, oh, I can make it feel like home. I guess I'll just put my hat up on the light bulb. Well, it turns out they were regular light bulbs.

[1:14:26] Eli Tokash: Oh my god.

[1:14:28] Mary Page Nance: What the smell? Stop it. Oh, ten crew members. Like they're moving ceiling tiles. They're like, they thought it was a burning fan belt. They thought it was nasty.

[1:14:40] Eli Tokash: I mean, this was an hour and a half before my principal debut.

[1:14:46] Mary Page Nance: I almost found the holding.

[1:14:49] Eli Tokash: Hey, well, at least you didn't have to think about your nerves in that instance. You were kind of just thinking, oh my god, please let me not burn down the theater.

[1:14:57] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god. It was a great distraction, yeah. I was like, if like the worst I could possibly do is burn down the Broadhurst Theater. And that's already happened. So like anything that happens after this, oh my god, that is right.

[1:15:19] Eli Tokash: But yeah, so that's 20 minutes to say it was incredible.

[1:15:24] Mary Page Nance: Yeah. It was like it felt like a like sort of divinely crafted moment that I got to live out, and now I know that I can do that. And I feel like I feel like I unlocked a piece of my power that I didn't have before.

[1:15:38] Eli Tokash: So yeah, it's crazy because I mean you're in the it's not like you're just like an understudy, you know, like you are in the show eight shows a week, you know, so you're not like just there to sit backstage and understudy. You're like fully doing it.

[1:15:50] Mary Page Nance: So it with the show, you know, just recently opening, I was kind of like surpr first of all, I didn't know you were understudied uh Marsha, and I also didn't realize that you know it was it it didn't open that long ago. So like for someone who was rehearsing their own track to then do another track uh just a couple months after opening, I was like, Oh already, like how um do uh do were you able to rehearse during the whole tech and previews thing or or was it a lot of just yeah, go for it.

[1:16:25] Mary Page Nance: A lot so uh we have a we have a standby who usually goes on for the female roles.

[1:16:30] Eli Tokash: Oh okay.

[1:16:31] Mary Page Nance: I knew that she was there and would go on first. So when I was in previews, honestly, I wasn't really I wasn't well, I would definitely wasn't rehearsed, but I wasn't talking about like I knew the lines, like but I had never like really done anything, um, because I knew she was gone, and she did end up going on like pretty early on because Robin was sick uh early in the process. Um but I knew that I was kind of like the last to go on because there are three understudies for her.

[1:16:58] Eli Tokash: And what is yeah, one is a standby who always goes on first, and then Paige Foray, brilliant woman. She had gone on in Boston, and so she'd already done it, had everything, so I was like, well, she'll go on second. Like I knew that I was like the third cover, so I wasn't really stressed about it.

[1:17:16] Mary Page Nance: But I definitely tried to learn it on my own as much as I could.

[1:17:19] Eli Tokash: Yeah, of course.

[1:17:20] Mary Page Nance: But then so I would say I guess like a couple like two months ago, I finally started getting rehearsed for it, and we did a put in.

[1:17:27] Eli Tokash: Wow.

[1:17:28] Mary Page Nance: And the rehearsals were, you know, as good as they could be, like kind of quick, because we were putting in some new ensemble members, so we kinda tried to all do it.

[1:17:36] Eli Tokash: Oh, right, right, right.

[1:17:37] Mary Page Nance: Um, and so I did get a put in, which felt like a massive like thing to accomplish, but that was two and a half months ago.

[1:17:45] Eli Tokash: Oh my gosh.

[1:17:46] Mary Page Nance: Truly, I thought I would never go on. Like I was 'cause I've I've understudied a principal before on tour. I did Bright Star. Uh-huh. And I never went on the whole time.

[1:17:54] Eli Tokash: So like my experience too. Like I knew I was the third cover. Robin is a tank and she never calls out because she's just so hardworking and just really durable. I don't know. She's amazing.

[1:18:07] Mary Page Nance: Um, but she had two personal days that were scheduled. She was filming something for PBS, this like Broadway concert. Yeah. She was in the course line. Um so she had these two scheduled days that I knew about, and Becky, our standby was supposed to go on. Um, but she broke her toe.

[1:18:24] Eli Tokash: The four.

[1:18:25] Mary Page Nance: I know. She's okay and she's feeling better now.

[1:18:27] Eli Tokash: Okay, good.

[1:18:28] Mary Page Nance: But it was her baby toe, but it was just annoying. She like could do it, but she probably shouldn't. And um, so they ended up splitting the day I got to do one, and then Paige, our other side got to do it for another. So yeah, so I had like two days' notice.

[1:18:43] Eli Tokash: Wild.

[1:18:44] Mary Page Nance: Which I so I had to tell people and they could come me out.

[1:18:47] Eli Tokash: For sure.

[1:18:47] Mary Page Nance: I I'm shocked that you got it put in. At Neverland. I don't know if that would have happened.

[1:18:52] Eli Tokash: Okay.

[1:18:53] Mary Page Nance: What I tell you, people in this building are it's just on top of it.

[1:18:59] Eli Tokash: Yeah, and like people, even like swings and stuff, all that they they take care of people well here. You know, we could we could be more supported, honestly. We we could have been taken care of better. However, like there are I've seen shows where they take care of them very well. And I feel like we do pretty good job. But Neverland people are like, you know, I didn't get a s I didn't get a put also great comment. I didn't get put ins for like Anthony Warlow and Alfie Boe.

[1:19:32] Eli Tokash: Right.

[1:19:33] Mary Page Nance: Major leads. Like nobody got put ins. But it was rehearsals. I didn't get a put in for Wendy, I just did it.

[1:19:39] Eli Tokash: Right.

[1:19:42] Mary Page Nance: But it's wild because it seems like we rehearsed every day. But we were always rehearsing a new fame person.

[1:19:49] Eli Tokash: Yeah, amen.

[1:19:52] Mary Page Nance: That's hilarious. I feel like people who have been going into our show have been like new cast members and new swings have been very well prepared. Like for the first four weeks.

[1:20:02] Eli Tokash: That's amazing.

[1:20:04] Mary Page Nance: When I went into Great Comet, I went in in previews, I learned a track in a week.

[1:20:09] Eli Tokash: Oh my god.

[1:20:11] Mary Page Nance: I was on stage in front of a Broadway house by the end of that week, having never done a put-in.

[1:20:15] Eli Tokash: And by never done a put-in, I mean I never ran the show.

[1:20:18] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god. With anyone other than like the other twins.

[1:20:22] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[1:20:22] Mary Page Nance: Oh my god. And there were like 30 people in that show. I had never done it in my costume. I had never done it in my mic. I had never done it, period. And that show had to be like wild too, because like it wasn't a stage. It was like a whole no, it was a whole theater with a stage.

[1:20:37] Eli Tokash: It was wild.

[1:20:38] Mary Page Nance: Yes. So like the people I don't think people understand like how well they're being taken care of.

[1:20:43] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[1:20:44] Mary Page Nance: Well which is like as it's That's great to hear.

[1:20:47] Eli Tokash: Yeah, for sure.

[1:20:48] Mary Page Nance: But I'm I'm like the bitter Betty who's like back in mind.

[1:20:53] Eli Tokash: Now you're the veteran.

[1:20:54] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, of course.

[1:20:56] Eli Tokash: Now I'm that person, which is so weird.

[1:20:58] Mary Page Nance: You're the Josh Lehman now.

[1:21:00] Eli Tokash: I am a Josh Lehman.

[1:21:04] Mary Page Nance: That's amazing. I love that so much. Well, I've got to talk to you about one more thing and then I I'll finally let you go. But um, you know, you've been able to do all of this while dealing with your own personal like life. And that's a whole other thing that people forget about is that you know, life happens too for performers. Um so while you've been having this career on Broadway and throughout your musical theater, you know, career and journey, um, you've had a manage doing eight shows a week while dealing with endometriosis.

[1:21:35] Eli Tokash: So I can't imagine like what that even means for you, like and in that process and what it's like to perform and all of that. But like talk to me about being a performer and having to do eight shows and you know, I mean, it's we have this thing in theater where we're like, it's okay to call out, but like it's hard to like get to that place of oh it is okay and let me call out, let me take care of myself. So what has that journey been like for you in kind of dealing with it as a performer?

[1:22:12] Mary Page Nance: My gosh, Eli, thank you for asking me. Yeah, literally. Try to be quick. Yeah, but it's been a whole it's like been a whole journey, and I so yes, I have endometriosis, which I know now, and I only got diagnosed about six years ago. So when I was doing Hyperland, I didn't know that I had.

[1:22:31] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[1:22:38] Mary Page Nance: Um so just for people listening, if you don't know what that is, endometriosis is it affects one in ten people born with uterus. Um one in ten. So that's many. Like a lot of people have this, they have this disease. And it's a disease in which tissue that's like similar to the tissue inside your uterus grows outside of your uterus, and it can it can affect your diaphragm. It can grow in your diaphragm, your bladder, your I mean, women have it in their like lungs, like literally people coming with collapsed lungs, and they'll be like, oh, it's endometriosis. Like it can affect your entire system.

[1:23:15] Eli Tokash: Wow.

[1:23:19] Mary Page Nance: Organs. Obviously, you know, more common areas are around the uterus, ovaries, like um, you know, people can have all kinds of symptoms that no one think relates to that type of issue. So it's really hard to get diagnosed because if you have symptoms that relate to your lung, you're not gonna go to a gynecologist, you're gonna go to like a lung person, and if that person isn't educated in that, it's gonna be hard to figure out what that is. Um it can affect people so differently, depending on the stage and depending on what your symptoms are.

[1:23:53] Eli Tokash: Right.

[1:23:53] Mary Page Nance: For me, my symptoms were um it's a systemic disease, so it affects your whole system and how you kind of intake your hormones and how how how they're regulated or not, or um energy levels, like tons of things like that. So my biggest symptoms were like extreme like just like fatigue and just exhaustion and just being tired all the time. And um not having regulated hormones and dealing with like spikes of you know like cortisol like you're just or hormones being all over the place which can affect anxiety and crazy things like that which um people don't realize so much to do with just like eating and taking the right supplements and regulating things like that.

[1:24:35] Eli Tokash: Oh wonderful things for performers.

[1:24:35] Mary Page Nance: Yes oh my God I can't imagine Mary Page. And the biggest thing for me was um well I had some symptoms that were like bladder related which I didn't know early at the time like that's TMI but like that I just didn't know that that's what it was and I was dealing with that during all during Neverland. And the biggest thing for me is has been pain. So um back pain specifically and just like excruciating pain on my period but also kind of throughout the month. So people also don't realize it's not just on your period that you get these symptoms. They can flare up based on anything like too much sugar. Like you're you're susceptible to so many flare-ups based on how you eat and if you're stressed or tired or whatever.

[1:25:21] Eli Tokash: Um so for me it was like the biggest symptoms on my period. Every month I would have doubled over like I'm talking like excruciating pain wrapping around my entire back and you know front area and nausea. So I would I remember being at the top floor of the PT room of that room after PT and just being like like weeping. I was in so much pain and throwing up.

[1:25:49] Eli Tokash: Throwing up multiple times.

[1:25:50] Mary Page Nance: Oh yeah. So I would get nausea. Like as soon as my period would come, I would be doubled over in pain and I'd be throwing up, which like makes the stomach pain worse. And then I would do a Broadway show that night.

[1:26:01] Eli Tokash: Yeah, which is crazy.

[1:26:03] Mary Page Nance: What's normal? So you h were deal you've been dealing with it, but you weren't d you hadn't been diagnosed until after Neverland.

[1:26:11] Eli Tokash: Okay, got it.

[1:26:12] Mary Page Nance: I just was like, oh, I just get bad periods because that's what I was conditioned to think from my doctors.

[1:26:18] Eli Tokash: Universe.

[1:26:19] Mary Page Nance: So because that's how we talk about we don't talk about the fact that that's not normal.

[1:26:24] Eli Tokash: Right.

[1:26:25] Mary Page Nance: Um and so I remember like this would be my experience ever I'm talking like for five hours out of the day I would be like shivering because I couldn't keep water down. I was throwing up so much and I was in so much pain. And then I would just do a Broadway show.

[1:26:37] Eli Tokash: Wow, wow.

[1:26:38] Mary Page Nance: But I don't think I ever called out throughout that time. And I remember talking to Joe Conger, the world's best PT, um, who was our PT, and he suggested acupuncture, like that that could help. So I tried acupuncture. I was going like three times a week. I was taking Chinese herbs. I was going to like a healer who prescribed me mountain water and did like ceramic energy work on me. Like I tried everything. I tried everything, all kinds of like supplements and whatever, and like I was like, what is wrong with me? Why why do I feel so awful? And I remember talking about it in the dressing rooms with the girls, like, how's your day? I was like, Oh, like threw up like five hours. They were like, What? I'm like, oh my period. I remember being like, they were like, huh.

[1:27:26] Eli Tokash: Right.

[1:27:27] Mary Page Nance: Okay. Like it was almost like the feedback from them of being like, you know, that doesn't happen on my period. You know, so just talking about it was helpful because I understood that what I was experiencing wasn't normal. Um but yeah, so I was dealing with that all throughout the run and then same during Great Comet and then finally I went to an endometriosis specialist. Oh no, it was so bad I was so sick I went to the hospital to the ER yeah just on my period because I was so sick I couldn't keep down water I needed an IV for like sustenance like literally for fluids yeah and I went to the ER and the doctor was like hey so I think you have you know I think you might have endometriosis and I was like what is that I had never heard the word really complaining to my I I had been seeing actual doctors for years.

[1:28:23] Mary Page Nance: Wow, that's crazy. Right? Like what? And of course, I go home and I'm like, what is endometriosis? You know, I thought, of course, I like look on Instagram, there's a ton about women sharing their stories, and I was like, well, hold on, hold on, hold on. I have this, this is what I have. Oh my God, nausea, pain, stomach pain, you know, other things like nausea, yeah, intercourse, like things like that. I have all these things. And then I ended up going to this specialist who diagnosed me. You can't really get diagnosed without a surgery, which is another crazy thing, but he was like 99% sure that I had it. And then I ended up doing the laparoscopy to see what was going on, and then they ended up finding it and taking it all out. And so, oh wow, I have now had two surgeries for it.

[1:29:11] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, and have spoken out about it on my platforms as much as I can because it changes women's lives. Had I known about that, had I known about it five years before, my life would have been completely different. Um, and now that I'm educated about it, I can do so many things to support my hormones, to support, you know, my energy, my body that I didn't know I could do before.

[1:29:35] Mary Page Nance: Yeah. In addition to having the surgery to kind of clear it out, they basically go in and cut out all the tissue.

[1:29:40] Eli Tokash: Oh my God.

[1:29:41] Mary Page Nance: But it grows back. So there's no actual like cure.

[1:29:45] Eli Tokash: Wow.

[1:29:47] Mary Page Nance: Yeah. So I tried it really quick, but that's a big subject. So that's that. Wild. But it has taught me so much about myself and about self-care and about slowing down.

[1:30:00] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[1:30:01] Mary Page Nance: I do think I'm a person that tends to say yes to everything. Not anymore, but in my younger self. And I think like had I not had that disease, I like literally it made me sit on my ass and take care of myself. Like that's what the disease does. It goes slow down, sit down. How are you taking care of yourself? Like what's too much for you? What's not? Like how can we regulate your nervous system? How can we like it? It forces you to slow down, and I'm grateful for it even though it's been horrible and I've had a lot of terrible experiences with it that I wish upon nobody. But it has taught me a lot about how I want to live my life and how I should live my life and how to just kind of regulate myself in the world.

[1:30:51] Mary Page Nance: I had to slow down and, you know, have moments where I'm stimulated and get to go on for a lead in a Broadway show, but then I now know how to kind of come down from that and regulate so it's not like my whole system is off all the time. Um, so I am ultimately grateful that I have it and that I'm able to speak about it and have other people learn about it.

[1:31:13] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[1:31:14] Mary Page Nance: But um, be in touch with your own body, you know, type of thing.

[1:31:19] Eli Tokash: That's incredible. Oh my God. I can't imagine. That's just wild to me. Um, this whole journey that I was following on Instagram and all the things and you got, you had wonderful support, you know, touching on the theater community again, you know, like you had a GoFundMe and like everyone was coming together. Like you were everywhere on my social media for like a solid two weeks, you know, when you were going through all of this. And I was just like, I can't imagine because that, like I started doing research because you were posting about it and I was like, oh, like what is it? Because, you know, like my family and girlfriend or whatever, like they deal with like hard period, like, you know, pure pain and all the things like that.

So it's just like, it's like, oh, like this is interesting. Like, and it's just like you said, it's just like using your platform and talking about it. It can do so much for not only yourself but like anyone else, like literally, um, because it is so common, you know, it's wild, it's wild. And to hear that you've been the way that you've had to manage it because not only do you have to do eight shows a week and everything, but you have to deal with this and also like put on a face for others in the room that you're with, you know, to make them feel like comfortable and whatever, you know, like I, there was never a day at the theater where I was like, oh, I don't know, Mary Page may be going through something today, you know, or whatever.

Because there were definitely days where like the kids would be like, oh, I don't know what's going on. Like Laura Michelle maybe seems a little sad today. She's going through her fourth breakup of the month or whatever.

[1:32:43] Mary Page Nance: I love her.

[1:32:58] Eli Tokash: She was, she was on a date. She, dude, she would tell us all about it. And she loved talking about it. Um, fourth date of the week. It didn't go well, and she was upset and, you know, it was maybe not like the day. But um, but there was never a moment that was like, no, like Mary Page was always willing to, she was always there for us, she was always having fun with us, she was always playing around. You know, it was, you were always consistent, you know, and like it's crazy to hear that you were going through all of that while having to perform and, and you know, make sure everyone else was comfortable around you when you were not, you know. Um, it's, yeah, no, seriously. It, I mean, it when I said earlier, like one of the strongest people I know after like learning about it and following your journey and like it's, it's just been wild. Um, so how can, how can people listening follow that journey and continue to follow it through you and like on your social platforms? What can you shout those out?

[1:33:55] Mary Page Nance: Yeah, um, so I guess my Instagram is just at Mary Page Nance. Yeah, you can follow me there. I haven't been great about posting a lot because I'm, you know, I don't know, I'm trying to busy girl. It's in my life, yeah, you know, but um, I definitely post about endo for sure. And um, I think I have a highlight on my page that had like an endo highlight that has a bunch of references if people are interested in more about it. Um, and I'm always down for a DM. If you have a question, I can send you some, you know, accounts that I'd like to look at to read, you know, learn about it and um, and yeah, I mean just do like Endo Foundation of America is great. It's the um foundation that my surgeon is a part, like founded, and they have a ton of information online if you're curious about it, but um, yeah, it's definitely important to talk about and for us to like normalize being able to like say the word period out loud.

It's like even though some people are uncomfortable with that, but it's like it's such a part of our lives that um, women have been taught to be ashamed of for so long, um, that it's just, it's just ridiculous to me at this point. It's like it's like anything else that happens in the world, like it's just something we need to be able to talk about.

[1:35:10] Eli Tokash: Yeah.

[1:35:11] Mary Page Nance: Um, yeah, just being aware of it, and if you hear of any of anyone in your life that has struggles with that or like symptoms that sound similar, be like, hey, have you looked up endometriosis? And there's, there's a bunch of different things that can be involved, but um, you know, just knowing about it and talking about it is super important.

[1:35:31] Eli Tokash: I love it. Wow. Craziness. Um, kudos to you, you know, you for so kick it. I mean, like the surgery and the way that you've had to recover and everything, like before, you know, starting a third Broadway show is just like, it's like, okay, like what more can you go through? But apparently you have to continue to go through it. Um, which is just, you know, we're here for you, and we're gonna continue to follow that journey. And uh wow, it just, it's inspiring, it really is. And uh whatever you're doing on stage every night, you know, as performers, you know, we're doing the thing and we're helping others, and it's just, it's so incredible. And to watch you, you know, in your element, uh, in A Beautiful Noise is so much fun. So everyone go see her in A Beautiful Noise. Uh, and follow her along with her journey.

[1:36:21] Eli Tokash: Are you kidding? And it was like a mer page of Mary, you know, like she's doing all of the things. Um, kidding me. This is, yeah, my God, your little station. Um, yeah, triple threat, entrepreneur, businesswoman, girl boss, um, all the things, you know, it's just, it's incredible. And I'm so inspired by you and I'm so thrilled to have you on and catch up with you. It's really been so much fun. I love you. You know that. But yeah.

[1:36:49] Mary Page Nance: Oh my God. I think you're so special and I'm so excited to see what you do.

[1:36:53] Eli Tokash: Oh, next years. Even though you're still in college and you're gonna get through those two years and you're gonna be on a real world even though you might feel like you're ready. But I'm so excited to witness it.

[1:37:06] Mary Page Nance: Stop, you're very sweet.

[1:37:09] Eli Tokash: Yes, absolutely. Um, you're so sweet. Thank you so much. You definitely have a lot to take a bow for, so thank you, Mary Page.

[1:37:18] Mary Page Nance: Thank you for having me.

[1:37:21] Eli Tokash: Take a bow, Mary Page Nance.

[1:37:23] Eli Tokash: Oh my God. Just a wonderful episode. It was so great to catch up with her again. Um, just talk to her about her journey that she's kind of gone on these past six years, I believe she said, um, has been kind of is kind of wild, you know, like the fact that she was just performing and just thought, you know, it was a regular period and it was, it was nothing that she thought was actually serious and but yet she was still trying to manage and she was still trying to power through and all these things. You know, it just, it reminds us of how like important and how um strong and inspiring women are, women in general, let alone what women performers have to go through that male performers don't have to go to, uh, go through.

Um, and it's funny to say that like, you know, this industry has changed so much in even the past eight years since Neverland of how, you know, people are being treated and everything like that. But there's still a lot of ways to go. You know, like, but there's still a long way to go in that sense as well.

[1:38:35] Eli Tokash: So um, just to talk to her about all of that was kind of eye-opening, and I thought the perfect way to close out this women's month here in March, um, and honoring all of those female stories that we've been so grateful to have on the podcast this month. Um, and then of course we'll continue these conversations because I think they're all very important moving forward for those of performers who are willing to speak out about it and talk to me about it. So, uh, huge shout out to Mary Page for coming on here today to be vulnerable with me and talk to me about it all and kind of raise awareness for uh endometriosis and uh all the women out there who may be going through the same thing um without even like noticing or or knowing what it is, you know, type of thing.

Um, it's really incredible. Um, so wanted to share that all with you and I hope that you all enjoyed that. And of course, I hope you enjoyed us talking about Finding Neverland because I could literally talk about that show with anyone for three hours. Um, I know we talked about it for a long time. So if you got bored of any of it, hopefully you just skip through and really did stay for the end there and then for the rest of the conversation because what she had to say about, you know, making her Broadway debut, principal debut, it was kind of really cool. And we don't have a lot of those stories on here. Especially lately, you know. It seems like all of these debuts and everything happening, it's just like another thing, you know, and maybe people have already had that experience and everything, so it's not as meaningful, but we got a real raw reaction of literally something that happened just within not even a week.

Um, so to allow me to have her time is I'm just so thankful for Mary Page. And hopefully you all enjoyed it and kind of sc could kind of hear the excitement and the rawness of it all. And hopefully you enjoy this episode. So thanks for listening to this on a Friday. Uh, and perhaps over the weekend if you're listening to this. I know it is a longer one, so you may have had to drag it into the weekend for sure. Um, but yeah, thank you again for listening. And as always, uh, stay tuned. We have some incredible content coming. Uh, another episode next week on Thursday, I promise you, because it's already done. We have a couple episodes already done. Um, so it was I just wanted to get this one out in this month to honor both Women's History Month and also uh Endometriosis Month.

So um, obviously it was a great guest and opportunity that I did not want to pass on. So uh, March 31st, here we are. April's a new month. Everyone have a great April and a fantastic holidays, whatever you celebrate. Uh, hopefully you all enjoy the spending time with your family. And uh yeah, so yeah, with that being said, uh, I hope that you all have a wonderful week. And I can't wait and hope to see you next week. Bye, everyone. Have a great week.

[1:41:28] Eli Tokash: For this episode's current call, I would like to recognize a few people who also deserve to take a bow. This podcast would not be possible without the help from Dory Barrstein, Alan Seales, Kimberly Garrett, and the team at the Broadway Podcast Network. Next in line to take a bow are our fabulous editors, Jessica Gorren, who edits the audio of the podcast that you just listened to, and Tessie Tokash, who edits the videos and visuals for this podcast. And how about a bow for our executive producer, Chris Greiner? And our final bow are extra special to the patrons Brian Thompson, Pat McNamara, the listeners of PCC, as well as all of the other patrons for their continued support. If you're interested in becoming a patron, go to Patreon.com slash TAB.

If you enjoyed this week's episode, make sure to subscribe on the platform that you are currently listening to this on, or go check out our YouTube where you can watch the episode. You can also subscribe, like, and comment on there as well. If you're more into the regular social media and want to follow us, you can do that at Take A Bow Podcast across all social media platforms. The music of this podcast was made by Nikki Torsha and Cormac Collinon, and the logo was created by Giselle Bustos. And that wraps up this episode's curtain call. Thank you all again for listening to this week's episode, and I can't wait to see you next week. Bye everyone. Have a great week.