This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] Mo Brady: It's the season of thanks, and we here at The Ensemblist want to thank our Patreon members for being so supportive of us this year, including Linda Lee, Cheryl Hodges-Seldon, Christian Ranke, Christopher Gurr, Emily Chen, Phoebe Stewart, and Ty Williams. You can join them in supporting The Ensemblist for between $5 and $20 a month at patreon.com slash theensemblist.

[0:30] Mo Brady: You're listening to The Ensemblist, the only podcast that shows you Broadway from the inside out. I'm Mo Brady. It's been a rollercoaster of a year, but there are silver linings to even the darkest clouds. Even though the 2020 Tony Awards have yet to announce a ceremony date, one of those bright spots was seeing two performers with major Ensemblist cred be celebrated for their work last season, Robyn Hurder of Moulin Rouge! The Musical, and Daniel J. Watts of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical. We asked each of them to share their feelings on being nominated for this industry's highest honor. Here, in her own words, is Robyn Hurder, and a statement by Daniel J. Watts, he has given us permission to read and share.

[1:49] Robyn Hurder: So, let me start off by saying that I had no idea this was going to happen. There wasn't one part of me that was expecting this in any way, shape, or form. I thought, okay, well, maybe it's a possibility because I'm the only other female principal in our show. But in my mind, I always thought it's not a big enough role. I don't have enough scenes. I don't even sing a song by myself. Like, literally, I don't actually sing a line by myself in the show. I either sing with the Lady M's, or I sing with Ricky, who plays Santiago. So, in my mind, I'm like, I guess I'm technically a principal, and I would be in the featured actress category, but there really wasn't any part of me that thought that I would get nominated.

So, when I was watching the TV on Thursday the 15th, and I started to see the ladies from Jagged Little Pill get nominated, I started to say to Clyde, oh, I hear that these women are just incredible. And as I was saying that, I saw an R, and I literally hurled myself across the couch. I started screaming, like, guttural, visceral, gross, yelling, crying, and I've never been more shocked in my life. I still can't believe it. It was like getting your first Broadway show feeling, but on steroids. It was almost too much to handle. I'm still kind of shaking from it now. It means so much to me because dance was recognized. Yes, I sing and I act, but dance has always been my number one first true love.

I started dancing when I was six years old, when I saw Cats. That's what I wanted to do. And my parents started bringing me to Broadway shows, and I would just look at the dancing and be like, that's what I want to do when I grow up. I want to be a dancer on Broadway. And then as I got a little bit older, I got a taste of what it feels to sing in a spotlight on stage by yourself when I played Mary Magdalene. And I said, oh, I like this. I like hearing applause for me. But growing up, I never had that mentality. I'm like, I just want to be a star. I always said, I want to get to be a star on Broadway, and I still don't think I'm a star on Broadway. But I'm a Capricorn, which is a goat, and goats climb.

And I've always been a climber. I want to take steps. I don't want to just audition and land the lead. I never saw that, even when I was like 10 years old. I was like, no, I don't want to just be there. I just don't want to get there. I want the climb. Cue Miley Cyrus's The Climb. But I take steps. I'm a stepper man. I want to go through the journey. And that journey as a dancer is intense. It's unlike anything else. And I'm so proud of myself that I have stayed true to what I want, my goals, my dreams. I've always worked so, so hard. The discipline that I have, I'm very proud of. I feel like it's really led to my success. As a dancer, you must respect authority. You respect your teachers. I still have that mentality with Sonia.

She tells me to jump off a building, doing a coupe jeté. I will. So all this being said, listen, I have this dream of mine to win a Tony. It's been a goal since I was literally eight years old. I know it's going to happen. And I knew I would get nominated for a Tony because that is like my number one career dream. I just never, ever, ever thought that it would be for this show, for the role of Nini, which is a role that you have to be able to tell your story through your body, through movement, through dance. And this means more than I could possibly say that they're recognizing dance as a form of storytelling, not just with a song, not just with words. They recognized an energy and a feeling through what I did with my body on stage.

And that's hard to do, especially what Nini has to do eight times a week. It's just special. And I will be forever grateful and proud of the fact that I worked my way up through the ensemble and I wanted it that way. I wanted to learn. I wanted to learn doing eight shows a week, doing just ensemble. And then I wanted to be an understudy because I wanted to feel that way. And then I wanted to actually do my own kind of role, preferably one that I was familiar with, like a revival, which I was blessed with Marty in Greece. And then I wanted to originate my role, which I did in a nice work, if you can get it. I just can't believe it worked out the way I wanted it to work out. But this is not any way how I expected it.

I just never thought that it would be this that would be my Tony nomination. And it's just like kismet. It's all that hard work as a dancer going to dance class for three hours, five days a week, rehearsals for Nutcracker and the ballets on Saturdays for four or five hours. It's not easy being a dancer. You need a special soul and a special mentality and a special love for this art to keep going. And I have kept going. I've had some downfalls. I've had moments where I didn't think I wanted to do this anymore. And I'm just so glad I persevered because here I am. I got my Tony nomination for dance. I mean, yes, you have to be an actor first to properly portray this character, but they recognize dance. And I don't know, I'm just so honored and grateful.

[7:40] Robyn Hurder: We did it. And I mean we, all of us. If you know me, then this is your nomination too. If you've ever shared a dressing room with me, shared a meal with me, shared an idea with me, shared a space with me, then this nomination is yours too. Because I come from the ensemble. I come from folks who are there first thing in the morning and last to leave at the end of the day. I come from folks who bleed, sweat, cry, and then suck it up, sometimes in the back, sometimes in the dark, and often for the least amount of pay. I come from folks who get cut out of photos. I come from folks who do it eight times a week with fractured ankles and broken toes and herniated discs and laryngitis with two weeks paid vacation a year and no weekends off.

I come from folks who do it because we love it while hoping we can pay our rents because love don't pay bills. I come from folks who make it work, even when we are understaffed and undersupervised and underpaid and overworked. I come from folks who are essential, not only to the story, but to the bloodline of the theater community because there is no organization, fundraiser, gala, promo, last-minute understudy dress put in rehearsal without the folks also known as the ensemble. So I'm thankful to the American Theater Wing and the Tony Awards nominating committee for recognizing me because in doing so you are also recognizing us, we, the ones who bleed, sweat, cry it out, sometimes in the back, sometimes in the dark, but ready, willing, and able to step into the light when we are given the opportunity and still happy to hang back to hold the ship together because together is what ensemble means. Together. And we did this together.

[9:35] Mo Brady: Special thanks to Robyn Hurder and Daniel J. Watts for allowing us to share their stories today. The Ensemblist was produced today by Kirsten Anderson, Jackson Klein, and me, Mo Brady. Please rate and review The Ensemblist wherever you listen to podcasts, whether that be on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or at bpn.fm, the home of Broadway Podcast Network. Our Patreon members have on-demand access to our full archive, including full conversations with our guests and early access to episodes. You can support us for between $5 and $20 a month at patreon.com slash The Ensemblist. Thanks for listening. Until next time.