If you know anything about the story of the wildly different witches in “Wicked,” then you know there’s a dashing man who comes in the middle of their unexpected friendship; his name is Fiyero. In the national touring production of “Wicked” currently playing at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines through Oct. 18, that singing and dancing man is played by the charming Colin Donnell. The St. Louis native celebrated his birthday with an all-cast bash Thursday night at the Continental in the East Village. Metromix managed to corner Donnell just minutes before his big day to discuss this city, his show and what’s up next.
Happy birthday from Metromix!
Is it even midnight yet? Only eight minutes until my birthday!
You’re almost there! When you got the tour schedule and saw that you would be spending your birthday in Des Moines, what was your reaction?
I was excited because I’ve spent some interesting birthdays in places. I think I’ve only spent maybe one or two birthdays in New York. I spent one birthday outside of Boston, and that was really fun, though every city has surprises in a good way. There’s this T-shirt at Smash that says ‘Let us exceed your already low expectations,’ and that sort of sums it up for a lot of cities we have been to. Some are places that you wouldn’t go out of your way to go to, but it’s great once you get there, especially if you are able to spend a few weeks there like we usually do. In each city you find places that are awesome and that has been the case in Des Moines.
What have been your surprises here in Des Moines?
The whole East Village district and even the entire downtown district is more developed that many downtown cities that I’ve been to. Growing up in St. Louis, it’s a big city, but there are parts of it that aren’t really as developed as (Des Moines). Within a mile radius, you’re able to walk in a hip part of town with great themed restaurants and bars that all do their own individual deal. So many downtown areas rely on chain restaurants to generate tourist traffic but there seems to be a real dedication to local eats and local breweries in Des Moines. That’s really neat to look in restaurant windows and feel that ‘buy local, eat local’ thing going on. That’s really cool.
Growing up in St. Louis, I read that you had an injury that forced you to pick up a new hobby which became musical theater. Did you ever think back then that it might become a career for you?
I never really expected it to, but I was playing football and broke my ankle. I came to find out that they were auditioning for a musical in the winter during which time I also quit wrestling and my mom begged me to do something to get out of the house. She said, ‘You can sing,’ and I just said no. But I knew that I could juggle and the school was doing a production of ‘Barnum.’ So I went to the choir director anyway and she had me sing ‘Happy Birthday’ and it went from that to being in the choir to being in musicals. I credit the choir director, who has since passed away very tragically, to being the one who got me into the whole thing and helping launch a young career. She was awesome.
Too bad she isn’t here now to sing you Happy Birthday!
I know, she was a wonderful woman, and I had the honor, when she passed away, to write a letter to her daughter to tell her about everything she had done for me. It was great to be able to share with her what an influence her mother had and what she meant to me. They ended up reading the letter at the funeral and the wake. It meant a lot to share about a woman who had given a lot to so many people and to me especially.
Aside from those high school productions, you have also gone on to star in other musicals like ‘High School Musical.’ What was that like?
All through college I worked at the Muny in St. Louis, this 12,000-seat theater. I came back last summer to do two shows, ‘High School Musical’ and ‘Fiddler On the Roof.’ It was a trip coming back, but so fun because a lot of people from my high school and family and friends were able to come out and see the shows. People would ask me if I was still doing ‘that whole theater thing,’ so it was cool to have them come and see me.
Tell me about your current job and your thoughts when you found out you would be joining the cast for such an amazingly successful show and one that has truly - to borrow from the marketing - become a cultural phenomenon?
One of the most exciting things about being in this production of ‘Wicked’ is that we are bringing it to a lot of cities who had never gotten it before and in front of a lot of people who haven’t seen it before. There are these amazing fans who maybe only know it from the CD and have never seen a musical in their lives. It’s so amazing to see their eyes opened by this great production that we are a part of. It’s really awesome to see those people especially experience a musical in general and have their eyes opened to a real theatrical experience and that is what ‘Wicked’ is.
Is it ever tiresome getting on stage eight times a week?
No, there is so much energy stepping into a room of 2,000 to 3,000 people who are loving what they are seeing. It’s really awesome.
What’s your dream job on stage?
I love doing good work in general, period. For me to be able to start this tour up from the very beginning has been a really cool thing. What I really love about theater and art is being able to create it from the ground up. So right now I am working on a new musical that I go back next week to work on. We’ve had some readings of it before, but it’s going to happen in Boston in the spring. I love being a part of new projects. But even being a part of ’Wicked’ has been a dream job. Being a part of rehearsals from day one, whether people had done the show before or for cast members who were brand new, like me. Being able to build this tour was all I cared about. That’s what brings me back time and time again. Being able to create that new feeling is amazing.
