Video: A Declassified Understudy Survival Guide with Damien Brett

It wraps up everything that you have been looking at in the play in the murder mystery the entire time

So every word is important. But I did not know all of the lines exactly yet because I've been studying for five different tracks

The nice thing about the play that goes wrong, though, is that even when you call somebody the wrong name

and say something completely out of the story, which I definitely did, nobody knows because it's the play that goes wrong

And they think it's part of the show. So it was definitely exactly how I meant to do it

Most of my professional experience has actually been with swinging or understudying

I was a swing with the Billy Elliott National Tour, the second national tour, and they first told me that I'd cover 12 male tracks, which didn't end up happening in the end

But at first, I think you can imagine it was very daunting thinking I had to learn 12 different parts of 12 different guys

Then I went on to the Kinky Boots National Tour, and I was able to be an on-stage presence

as well as understudying some principal roles. So that was actually really exciting, too

This is the first time I've understudied such massive characters, though, with a real opportunity to kind of make them different and shine in each of their different ways

Rehearsals as an understudy can look different depending on the show, depending on which company you're with, sometimes depending on your director

I been really fortunate in my experience in all of my understudy work to actually have some real hands time with the understudy tracks which you don always get In this particular show it sitting in the house It sitting in the audience

We were lucky enough to have our entire rehearsal process be with our set and on the stage. And so I was able to sit in the house

And every time they gave a direction, they gave a new blocking note, I was able to take notes in my script and make sure I had something separate for each individual character

This particular job is different because each of the five different roles that I cover are very different characters

And so I really get a unique opportunity to not only be a working actor in New York City

but each time I go on or each time I'm looking at one of the different tracks that I cover to kind of refresh my memory

I get to flex my acting muscles a little bit also. So I get to figure out what it is to be the big blustery guy and then what it is to be the

you know, the timid meek person. And so I really get to have fun

with these big, meaty things that I'm on stage all the time

The entire show, each of these principal characters, is an integral part of the story

and it's such an ensemble piece that every time I go on

it's really a unique experience with the combination of people that are on the stage

I usually do what a lot of actors do with their scripts as I color code

the different characters that I do, So I have highlight each individual character in a different color

And I also highlight even the stage directions or the things that I writing down in each particular character that they do so that I can look back on that later and say okay oh even though he doesn have any lines here I know he has to go over there and pick up the glass from the table

and so I have to really be able to see it in a big picture

so I can understand what to do individually for each track. One of the last things that I do before I go on stage is meditate

I like to kind of remember the reason that I got into this business in the first place

and there's so many nerves that can come up, especially if you don't know when you're gonna go on

or maybe you haven't had much experience with that particular track, and that can really kind of mess with your mind a little bit

So I like to remind myself that I'm doing what I'd love to do, but I also meditate to kind of clear my mind

and release all of the stuff that I can't control. I know that I have prepared

Preparation is key for me. As long as I've done all of the things that I know I can do

everything else is in the hands of the theater gods. So I let them take control

I let the audience kind of feed me. I let the energy of the actors kind of feed me

and I let whatever happens happen. I found it a little bit challenging to find exactly what works for me for my routine

and staying ready. With this particular show, there's a lot of physicality and a lot of stunts

And so I actually do yoga every single day. I find that not only does it help with my meditation

and my spiritual and kind of like helping clear my mind, but also just the strength that you get, the strength and the flexibility that is required for each

and every role that I cover It very easy in a show like ours to make a little mistake be standing in the wrong place and have an injury happen And so I have learned that keeping your body and your mind ready to go at a moment notice

is actually of primary importance. One of my favorite stories about something going wrong actually happening was when we were still

in previews. The first role that I ever went on for is the role of Jonathan. Now, in our play, Jonathan is the dead body, essentially, that happens at the beginning of the murder

mystery. And it is a very physical track and there are a lot of stunts. And because of my background

I'm like, okay, I got the physical stuff. I'm ready to go. But at the end of the show, there's this

huge chunk of dialogue that he has. And it wraps up everything that you have been looking at in the

play and the murder mystery the entire time. So every word is important. But I did not know all of the

lines exactly yet because I've been studying for five different tracks. And so I didn't even have

the proper costume pieces yet. So, um, I didn't even have the proper costume pieces yet. So, Our wardrobe actually went to Macy's, I think, and found a purple jacket that somehow fit me miraculously and dressed me and made me look the part

And I went on stage and I did all the stunts. And then in Act 2, one of our stage managers was actually behind the set with the script ready to go if I went up on my lines

The nice thing about the play that goes wrong, though, is that even when you call somebody the wrong name and say something completely out of the story

which I definitely did, nobody knows because it's the play that goes wrong and they think it's part of the show

So it was definitely exactly how I meant to do it