LOOKING FOR HIS BIG BREAK
Hamilton-born actor has his sights set on Broadway
John McGowan wants to come out from under the radar. The Hamilton-born actor has spent the past few years in New York trying to find work in the theatre.
Stretching his slim frame onto a coffee shop chair, he fixes you with a curious stare. His eyes are blue, incredibly blue. A thatch of brown hair flops over his face. He’s friendly, yet guarded.
“I want to act on Broadway,” he says. “I know that I can if I could get the right papers. You know, a visa and stuff. You must have a green card to work in the United States.”
Other Hamiltonians have done it before him. Cassie Levy is about to star in the new Disney musical “Frozen.” Nick Cordero has been pleasing audiences in “A Bronx Tale.” Tim Alex has done 11 Broadway shows, including “Man of La Mancha” and Hamilton’s Elaine Marcos has done six, standing out in “Priscilla Queen of the Desert.” All struggled with necessary paper work. In the end all made it.
McGowan, 26, has been interested in theatre since he was a small boy.
“I was quiet and shy, but I came alive onstage. As a child I hated school,” he says with a shrug. “I didn’t seem to fit in. I had different ideas about life, I suppose.”
McGowan went to Hamilton teacher Bill Cook’s drama classes to escape the boredom. He bonded there with like-minded folks and was in the musical “Oliver!” and played The Narrator in “Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”
“It was all just casual, just for fun,” McGowan says. “As I got older though I took a more serious view.”
McGowan took Visual and Performance Arts at Brock University. He auditioned for AMDA (American Musical and Dramatic Academy), the prestigious school in New York that taught Caissie Levy. He won three scholarships, enough to help pay for two years in New York at the famous school. Then it was time to look for a job.
“You get a special visa that lasts for a short while after your schooling. But work doesn’t just fall into your lap.
“You don’t realize how special you have to be to get attention. There are many that are special in New York City, trying to work on Broadway. You soon realize you are a dime a dozen. And it’s easier to hire an American than deal with the paperwork you need to cast a Canadian.”
At AMDA McGowan caught the eye of many influential people. They praised his voice, his looks, his acting ability and his passion. Yet, John McGowan feels he was in fact betrayed by people who nurtured and encouraged him.
“One minute they know you and like you. The next minute they’re on to someone else.”
McGowan found his supporters sometimes had short attention spans.
“I worked at an Israeli soap shop that Lady Gaga frequented. I worked in a restaurant. I did a Cabaret show at Below 54. (Michael Feinstein’s popular night club). But you can get discouraged. I did. Then something really great happened.”
John McGowan was cast in the role of the son in the musical “Next to Normal.” It played at a small theatre called The Producers Club on 44th St. It was presented by Time to Fly Productions and was directed by Evan Pappas, the New York actor/director who starred on Broadway in “Parade” and “My Favorite Year.”
Pappas has great things to say about McGowan.
“Oh that John McGowan. As an actor, he’s sexy, he’s dangerous, he’s smart, he’s clever, he’s good. As a human being, he’s just one of the finest. I would be in a room with him every chance I could get.”
High praise and respect from someone who knows the scene.
There is a chance “Next to Normal” will be remounted in an offBroadway theatre, perhaps in November. McGowan certainly hopes so. He hopes it will lead to the necessary green card for more work.
“I got that role over lots of other people. There may be people who sing better than I do. But I’m good. I can do this. I’m a product and I have to sell myself. And I love the people around me who are genuine and try to help. There are of course those that will use you. When you’re a lean-limbed male you get messages of a certain kind. You are invited to dinner and you get promises. Then it doesn’t work out.”
Stacy Lee Tilton who produced “Next to Normal,” says McGowan is “a sublime actor with a voice both exciting and tender, which made his performance (Gabe in “Next to Normal”) both electrifying and heartbreaking. He is endearing, soulful and hilarious, a gem in every respect.”
In spite of such passionate tributes, McGowan still has to land that important green card and visa before he can really make it in the United States.
Ask him if he couldn’t try Shaw, Stratford or Drayton Festivals instead and he fixes you with a surprised stare.
“I want to be on Broadway. That’s what I want my life to be about. In musical theatre it’s where it’s happening.”
You don’t realize how special you have to be to get attention. JOHN MCGOWAN
Gary Smith has written on theatre and dance for The Hamilton Spectator for more than 35 years.