Courtesy of Paul Kolnik

Pearce Wegener, far right, who plays Yonkers, the troublemaker, joins the stage with Patti LuPone during a rehearsal at the St. James Theatre in New York City.

NEW YORK - Who ever thought Columbia’s theater reviewer would end up in the Big Apple? Still, there I was in the first row of the historic St. James Theatre on West 44th Street in New York City. The theater, which has seen everything from the original "Oklahoma!" in 1943 to 2001’s "The Producers," is the current site of the latest revival of Jule Styne and Stephen Sondheim’s 1959 musical "Gypsy," based on the memoirs of celebrated burlesque performer Gypsy Rose Lee.

The show is epic, and everything about it glows with the stimulating buzz of showbiz. It’s the tragic tale of a stage mom who loses control and her children who have to get away. And this production is a "doozy." Not a surprise with Tony award-winning actors Patti LuPone and Boyd Gaines, and director Arthur Laurents, who also penned the script.

But for Mid-Missourians, the real star is a little closer to home. I’m talking about Columbia native Pearce Wegener, who is making his Broadway debut on the St. James stage in the company of "Gypsy" and has been with the production since its birth at the New York City Center’s Encores! series last summer.

Well, at eight performances a week, Pearce is singing and dancing away for packed houses whose audiences include everyone from Matthew Broderick to Lauren Bacall. Now it was my turn to see the show. However, I got what Lauren did not: a chance to talk to Pearce over a drink after the show.

When he walked out of the theater, he was quite unassuming in his heavy jacket and Mizzou ball cap, and his disposition was quite cheerful, though he must have been exhausted. In fact, you’d never have known he just played a full Broadway house.

Of course, I was interested in his road to success, and as we walked to a nearby hangout, Pearce began to chronicle the journey that got him to the Great White Way. "It all started in Columbia," he said with a laugh, turning into a small doorway lit with blue neon. We sat down and ordered, and Pearce explained the origin of his love of performing arts. "I took a theater class from Tom Prater at the Center for Gifted Education, in third grade or so," he said, "Tom introduced me to the magic of the stage and the joys of working in the theater."

Seeing potential in the young boy, Prater urged Pearce to get involved in theater school at Columbia Entertainment Company, or CEC, where he could take his passion to the next step.

At CEC, Pearce learned about "teamwork and community" and what it means to put on a show. "I even met some of my best friends in theater school," said Pearce, smiling. "I finally found kids who shared my interests." As time went on, Pearce graduated from theater school but stayed active with the company. He served as CEC’s Junior Advisory Board co-president, where he led theater-related fundraisers and volunteer projects under the tutelage of mentor Vicki Palmer.

"Watching Pearce grow up in our theater family was a real treat," Palmer said, "I knew from his first show, ‘Oliver,’ that he was going to be successful, no matter his life’s path."

Eventually, Pearce outgrew CEC and had to start thinking about his future. He knew college was part of his plan, and as he began the search for the right school, Pearce looked to two other Columbia actors who seemed to be "making it" in New York: Justin and Melissa Bohon. "I knew I wanted to go into musical theater," said Wegener with a chuckle while stirring his rum and Coke, "and I decided to go to the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music because that’s where the Bohons went."

Pearce said that decision was one of the best he ever made.

"It really taught me the discipline I needed and helped me take theater from a hobby to a profession," Pearce explained, admitting that it takes a lot of training to be able to do eight shows a week. "But training is not enough," he said, "You also have to get a job." Luckily, the University of Cincinnati helped out the starry-eyed performer yet again: "At the end of my senior year, we did a showcase for agents and directors; that’s where I got my agent."

After he graduated from UC, Pearce moved to New York City, where he started to do auditions. "I moved in April 2007, and after my third audition, I landed a part with the City Center’s production of "Gypsy," which had a three-week run last summer."

He described his excitement as he walked into the first read through of the show: "There I was, straight out of college, sitting around a table with theater legends Patti LuPone, Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents, reading my part. I was incredibly nervous, but they were all so supportive, I couldn’t help but succeed."

The show went off wonderfully, and Pearce was sad to leave it behind. Then he got a phone call that changed his life. "They called me and told me we were going to Broadway!" Pearce said. After celebrating the good news over a glass of wine with his father, who was visiting at the time, Pearce went into rehearsals for the new-and-improved Broadway version of the show. He plays Yonkers, the troublemaker, and understudies Tulsa, the male ingénue, a role he played for the first time just a few weeks ago.

The rest is history, as they say, as Pearce begins his third month of the Broadway run, balancing performing with dance classes and trips to the gym. He also tries to see other shows when "Gypsy" is dark. All in all, he is one happy camper. "I love New York, and I’m so lucky to be here," he said. "There are zillions of actors out there, and I’m the one who was in the right place at the right time."

Still, there are things he misses about Columbia. "I miss having a car," said, "Oh yeah, and Shakespeare’s."

I guess some things will never change.

Advertisement

13 weeks for $13 | Sunday & Wed In your beach bag, in your car, take it with you this summer