I heard how great it was and I didn’t want to see somebody, like, knock it out of the park. When the touring company came to LA, my daughter wanted to see it. But my daughter and my son, they’re 12 and nine, they’re like their mom, they’re very musically talented. I mean, I was in one in high school, but they didn’t let me sing. In the movie, Ogie was more of a cry baby and this Ogie, I think because of Chris Fitzgerald’s interpretation, he’s more full of exuberant joy and so it’s kind of a blast to do.Įddie Jemison: My daughter and son are both musical theater people and I’m not, I’ve never been in a musical.Įddie Jemison: No. So, it’s almost like this brotherhood Ogie’s. I mean, he had completely made it his own and actually, I’m probably doing more of him that he was of me at this point. So, I feel like I was doing my imitation of his imitation. If there was one word different from the two scripts, I would say it the old way.īut I have to say watching Jeremy Morse and Chris’ performance, who was doing it when I stepped in so I got to watch him do it. Like, immediately when I started learning my lines, it all came back to me like a shock. How much does the role differ from the film?Įddie Jemison: We did the movie, twelve years ago? So, it was a long time ago but it’s so specific, that character and the lines. You originated, that’s kind of a weird thing to say, but you played the role in the film.Įddie Jemison: Yeah, I did the movie, Waitress, with Adrienne Shelly. It’s just a theatre and a play.” And they’re right. And I found that exactly what Chris Fitzgerald and Ben Thompson were telling me, they were saying, “It’s just a play like any other. When I was told that I was going to do the play and I had like two weeks of rehearsal, I thought, “I wouldn’t want to do any play anywhere with that little bit of rehearsal.” Even though my part is very specific and not that big, I still thought, “I can’t do that.” And then by the time those two weeks we’re done, I felt oddly like… not that I was ready but I didn’t want to stress about it anymore, I just wanted to do it. This was your Broadway debut? How was that night?Įddie Jemison: It was surreal, you know? I was very, very scared. It’s just when you’re done, you can’t believe how tired it makes you. I’m shocked how… not demanding it is, because it’s not demanding when you’re doing it. You just want to goof off.Įddie Jemison: It’s so true. I’ve done eight shows a week and you don’t think you would be so freaking tired. That’s kind of fun because I never get to do that home! It’s like, I’m definitely going to work between these very short hours, so you don’t feel so bad about, I don’t know, like reading. Well, I mean you’ve got to work later today so what else are you supposed to do?Įddie Jemison: That’s the beauty of doing this show. You’ve got a show tonight, right?Įddie Jemison: I do. In this interview, Jemison talks about making his Broadway debut, playing Ogie, his role in both the film and musical, and what it was like to book his first ever film role in Ocean’s 11! But, up until April 28th, he’s got his hands full with Waitress, the story of Jenna, a waitress and expert pie-maker who dreams of a way out of her small town and rocky marriage. You most likely recognize Jemison from the Ocean’s 11 movies, HBO’s Hung, Chicago Med and he’s currently recurring on the CW’s iZombie. Jemison starred as Ogie in Adrienne Shelly’s 2007 film, Waitress, and now 12 years later, he’s making his Broadway debut in the same role. It’s not everyday that someone who created a role in a film gets to tackle that same role in a big Broadway musical, but Eddie Jemison is doing just that. Like, immediately when I started learning my lines, it all came back to me like a shock.” – Eddie Jemison on Playing Ogie Because sometimes, your trip ends before the in-flight movie does, and you really don’t want to ask the pilot to circle the airport just so you can catch the finale.“It’s so specific, that character and the lines.Because sometimes, you fall asleep watching a mediocre rental, and would rather return it on time than pay two more bucks just to see the end.Because sometimes, your TiVo timer didn’t get it quite right, and cut off the crucial final minutes of something that won’t get shown again for six months.Because sometimes, you’re not interested in seeing that movie everyone’s talking about but are dying to know what the hubbub is about anyway.Because sometimes, you vaguely remember an old movie that had some sort of plot twist at the end of it, but can’t remember what it was.Because sometimes, the surprise “spoiler” ending is the only reason you’d pay $11 to see what is otherwise a turkey of a film.
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