HOMETOWN GIRL–Broadway Star

By Carolyn Lillehaugen

Interviewing Broadway actress

Becky Gulsvig is much like visiting with the proverbial girl next door. Even though she has had tremendous success in her 14 years as an actress in New York City, she still maintains that Midwest sensibility she developed growing up in Moorhead, Minnesota.

In describing her early years, Becky fondly remembers living a regular life doing all the things kids did like school, sports, and summer weekends with extended family at the lake cabin. On top of that, she really liked to sing. As Becky’s mother Patty recalls, even as a toddler, she’d entertain, or possibly disturb the whole grocery store from her perch in the cart with a rather loud chorus of “Jesus Loves Me.” Becky also loved watching and singing along with favorite musicals such as The Sound of Music, Little Mermaid, or Beauty and the Beast imagining herself as Maria, Ariel or Belle. She eagerly sang solos at church, letting her joyful spirit flow with the sound of her tender soprano voice.

As Becky reflects, she appreciates both the normalcy and the uniqueness of her childhood. “Most theatre people I have met through the years admit that they didn’t fit in where they grew up. But the environment in Fargo Moorhead is very different. It is a rich and nurturing place, with many excellent opportunities for every child. There were lots of kids interested in music and theatre and other kinds of arts, and there were lots of places for us to fit in and practice those things we loved.”

Becky took full advantage of the many different options joining in dance classes, school theatre programs, community theatre, and speech. Each opportunity provided not only great experiences but also fantastic mentors who took the time to help guide and nurture her skills. When she was in the 4th grade, Becky got her first big break when she was cast in the lead role for the Red River Dance and Performing Company’s production of “Annie.” Eddie and Kathy Gasper, who have performed on Broadway and beyond, were mentors to Becky from that time forward. Kathy recalls Becky as “A natural talent. Even as a young girl, she was gifted with a wonderful vocal quality and an innate skill in line delivery and timing, but,” Gasper added “in addition to that, she was also incredibly receptive to training and coaching.” With her positive attitude and natural talent, Becky continued to receive opportunities to shine.

As a freshman at Moorhead High, Becky auditioned for Little Shop of Horrors. Director Rebecca Meyer Larson had been told to look for a talented freshman girl, but that was something she had heard before about many fine students. As Meyer Larson describes it, “I will never forget that first audition, I was amazed at her voice and stage presence and so was everyone in the theatre that day.” For three years, Gulsvig and Meyer Larson had the privilege to work together in both theatre and speech. Meyer Larson explains, “As a high school sophomore Becky took the competitive speech circuit by storm.” Moorhead High had never had anyone advance at nationals and that year Becky placed 13th in the nation with her humorous interpretation of Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man.

During the summers of her high school years, Becky became involved at Trollwood Performing Arts School with roles as Peggy Sawyer in 42nd Street, Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar, and Lola in Damn Yankees. Becky describes those summers as “an incredible opportunity. Working with a creative team from New York and beyond while still in high school is a unique and exciting thing. The amazing staff and supportive parents create a wonderful environment.” Michael Walling, the nationally acclaimed stage director who has led Trollwood’s young adult mainstage program for the last 23 summers recognized both Becky’s exceptional skill set and her deep commitment. “Becky not only had a tremendous talent, but she was also willing and able to take critique and guidance in a mature way. She was a witty young woman with a unique ability to listen differently and respond from her heart.”

All of those experiences provided Becky with the preparation and strong foundation, as well as the confident vision to pursue acting in larger arenas. In her humble way Becky admits, “I never really thought of doing it for a living, I just thought of doing it.” And so in 2000 Becky graduated from high school a year early, and much like the characters she portrayed as Peggy Sawyer in 42nd Street and more recently as Millie Dillmount in Thoroughly Modern Millie she set off to New York City to launch her career.

With good advice and some choice contacts from New York insiders Eddie and Kathy Gasper and Michael Walling, Becky wasn’t quite as green and unprepared as those stories suggest, but never the less it was a big gamble. Her parents, Kris and Patty were aware of some of the potential risks involved in allowing someone so young to strike out alone, so they tag teamed parenting those first several weeks in New York helping her find a safe place to live in a women’s boarding house, and watching her learn how to maneuver around the city. As Kris and Patty admit, “acting wasn’t our long term plan for her, but as parents you sometimes need to be supportive of your children’s dreams. Becky is both so very strong willed and yet respectful that she made it easier for us to trust this would work.” Once Becky got settled it was time to begin looking for roles.

“The experience of auditioning is very unique,” says Becky. Following leads found through contacts or roles advertised in “Backstage” a newspaper specifically designed for theatre, Becky began going to open calls as they are referred to in the industry. “Sometimes you would arrive at 6:00am or earlier to stand in line waiting for the doors to open at 8:00am then move inside with 100 or more actors and wait again until auditions started at 10:00am.” When her turn arrived she usually had less than 2 minutes to shine, singing about 16 measures, at which time they either dismissed her with a “thank you” or asked her to come back later to read or dance.

A dear friend and eventual roommate, Shorey Walker who played Peter in Peter Pan, shared some wise advice with Becky. “She told me that as an actor, auditioning is your job and that when you get a job, that’s your paid vacation!” Now that Becky has an agent and is part of an actors’ union, the auditioning process is streamlined. “Generally, now my agent will submit my head shot and resume for the roles I am seeking and I get an appointment at a specific date and time which is much more efficient and less exhausting.”

Fortunately, Becky quickly landed her first role as Wendy in a national touring company of Peter Pan. The show ran for 6 months touring around the United States performing 8 shows each week. Soon after the conclusion of Peter Pan, Becky took a position as a cast member on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. When not busy performing, Becky thoroughly enjoyed the adventure of traveling around northern Europe, the Mediterranean, the Caribbean and the east coast of the US and Canada seeing the sites. Another fantastic benefit of that job was meeting her future husband, Tyler Fisher, a wonderful young Canadian, who was working in the ship’s kids’ camp. “We definitely experienced a unique way to date.” Every day when they stopped in a new port, if their free times coincided, Becky and Tyler got to visit really interesting places. “One day it might be the fjords in Norway, another day a bike trip around Copenhagen, or yet again, going sailing in the Panama Canal.”

Although she has worked quite steadily throughout her career, not every role came quickly or easily. It took many auditions before Becky finally landed her Broadway debut in 2004 as Lou Ann in Hairspray and after a year of understudying, she took over the principle role of Amber Von Tussle. After leaving Hairspray in 2006 Becky was