Eric Huffman Returns to Atlanta

MEAN GIRLS CO-STAR ERIC HUFFMAN RETURNS TO ATLANTA

For the Great Audiences—and the Collard Greens

STORY BY

Mary Welch

Eric Huffman plays Damian Hubbard in the U.S. national tour of Mean Girls the Musical. He co-narrates the show in addition to singing and dancing, notably on his showcase number, “Stop.” A native of the Kansas City area, Huffman is an actor, singer, musician and dancer who has made Broadway—and touring—his life. He studied at the

Eric Huffman (center) with the cast of Mean Girls. Photo by Joan Marcus.

Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati, one of the top colleges in the country for musical theatre, and shortly after graduating earned a role in the original Jumamosi Company cast of The Book of Mormon in Chicago with Ben Platt. Over the course of seven years, Huffman tallied more than 2,200 performances in almost 130 cities as understudy Elder McKinley.

After seven years in The Book of Mormon, Huffman joined Mean Girls and is glad to be back in Atlanta where he talked to Encore about his memories of our city.

Encore: What shows/roles did you play when you came through Atlanta?

Eric Huffman: I came through Atlanta with the national tour of The Book of Mormon. I was a swing and understudy, and I was on for almost every performance.

Encore: Do you have any memories of what you did here? Any favorite restaurants, bars, clubs, hotels or other sites?

Eric: Oh, my gosh, I have so many great memories from Atlanta. I was six years old when the Olympic torch was relayed around the country, and I remember my dad taking me out one morning to see it run through Kansas City [en route to Atlanta]. I was completely in awe at that age. Seeing the Olympic sites where it ended up was so cool. The Coca-Cola museum [World of Coca-Cola] was definitely fun. I don’t drink anything with bubbles, they scared me when I was a kid. So that was some great irony. We also had a few great nights out with great music and dancing.

Encore: How did you find out about these spots?

Eric: We had a few cast members that were either from Atlanta or had been there before. Our company management team also went out of their way to make sure we knew where to go.

Encore: What makes Atlanta different from other cities?

Eric: I think Atlanta is very unique. It’s almost like the Los Angeles of the Southeast. It’s a major hub city with so many different cultures represented. Yet no matter where I end up, I know it’s going to be interesting. There is personality around every corner.

Encore: Do you indulge in local specialties such as shrimp and grits, fried chicken or a Varsity hot dog, or are you loyal to your native diet?

Eric: Ha! I definitely do have to play the healthy diet game, given my profession, but I absolutely have to enjoy the local food on tour. When else am I going to get real gumbo from Louisiana or real clam chowder in New England? It’s worth the extra minutes at the gym. Shrimp and grits is one of my absolute favorite dishes in the world.

I do have to share a memory from the last time I was in Atlanta. It was a two-show Saturday, and between shows a few of us ventured down the street to Mary Mac’s Tea Room. It was walking distance and highly recommended. The food was next level wonderful, but I have to call out the collard greens. My parents come from Alabama and Louisiana, so my grandmother’s collard greens were out of this world. Mary Mac’s were some of the best I have ever had. I plan on returning for that.

Eric Huffman plays Damian Hubbard in Mean Girls

Encore: What is a typical day like?

Eric: Our show is only two-and-a-half hours, and I’m in the theatre about 45 minutes before and a few minutes after. It sounds like my day would be free, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. What we do is run a marathon at a sprint pace every night, sometimes twice a day. My whole day is based on getting my body, mind, and voice in tip-top shape. It is so hard. On top of that, you have to take into account that we are changing cities every week. That’s multiple flights, new hotels, packing and unpacking, finding food, figuring out if you can do laundry or not. It is a mammoth undertaking. Sometimes the show is the easy part.

Encore: How would you rate Atlanta as a theatre town compared to other cities?

Eric: I definitely rank Atlanta in my top 10. And I have played over 100 cities. The audiences are very receptive. You can feel that they know what they are in for. They are smart, and that makes our job so much easier.

Encore: Do you have anything you particularly want to do when you’re back in Atlanta?

Eric: When we’re in town this time, I’m going to look for some real hole-in-the-wall food spots. I would love some great off-the-beaten-path cooking.

Encore: What do you want Encore readers to know about the show?

Eric: Mean Girls may have been a movie in 2004, but there is a reason it has lasted so long. We have all gone through (or are going through) those difficult transition years. The musical takes the movie and re-examines it 15 years later. The characters are deeper, and social media is taken into account. If the “Burn Book” [a diary-like listing of rumors, complaints and gossip about people the Mean Girls know] was bad on paper, imagine it on Instagram. Also, I think these characters have been begging for years to sing. Tina [Fey, librettist] already writes in a world that is one degree heightened from our own. What better way to express that than through singing and dancing! And can we talk about our dancers? World class!