Native Detroiter
Douglas Sills
sizzles in the lead
role of Broadway's
newest musical,
The Scarlet
Pimpernel.

Red

ALICE BURDICK SCHWEIGER

Special to The Jewish News

D

ouglas Sills had a little more
than an hour before he was
due back at Broadway's
Minskoff Theater. At 8 p.m.
the curtain would rise once again and
he would be standing center stage, per-
forming in New York's newest musical,

The Scarlet Pimpernel.
But despite his time crunch, Sills
took out time to chat. While grabbing a
bite of dinner at a trendy New York
eatery near the theater, a very excited
Sills talked about how he went from
Franklin Village, Mich., to the New
York stage.
"I still can't believe it," laughs the
high-energy actor, while gulping down
a platter of assorted cooked veggies. "I
am waiting for them to knock on my
dressing room door and say, 'You did a
great job, but the guy we really wanted
is available now!'"
But that's not likely to happen. With

Alice Burdick Schweiger is an Ann
Arbor-based freelance writer.

11/7
1997

96

Sills' sensational talent, powerful voice
and Adonis-like good looks, the pro-
ducers clearly have the right man for
the job.
However, landing the part was a
long, arduous process. Unlike many vet-
eran thespians who are offered a role of
this size and magnitude without having
to audition, Sills had to try out for the
part.
"Auditioning for such a high-profile
role is a very unusual situation," says
Sills. The entire process took some six
months. "Generally, someone is offered
a part because the director or producer
has seen his or her work. But I wasn't a
known entity. Rather, my agent sent
me the script, and remembering the
story from when I was a boy, I wanted
to go after it."
While flying from coast to coast in a
series of auditions, Sills began getting
ready for the role of the Pimpernel,
even before there was any proof or con-
firmation that it would be his.
The Scarlet Pimpernel, based on
Baroness Orczy's classic swashbuckling,
romantic novel, takes place during the
tumultuous French Revolution. The

Douglas Sills:
"Sometimes I stand in
front of the theater
and look up and say,
`Thank you, God!'