Chip Zien (‘Harmony’) explores guilt and history in ‘the role of a lifetime’ [Exclusive Video Interview]

“It’s the role of a lifetime,” exclaims Chip Zien in reference to his character Rabbi in “Harmony.” The actor’s agents were initially hesitant to send him the script for the Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman musical, as Zien wanted to pull back from the typical rabbi roles he frequently played. But, this character wasn’t just any rabbi. He had a remarkable true life story as a member of a notorious singing ensemble which rose to fame while Nazis rose to power. “It was a brilliant, period-specific score, and the whole thing has just been a thrill from the get go,” says Zien. Watch the exclusive video interview above.

The musical follows the formation and rise of The Comedian Harmonists in Germany. The six-man act quickly ascended to fame in the 1920s and 30s, selling millions of records and selling out houses around the world. But the rise of the Nazi party threatens to rip apart the Harmonists, half of whom are Jewish. Infighting divides the group as fascist rule censors their performances, and the Harmonists face life altering decisions. An older version of Rabbi (Zien), one of the Jewish members of the group, looks back through his memory to tell the audience the story of his friends.

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Zien admits that he felt close to the role right away. Not only did he know people whose children trained with the actual Rabbi Cycowski for their bar mitzvahs, but the defining qualities of Rabbi resonated within Zien as well. “I didn’t have to go too far to be a guy who loved to sing, who was funny and felt guilty, which was one of the core ingredients of my part, that he should have done something that he didn’t do,” jokes Zien, “I feel guilty pretty much about everything!”

Rabbi’s guilt is on full display during Zien’s eleven o’clock number “Threnody.” Zien admits that the number was challenging, describing it as “passionate and vocally, very demanding.” The character remembers a fortuitous train ride in Germany when the Harmonists were shocked to discover Hitler was onboard. As the Nazi leader strolled by them, the elder Rabbi lashes out against his younger self, chastising himself for not killing Hitler when he had the opportunity. The emotion that bubbled up in the song had Zien worried about maintaining his voice, but he found a way to navigate the range required in the song. “Every actor would long for a magnificent number late in the show,” he says, so it was worth every effort.

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With “Harmony,” Zien can officially say that he has been on Broadway for 50 years. That five decade career has featured iconic performances in the likes of “Falsettos,” “Grand Hotel” and “Into the Woods.” “It was like a rock concert,” he says of that latter Stephen Sondheim musical, “I don’t think we knew at the time the life that it would have.” It’s fitting then, that after decades of beloved characters, he’s capped his fiftieth year in the industry with a dynamic role like Rabbi in “Harmony.” A role that he feels fits like a glove. “I loved every minute of it,” he confesses, “I feel unbelievably lucky that this happened to me.”

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