Grant Gustin (‘Water for Elephants’) learns to ‘follow the momentum’ within a ‘marathon’ of singing and circus [Exclusive Video Interview]
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“My dream had always been to originate something and it’s really fun to just kind of make it my own,” says Grant Gustin of starring in a Broadway musical. That aspiration is now a reality as he leads the stage adaptation of “Water for Elephants” at the Imperial Theatre. The actor has amassed legions of fans who know him as the titular superhero in “The Flash,” but this latest demanding role marks Gustin’s return to his stage roots. Watch the exclusive video interview above.
Gustin portrays Jacob Jankowski in “Water for Elephants,” who falls in with a traveling circus after hopping aboard their train. He is hired as the troupe’s veterinarian and soon begins to fall for the equestrian performer Marlena (Isabelle McCalla). The pair become closer as they train a brand new routine with an elephant, provoking a jealous rage from Marlena’s husband August (Paul Alexander Nolan), the circus’ cruel ringmaster.
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“I was scared to sing again,” admits Gustin, “It had been so long and I was not naive to what eight shows a week in a musical was going to be like and what that would require of me. But this just came up at such a perfect time.” The actor spent a year as Baby John in the Broadway national tour of “West Side Story” before landing a coveted role on “Glee.” Gustin’s vocal chops are on fine display however, and the actor notes that Pig Pen Theatre Co. (the musical’s cohort of composers) worked with him to fit certain notes to his voice.
WATCH Jessica Stone video interview: ‘Water for Elephants’ director
Nine seasons as superhero Barry Allen put Gustin’s singing on hold, but the actor notes that “Water For Elephants” is even more demanding than an action series. “It’s a marathon,” he reveals. Gustin is frequently climbing over train cars, executing high-energy dance numbers, singing to the rafters, and even pulling off a few circus tricks. He points to an intense dream sequence near the finale, with a series of rapidly changing set pieces and dances, as particularly grueling. “By the time the dream ends, I’m in the wings chugging some water before I come on for my final appearance, just sweating profusely,” describes Gustin. But giving himself over to the “ride of the emotion and the story” helps him get through. “It’s always been one of my favorite things about theater,” he reveals. “Every night you get to go on the journey from start to finish and you get to follow the momentum and let it take you wherever it’s going to take you.”
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