Alexander Gemignani

[on performing as the main character, Jean Valjean, in the revival production of 'Les Miserables':] 'When I was in 'Sweeney', I used to say that I had never worked so hard in my life. Now, I'm eating my words.' Show less «

[on 'Sweeney Todd'] 'When you go to a regular audition, there's so much weight and pressure put on the one thing that you're coming in to do. For this, the piano and trumpet were out of the ordinary for an audition, so when I got to the acting and singing, they were the easy parts. That's how the show feels. By the time I get up to act, I get to relax.' Show less «

[on Sweeney Todd] "It's giving meaning to the word 'revival.' If you're going to revive something, revive it, man. And that's what this production does." Show less «

[on his first role as an actor] Well, professionally it was 'Assassins' on Broadway and 'Avenue Q' Off-Broadway here in New York. Before that I appeared with the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera in 'Brigadoon'. If you want to know the very first show that I ever actually was in, I don't remember the name, but I played 'Winter' in our first grade play. Show less «

I look back on 'Sweeney' with amazing fondness. I've looked back on things, noting that for every show I've done in New York, I've had the luck of working with fantastic directors, wonderful casts and with wonderful music directors. Specifically about Sweeney, it was such a unique experience and such unique people to work with. The show running for 11 months was to everyone's wonderful, wonderful surprise. I miss it. It's like putting a baby to bed, especially when people tell me that they love it too. It was a great production and I will always love it. Show less «

[on greeting fans after 'Les Miz'] Amusingly, one night last week at the stage door a fan came up to tell me that they're favorite Valjean was somebody else. I'm not quite sure why they felt the need to tell me that, but alright. Show less «

[on growing up in 'the business'] "It's what I knew. I knew the hard times. The highs are so high. The lows are more frequent, but when the highs come, they are so high, that you don't remember the bad times." Show less «

[on being cast as 'Brian' in the then off-Broadway show, 'Avenue Q'] "I got a call that said, Can you come in tomorrow and audition for 'Avenue Q'? I knew nothing about the show, but I went in and sang for them. I got a call later that day and they said, Come in tomorrow. I did maybe a week of rehearsal and then I was in the show. The great thing about it was that it kept getting extended because it was such a hit. I was only supposed to do it for three weeks, but I ended up doing it 8 or 9 weeks. What a great experience. The cast is fantastic. That was the hardest thing, when the producers said, We're going to go with Jordan for the Broadway run. That's the way the cookie crumbles. The hardest thing was not being able to see the cast every day because they are such a spectacular group of people. I still see them. I hang out with them all the time." Show less «

I grew up right across the water in Tenafly, New Jersey. Since my folks were in the business, I was in New York all the time seeing shows. The first show I ever saw was 'Dreamgirls'. I don't have a lot of memory of that because I was two. I came into New York a lot and I frequently sat in the pit. 'Into the Woods' is the show I saw the most, probably over 20 times. Show less «

It's easy to get bitter in this business fast. I know people in their 20s who are done with the business. I hear them bitch more than anything else. These aren't necessarily people who aren't working. I meet actors sometimes and all they do is complain about the job they have and I'm thinking, You have a job. I don't know. I just feel that everybody's had a show that they think stinks for whatever reason. Either the cast doesn't get along, or you hate the person you're playing opposite, or the director makes you crazy, or the production quality is not good, but it's never as bad as not having a job. No matter how bad the show is. It just kills me when people complain like that. I want to tell them to just get out of the business and do something else. Who wants that negativity around the theater? Who needs it? It's frustrating. It's so easy to get sucked into that in New York, going on audition after audition and not getting a job. Sure, you re going to get a little bitter. That's natural, like anything else. It's like a real estate broker who can't sell a house, it's the same thing. Then he finally sells a house and goes on from there. I learn this more and more every day - it is show business. When you go home, you can go watch your TV and leave your work at the office. It's hard because, as an actor, what you're selling is yourself, but it's all a business, just like anything else. The more I think of it that way, the healthier I am. Show less «