In ‘Making Space’ we talk to some of the notable people who call New York home—about their lives, their work, and how the city has shaped them. Actress and singer Jamila Sabares-Klemm spoke to us about moving here to chase her dreams, landing her Broadway debut in an acclaimed Sondheim revival, and how COVID changed the city’s theater landscape.
(Courtesy of Jamila Sabares-Klemm)
In ‘Making Space’ we talk to some of the notable people who call New York home—about their lives, their work, and how the city has shaped them. Want to suggest our next subject? Email editor@citylimits.org
Every year, countless hopefuls move to New York City with the goal of breaking into the arts and entertainment industry.
Jamila Sabares-Klemm is among them. The Filipina-American activist, actor, and singer came to the Big Apple 15 years ago to, as she puts it, “pursue my dream.” It’s paid off: last summer, she made her Broadway debut in the highly acclaimed, star-studded revival of Stephen Sondheim’s “Merrily We Roll Along.” Sabares-Klemm has appeared in numerous other productions, including a national tour of “Hair” and a staging of “Hamilton” in Chicago, where she played Eliza Hamilton.
Sabares-Klemm spoke to City Limits about building a career in New York, landing her Broadway debut in a hit show, and how COVID changed the city’s theater landscape.
This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.
Where did you grow up, and how did you get into the performing arts?
I was born in the Philippines, Metro Manila, and I moved to Baltimore when I was 6, stayed there for a couple years, went back to Manila for a couple years, and then finally made the permanent move when I was, I think, 10, to Baltimore.
Music growing up in my house was a big thing. My parents played a lot of it, like Ella Fitzgerald, Carol King, and Whitney Houston. I wanted to be Mariah Carey. I loved singing and music. Our house was filled with it. So I guess that was really where it kind of came from. Both my grandmothers were singers in their own respective ways: my grandma, my dad’s mom, was a singer, very in the church. My grandmother, from my mom’s side, was a really great singer in her province, and both my parents play some instruments.
I did children’s theater when I was in middle school, and I just love to sing. And then I auditioned for a high school in Baltimore, an arts high school, and got in and I studied opera there. And as much as it was a great, wonderful experience, I know I didn’t want to do opera. I fell in love with acting. We did a lot of musicals. So I thought, ‘Okay, I’ll go for musical theater.’ I went to Penn State for musical theater, and then went straight to New York after college to pursue my dream. I graduated in 2010 and I’ve been here ever since. It’s been a long journey.
How have you seen the city’s performing arts scene change during that time?
Pre-COVID, I know for me, we saw a lot more diversity on stage, both in racial diversity and also body diversity, which was really beautiful to see. I don’t think it’s enough, but it’s a start. But on that same respect, I also think we have the opposite—a lot of Disneyfication on Broadway.
Post-COVID, everyone took a hit. And you’re now seeing more A, B, and C-listers in off-Broadway shows, which is obviously harder for us non-A, B, and C-listers. With Hollywood coming and auditioning for the same roles that maybe we would have had a better chance of getting, now it’s a bit harder. The theater took a big hit, and you need to fill the seats, understandably, so you’re seeing that now.
Another big shift again post-COVID for us as performers is now, instead of going into the audition room, our initial auditions—and even callbacks—are usually on tape, which puts a lot more work onto the actor. All of my friends, we have to have our own kind of studios in our apartments.
You were in the Tony-winning Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim’s “Merrily We Roll Along,” with Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff, and Lindsay Mendez, which wrapped last summer. What was it like being part of that?
It was so special. I’m a huge Harry Potter fan. And Sondheim was, I mean, I was a Sondheim fanatic in high school. I’ve always been obsessed with his work. So to make my Broadway debut in his work was really just so special. And it was awesome because I got to also go on for Lindsay a lot, and got to play with Jonathan and Dan. And, I mean, it was—it’s what my dreams are, right? Just to be able to do that, I don’t take that for granted at all. It was truly a wonderful experience. It was so well received and to kind of re-imagine [Sondheim’s] work that was a flop many, many years ago, just to do him proud. It was just a beautiful experience.
You’re a co-founder of a project called Justice through Arts Music and Movement (J.A.M.M.), which is described as “a BIPOC, women-led collective dedicated to using art, music and movement as powerful tools to challenge injustice and dismantle oppressive systems.” How did that get started?
It was actually a quarantine little project, because my entire industry was shut down. I was one of the lucky ones who had some money saved. I went back to Baltimore to live with my parents, to save money as well. I had time. I had the internet. I had my musical instruments. I’ve always dreamt about writing my own things and even just doing covers. I wanted to use my voice in the way I wanted to, and in the music that I wanted to sing and the things that I wanted to say. A lot of the times when you do this as a job, we can’t usually choose what we put our gifts to.
I have a friend, Alexis [Roberts]. We met when I actually first moved to New York, and she’s a dancer and an educator, and she had messaged me on Facebook, and we had chatted before about doing something together many years ago. And she was like, you know, we have time now. Just let me know if you ever want to work on anything.
I came with a song I really wanted to sing, and I was like, ‘Could we do something together on this? Could you choreograph this?’ I obviously have a lot of friends who are artists, and kind of got them and said, ‘Hey, would you want to do this with us?’ It started in that way, and from that, we’ve been able to perform at a couple of venues.
We just wanted a space where we as women could get together and speak about our lives, what we see, what is and what we think should be in this world. A safe space to be able to be authentically ourselves, and to be able to create authentically with one another.
At City Limits, we write a lot about New York’s affordability crisis. How have you seen that play out in your sector, with your peers, and what has your own experience been?
If we want to work in New York—because there’s a lot of other theater in the states and around the world that we can also work [in]—but on Broadway, the big ones are here. Also the training—as artists, we have to keep up with our voice, our bodies, and the training that you can get here in New York is top notch.
If my paycheck is not going up as much as housing is going up, I’m going to have to work more jobs, which means I won’t have as much time to be the best artist I can be, and not produce the best art I can produce. There are so many people that I know who couldn’t afford to live here, to be able to offer their artistry. Which is so sad. As artists, we need to be able to produce good work, our bodies have to not always be in a fight-or-flight state. Even on Broadway, I have my co-workers and my co-cast members having to work another job to pay for their living. And that should not be. People should not have to have two jobs to work in something that is a very affluent industry here in New York City. It would, I think, behoove the entire industry to share the wealth to their artists.
It’s impacted everyone. I mean, before I really got my career going, the first, I don’t know, maybe six, seven, eight years of my time here, I was on food stamps. At some point I was on unemployment. We’re constantly looking for work. If you’re on a long-running show, maybe [not], but that’s for a very small amount of people. So we’re not only having to pay for our being here and working, we are also savings for those months where we’re not going to be working.
Are there things you think New York City can do to better support the arts sector?
Obviously, affordable housing. I know there’s a lottery for certain artists’ housing, but that’s few and far between. I think that even studios or classes that are kind of pay-what-you-can at the moment, so we’re not having to load all of the costs of being able to do our jobs. Even stipends for when we are out of work but are still trying to look for jobs, so that we don’t have to go to our jobs and then have to prepare for this audition, and run to that audition, and then have to go to our second job. Just having a little load off of our shoulders, to be able to do the work we would like to do, I think would be helpful.
To reach the editor, contact Jeanmarie@citylimits.org
Want to republish this story? Find City Limits’ reprint policy here.
The post Making Space: The Musical Theater Performer appeared first on City Limits.
