Old Friends Beth Leavel and Julia Knitel Discuss Sondheim, Dead Outlaw, and the Joy of Broadway

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Beth Leavel: Well, hi. I miss you.

Julia Knitel: I miss you.

Beth: You’re going to be a block away from me.

Julia: What theater are you guys in?

Beth: The Samuel Friedman. Manhattan Theatre Club. So I’m at 47th and 8th.

Julia: I’m at 48th and 8th [at the Longacre].

Beth: You’re at the theater where I do most of my shows. The last time I saw you was after Lempicka, and I did The Prom there, as well. I love that theater so much and I’m so glad you’re going to take care of it.

Julia: I am. Well, let’s start by talking about how we know each other.

Beth: My first introduction to you was your brilliant performance in A Letter to Harvey Milk.

Julia: With your dear, sweet husband, Adam Heller.

Beth: And then I was going to do Mama Rose in Gypsy at the Muny and you were my Gypsy Rose Lee.

Julia: You were absolutely magnificent.

Beth: I couldn’t have done it without you. That relationship is so important. We do some of the songs from Gypsy in Old Friends and I’m always thinking “What a phenomenal score.” I haven’t seen your show, but my husband did and he was blown away by it. I love that it’s called Dead Outlaw. What is your part, and have you been doing it since day one?

Julia: Yes. I was asked to audition for the workshop, and I was the first woman to audition, and luckily enough, they really liked my take on the material.

Beth: How long ago was that?

Julia: The workshop was two Octobers ago, and then we did it off-Broadway last season, and we got a year break, which is kind of strange.

Beth: The first table read of The Prom was almost nine years before it went to Broadway, so you’re on the fast track.

Julia: With a team like David Yazbek, David Cromer, Itamar Moses, Erik Della Penna, with the magic that they had from Band’s Visit, everybody just wants to see what they can do next. Tell me more about your show. Sondheim’s music is so important to me.

Beth: It came over from London, where it was a big smash, and it’s almost like the greatest hits connected by an ensemble that is full of Broadway and West End stars. The talent on stage is amazing. As you know, it’s led by Lea Salonga and Bernadette Peters, who…Just being on stage with her and hearing her sing some of the original stuff from Into the Woods and Sunday in the Park is transformative.

I never grew up with Stephen Sondheim’s music until I went to college, and someone played Sweeney Todd, and I was like “Wait a minute!” To be able to be immersed in his genius for this show…You learn something every day. It’s full of life lessons.

Julia: That’s one of the things that makes Sondheim so timeless.

Beth: I agree. So, to be able to do that on Broadway is a real blessing for all of us.

Julia: I heard a rumor that you get to sing “Ladies Who Lunch.”

Beth: I do get to sing “Ladies Who Lunch.”

Julia: What is it like to perform that song? What is the Beth Leavel take?

Beth: I didn’t go “Let’s have a take.” I didn’t want to imitate Patti LuPone or Elaine Stritch. It’s a different version of the song; it’s a Beth Leavel homage to Joanne in a revue, so it gives me more leeway to do whatever. It’s coming from a personal place and not playing a character that really changes the game. I don’t even use a martini glass.

Julia: Well, you’ve got swaths of fans who are going to be itching in their seats for that moment to come, and I will certainly be one of them.

Beth: Bless your heart. Wait, are you the only woman in your show?

Julia: I am. Seven men and me.

Beth: That’s cray cray. Is it really a true story?

Julia: It’s a crazy true story. There’s this guy, his name is Elmer McCurdy. He lived a pretty unremarkable life at a time when it was very easy to be forgotten, and he ends up living a way more wild life after he dies.

Beth: Oh, that’s sad!

Julia: I know. It’s very dark, it’s very macabre. But it’s absurd and very much about showbiz. Elmer gets wrapped up into the world that you and I are so lucky to live in, and it’s a conversation about life and death and what matters and what lasts. And it’s hilarious.

Beth: It sounds like Stephen Sondheim would flip for this.

Julia: I think he would.

Beth: Are you making a lot of changes or is it just polishing it up for Broadway?

Julia: Yes and no. We had a quick process off-Broadway. We only had 11 previews. I think we only have 14 for this round. There are a lot of things that the creative team knew they wanted to finesse, so those things are on the table now. We’re doing slight edits and big cuts and new scenes.

Beth: Do you have an 11 o’clock number?

Julia: I don’t have the 11 o’clock number; that goes to our brilliant Thom Sesma. I do have this soft, delicate, hilarious, beautiful 10 o’clock number, where you meet this little girl named Millicent and you get to watch her grow up and make a very unconventional friend in our dearly departed Elmer McCurdy, played magnificently by Andrew Durand. Our composers have crafted this completely unique aural experience where to really, truly do span so many genres of music within this tight 90-minute show.

Beth: That’s good news. At my age, I’m like “How long is it!?”

Julia: How long is Old Friends?

Beth: Longer. We have a big boy intermission.

Julia: I hear the time flies.

Beth: It goes from one hit to the next. Visually, it’s stunning, and these voices are crazy. At the Ahmanson in Los Angeles, we had huge wing space, and I sit in a chair in the wings so I could feel closer to the orchestra and the singers.

Julia: So, I’m kind of having a moment right now in life where all my dreams are coming true. I’m trying to stay grounded and appreciate this opportunity. It’s my third Broadway show, but it’s my first time originating, and it’s so different. Do you have any advice for me?

Beth: Just fasten your seatbelt, get on the ride, and do not deny your joy. And I think we should find a date for you and I to meet on 8th Avenue and just run between 47th and 48th. That’ll be the cure for all the nerves.

Julia: Oh, I love that so much.

Beth:  Maybe in our show t-shirts.