Interview with the Editor: Kayla Pecchioni

The summer after my freshman year of college, I flew out to visit some family members living in Denver, Colorado. It was a vacation I will never forget for many reasons, one of them being it was my first time seeing the laugh-out-loud musical comedy, The Book of Mormon. I still remember my jaw dropping when my aunt told me she had gotten tickets for us to see the show while I was in town. Anyone who knows me can tell you that musical comedies are my favorite type of theatre performances, and after seeing The Book of Mormon live, it quickly became one of my favorite musical comedies of all time (just behind Spamalot, that is.)

Part of what made the performance I saw of The Book of Mormon magical was the all-in dedication of the actors on stage. Every single performer was engaged, and that includes Kayla Pecchioni, the wonderfully-talented actress who played Nabalungi. In addition to The Book of Mormon, she has also starred in the South Korean national tour of Dreamgirls; portrayed Maggie in Signature Theatre's A Chorus Line, a production which received two Helen Hayes awards; and was set to portray Duckling Donna in the upcoming national tour of Summer: the Donna Summer Musical before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

I was amazed by her performance as Nabalungi in The Book of Mormon, and I was even more amazed when she graciously agreed to this interview with me.

Tell me a little bit about your theatre background. Where did you grow up? Where did you go to school? etc.

As far as my early childhood, there isn't much of a theatre background actually. I grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, and after trying to get me to play almost every sport imaginable – and watching me quit them all – my parents signed me up for a dance studio as a last resort when I was around six years old. I tried to quit that often for about two years, but they made me stay. However, once I caught on, and realized that dance can be competitive, and that I was doing well competing in dance, I was hooked. So I danced at my studio and on my school's dance teams from there on out.

And then I attended a performing arts high school in Louisville, majoring in dance. There was so much pressure at that time to choose a career for yourself. I loved dancing, but I knew I didn't see myself as a career bunhead, or a company dancer, so I really had no idea how I was going to proceed past high school. I really wanted to pursue this local university that at the time had one of the best dance teams in the country just to keep competing and training in the way I enjoyed, but I had no clue what I actually would have wanted to study when I was there.

But then, at the top of my fourth year of high school, a couple of my friends who were theatre majors encouraged me to audition for the musical which was Thoroughly Modern Millie. I was cast as Miss Flannery, and that pretty much sealed the deal for how I would guide the rest of my life, including majoring in theatre in college.

In what ways did your training from Northern Kentucky University (NKU) prepare you for finding work in the industry post-graduation?

My training at NKU wasn't as intense as I wished it to be, but like a lot of environments in the theatre industry, and even in an educational setting, NKU had its favorites that would get cast again and again, and I truly had to work for my spot which was such a valuable lesson to learn at that time. I'm also grateful that because NKU was not a conservatory, I was allowed to "a la carte" my education for what I needed. Dance wasn't as heavy a focus as I wanted it to be in my studies, so I was able to audit and add on as many dance classes and opportunities as I could handle.

But a lot of the struggles I faced at NKU were with myself. I'm a perfectionist and I was incredibly critical of myself and genuinely afraid of this art form. But I knew when I was finally on stage, and all of the pieces had come together, that that payoff was why I wanted to do musical theatre. Theatre is challenging, vulnerable, and very "look-at-me," and I am not at all the "look-at-me" type, so I remember crying before some classes where I had to perform monologues, and therefore shying away from making bold choices, just because I was so afraid. But because I ultimately wanted that payoff of performing – and that "job well done" so to speak – I was forced to figure out how I was going to combat those feelings, because they were something, and are something, I'm going to be encountering for the rest of my life.

Most people would probably say you are best known for your portrayal of Nabalungi in the national tour of The Book Of Mormon. How was that experience for you? How many shows did you perform? What was your favorite part of playing Nabalungi, etc.?

The Book of Mormon changed my life. It opened so many doors. When I was called in to audition for The Book of Mormon, I had just gotten my agent, and I was in the process of opening my second season of the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall in NYC. So, I asked my agent to just hold off on sending auditions for a while, so I could just focus on Radio City. (haha) Then, one day, I'm in rehearsal, and I get the appointment for The Book of Mormon, and my agent essentially begged me to take a chance and go, because obviously this was a huge deal. I ended up getting two more callbacks a few days later, and I think the time between the initial audition and when I left to join the tour was about three weeks. So, it was super quick. They were seeking an immediate replacement, so in that time I had to quit Radio City, learn the entire show by day, pack up my entire apartment in NYC by night, and narrow my life down to two suitcases essentially. The next time I took a breath I was Nabalungi.

It was SCARY. Being a lead was something I was trying to run away from. People would ask me if I dreamed of being a Broadway star, and I would always tell them I dreamed of hopping from ensemble to ensemble, where the focus is on the team. But, you can't run away from destiny. (haha) And I was extremely honored to have been chosen. It was then a part of my job to believe that I had been chosen for a reason, and show up for not only myself, but also this epic team that had put their trust in me.

I ended up being with The Book of Mormon for over a year and a half and performed just under 600 shows as Nabalungi. My favorite part was falling in love with the show because it was NOT an easy job. We performed this high-energy show eight times a week, six days a week, and traveling city to city every week doing press and interviews. I ended up being so exhausted for most of the tour. But the actual show, the actual material itself kept me going. There's just no way to end that finale and not feel overjoyed. I deeply loved Nabalungi, and she served as a gateway for me past my fears. She helped me naturally become comfortable with her, and I was very protective of the character. I felt safe with her.

Prior to your The Book of Mormon fame, I discovered that you landed your first professional role right here in the Quad Cities: playing Pilar in Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse's production of the musical, Legally Blonde. How was that show for you? In what ways was that show similar to being on tour with The Book of Mormon? In what ways was it different?

Yes, Legally Blonde was my first professional role. That show, no matter where I go, (I've done it twice now) that show brings me so much joy. I literally seek to do more productions of Legally Blonde, and I was almost in one before the pandemic actually.

But at Circa ‘21, I was Pilar, yes. But I was also the judge, a law student, a prisoner, and the crew. (haha) We had a very small cast compared to what the Broadway version had, so it required a lot of overlap tracking. That would probably be the biggest difference. The Book of Mormon is a huge, well-calculated machine. Whereas at Circa, because it is a smaller theatre, in a smaller city, and there was overlap tracking, it was really collaborative. We built that show on blood, sweat, and tears truly, so we were all very passionate about our work. And it felt like it was ours. Like we owned it, and we could take credit for its successes. But with Book of Mormon, because it's so well-oiled, everyone has a very specific job to do and focus on, and you can kind of throw in a person without any confusion. It felt very much larger than myself. So, while the sense of pride was definitely still there, I knew the show had a life outside of my work.

But the similarities being at Circa, and that sort of professional environment with so many varied levels of ages, and accomplishments, and backgrounds, it really helped me to realize what kind of professional I wanted to be. I still remember the giant pink actor's house that we all lived in, and it was my first time working alongside people who had really been out working in the field. I aspired to be like them. So then, when I did go onto The Book of Mormon tour, I was able to apply the lessons they taught me as to what kind of theatre professional I wanted to be.

Looking ahead, the question on a lot of people's minds is: What will theatre look like once theaters are allowed to reopen? What are your thoughts on that question? Furthermore, what, if any, changes would you like to see American theatre embrace moving forward?

I honestly have no idea what theatre will look like when we're able to return to it. In all aspects, we can pretty much bet that there isn't a return to normal. Things will definitely change. (haha) With COVID, my mindset when we entered the pandemic was that it was probably going to last as long as we're seeing it last, so more of my focus has gone to growing and adapting the tools I have now. I had to pick up some new skills and find ways to apply the training I've had up to this point to benefit me in new ways, that I hadn't really expected to before.

However, this pandemic fortunately brought up some necessary conversations that kept getting overlooked in theatre, that now we've had the time to highlight and address. And with that, I mean some serious racial issues, or just equality issues in general, that we've been pretty complacent with for a long time. We've been able to see those changes implemented already with the creation of new organizations like the Broadway Advocacy Coalition, Black Women on Broadway, Black Men on Broadway. There was the "We See You White American Theatre" manifesto that went viral via social media, and I'm just looking forward to watching the growth of these initiatives, and participating in that fight. Because as a black, queer woman in theatre myself, it is very much a part of my experience.

Lastly, do you have any exciting projects in the works? Or has the COVID-19 pandemic made all of your plans up in the air?

Currently, I am working on a virtual production of the musical, Annie for Kota Productions, where I am playing Grace. I love breaking down barriers and changing the idea of traditionally white characters, so I have absolutely loved playing Grace on the heels of Audra MacDonald. (haha)

Also, I have recently started a podcast called, "You Good, Sis?" that is taking up a lot of my time these days. It is such a passion project, and I am so happy with how it's being received. It's available on all listening platforms, so everyone should definitely check it out.

Other than that, I am absolutely hoping for the return of theatre, but I have been asking for my world to slow down for a very long time. (haha) I've been working consistently since I graduated from NKU almost seven years ago, so I really appreciate the unknown and the ability to try my hand at different outlets. Entering the virtual world has been exciting, and now I am opening myself up to film, and commercials, and TV, which I hadn't really done before. But honestly, I am open to any and everything. I'm so looking forward to seeing how my future continues to shape itself, as I always have.