I Watched Sutton Foster’s Rise Firsthand—These Iconic Moments Made Me Her Forever Fan
Including the exact moment I saw her chemistry with Hugh Jackman for the first time, live on stage!
Admittedly, my introduction to Sutton Foster did not coincide with her Broadway debut (to be fair, she first hit the Great White Way in Grease four years before I was even born). However, I was first exposed to her around the same time I fell in love with musical theater, so in addition to being one of the most multifaceted juggernaut stage talents of my lifetime, Miss Foster also holds a very special place in my heart. Here are some of my personal favorite moments where the two-time Tony Award winner has left a lasting impression on me.
I first found Sutton Foster when I began singing
After I found my passion for music, my mom generously allowed me to take singing lessons. I generally worked on a new song each week with my vocal instructor, and I would also attend group musical theater classes in New York City, during which students would workshop songs in front of the rest of the group.
One day, one of my peers sang a few bars of an upbeat, booming showstopper, and I immediately wanted to try it out myself. It was “Gimme Gimme” from Broadway’s Thoroughly Modern Millie, where Foster originated the lead role of Millie Dilmount, and after class, I found the original Broadway recording to start learning the song.
There was something about Foster’s voice that simply stunned me from the first note. It reminded me of exactly what I wanted my voice to become someday—strong, polished, distinct, controlled, but also seemingly unlimited. That song was difficult, so I worked on it day and night, trying to model my execution after Foster’s.
I essentially lived by her performance in this video. One day, my private singing teacher asked if I wanted to record my own song in their makeshift recording studio. I could sing any song I wanted (and I had practiced many, many showtunes), but I went with “Gimme Gimme.”
Why Sutton Foster became my musical theater idol
A few years later, I participated in my high school’s production of Shrek The Musical. I had never seen the show or heard the music, but I loved being involved in my music department. However, I quickly resonated with the character of Fiona and the songs she sang throughout the show. I found out Foster had once again brought life to a role I was drawn to, and so began my fascination with her career!
The following year, I did Shrek once again, this time with a local community theater, and I was cast as Fiona! Now I would not only be singing a song of which Foster was the master, but playing her role in front of an audience.
To say this was a tall order would be an understatement, and studying her take on Fiona only reinforced to me that Foster wasn’t an ordinary Broadway talent. She was a supernova who took some of the most demanding roles and portrayed them effortlessly.
Seeing Sutton Foster perform live was pure Broadway magic
In 2018, I snagged tickets to Elsie Fest, an outdoor Broadway concert in Central Park with a star-studded lineup including Foster. I watched in awe as she humbly greeted a wild cheering audience, only to then quiet the crowd the moment she began singing.
My dreams came to fruition as I witnessed her belt out “Gimme Gimme” live and nearly brought me to tears with an acoustic rendition of “Up On the Roof.”
Then, just when I thought I couldn’t possibly admire her more, she sweetly serenaded her daughter, Emily, from afar with James Taylor’s “You Can Close Your Eyes.” She hoped her little girl was asleep for the night at that time, Foster said, but noted that “If she isn’t, maybe she’ll hear this song.”
The night I witnessed Sutton Foster and Hugh Jackman’s chemistry
Two of my favorite triple threats of all time co-starred in the 2022 revival of Broadway’s The Music Man, so of course I had to attend—twice! The first time, though, I watched a moment that I now know was even more special than I had realized.
Before romance rumors began swirling, as I admired Foster and Hugh Jackman playing opposite one another in the show, I caught a glimpse of what I had assumed was just an onstage spark. They were in the middle of dialogue, and as her character Marian Paroo, Foster began awkwardly giggling and acting smitten with Jackman’s Harold Hill.
However, when the two couldn’t stop shyly smiling at one another after a few seconds, the audience collectively realized and reacted to the fact that this moment wasn’t just shared between Harold and Marian, but Jackman and Foster.
After some applause, laughs and whistles broke out from the audience, the two snapped back into their roles and continued the scene. Three years and a confirmed relationship later, I know I had an eighth-row-seat to a love story in the making!
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