TOLEDO- Get ready Toledo! The spotlight is about to shine on the Glass City as the Stranahan Theater prepares to host a season of Broadway touring shows, including &Juliet.
&Juliet first came to the Broadway stage in 2022 and was created by Emmy-winning writer of Schitt’s Creek, David West Reed.
Lois Ellise, understudy for Juliet, started out as a college student looking to go into athletic training.
“I went to Central Michigan University, and I originally had gone for athletic training, but decided that I wanted to be a physical therapist for the arts, for theater, for dancers, and decided to do a musical in order to have some experience within the industry,” Ellise said.
She said she has always loved musicals and did her first show her sophomore year.
“I just fell in love with it, and I changed my major; I had a completely new outlook on what my life was going to look like, and I honestly never looked back after that,” Ellise said.
As the role of an understudy, Ellise must be ready to go on stage at any time if Fabiola Caraballo Quijada, who plays the role of Juliet, cannot perform for any reason.
“Anytime our Juliet is unable to do a show for any reason like injuries, illness, etcetera, I step up,” Ellise said. “I could be asked to do the show hours before or even an hour into the show, so it’s just really about staying ready for that to happen at any moment.”
She has been with the company for the last 14 months.
“I got the opportunity to learn the role right there, as our Juliet at the time, Rachel Simone Webb, was learning the role, and I was taking all the direction that I could. You just kind of absorb all this information and hold on to it until you get the call that you’re going on,” Ellise said.
Along with being the understudy for Juliet, Ellise also serves as a swing, covering ensemble roles, and is the assistant dance captain responsible for knowing and teaching the choreography for the show.
“We have ten ensemble roles and we have on-stage eight principal roles that we end up teaching,” Ellise said.
While being in the musical theater world, Ellise has pushed through setbacks and obstacles, proving her resilience both on and off the stage.
“When you’re asked to step into any role, just knowing exactly what this character does and when you have so much information in your head…just trying to manage all of that is the most challenging part of the job,” Ellise said.
Ellise has two pieces of advice to anyone interested in pursuing musical theater, theater or the arts.
“My two pieces of advice are one, to always train – and that doesn’t mean you have to have the fanciest lessons or acting classes. It can mean reading a play, watching a musical, listening to the soundtrack, find out what speaks to you as an artist, and hold on to that and you can train anywhere,” she said. “My other piece of advice is to have your own career. More than likely, it’s not going to look like anybody else’s journey or career. That’s the most beautiful thing about theater and about the arts, that everyone is on a unique and individualized journey, and there’s so much meaning and power behind it,” Ellise said.
In some ways, Ellise relates heavily to her character of Juliet.
“I definitely relate to Juliet. I have in my lifetime had to recognize and lean into the power of the pivot. There were so many obstacles, even just in this industry, and there are so many times where you might be met with an obstacle, and it’s up to you to quickly say, ‘Okay, this is what we’re going to do,’” Ellise said.
Performance Schedule:
Tuesday, Dec.16, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec.17, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 18, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 19, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 20, 2 and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 21, 1 and 6:30 p.m.
Tickets to see &Juliet are available for purchase at BroadwayinToledo.com, StranahanTheater.com and Etix.com.
