Lauren Marcus is no stranger to musical theater. This rising star recently performed on Broadway in the hit show Be More Chill. In fact, Be More Chill is now available on vinyl and will soon be performed in London! Now, Lauren can be heard in The Jonathan Larson Project – the first-ever recording of never-before-heard early works by Rent’s Pulitzer Prize winning songwriter, available from Ghostlight Records. YEM spoke to Lauren about her career in music and what it’s like to be in a Broadway show!
Young Entertainment Mag: How did you first get involved in music?
Lauren Marcus: I think music’s always kind of been involved with me, haha. I just never remember not having a song in my head, not singing to the radio in the car, not desperately wanting to perform on a stage and communicate something through music to an audience. I even remember my sixth grade classmates betting me that I couldn’t go ten minutes without singing…I thought I’d win that bet for sure. Ten minutes? Please.
I for sure lost.
When I was in sixth grade (coincidence? Maybe not), I auditioned for my first musical–Bye Bye Birdie. I think my parents were secretly waiting to see if I actually had any talent in that area–besides being an insane fan–before full-throttle climbing onboard to my dream. Once I got cast and they could see how much that world meant to me, they gave me all the encouragement they could towards pursing music (and theatre) as a passion and career.
Writing-wise, I started attending open mic nights and performing my own material when I was about 25. It was a huge shift for me mentally–and terrifying to put my own thoughts into a song and release them into the world. I eventually got over that fear (…it took a while), and now I’m doing regular gigs around the city with an 11-person-band. I write mostly retro pop with a touch of country, and I’ve found a whole new passion for performing my own music as well as other people’s.
YEM: You recently starred on Broadway in the show Be More Chill! What was that experience like?
Lauren: Um…insane. Getting to Broadway was my dream since I was five-year-old and saw Les Miserables on tour. I was obsessed. It definitely took longer than I envisioned as a child, but I truly feel like it made the whole experience sweeter. And to make my Broadway debut alongside my husband and best friends? HOW DOES IT GET BETTER?!
It was definitely one of the harder jobs I’ve had–both physically and mentally–but it’s 100% been the most rewarding. The amount of people we connected with every night and the level of emotional intensity we felt from the audience was astounding and, some nights, unbelievably moving to the point where I’d cry. I can’t believe our little show meant so much too so many people.