Marcus Weiss had never set foot in Las Vegas until he was cast in Blue Man Group three and a half years ago. As a working actor in New York, he hadn't ever considered working in Las Vegas, but when he was hired to be in the show, he had to go where the role was available. A spot was open in Sin City, where a new production of the successful off-Broadway show was about to open at the Luxor Hotel.
The New York native grew up in Zurich, Switzerland and came back to the United States to study at Dartmouth. He got his Master of Fine Arts degree in acting from Temple University and moved to New York to work.
"I paid my dues and did the cater/waiter thing for a while, but after a few years I was able to work full-time as an actor," he said.
That included work in children's theater, off-Broadway plays, and even dressing as gorilla for $75 an hour. He also did a good deal of voice-over work, using his German fluency to his advantage.
"I didn't do Broadway but I survived as an actor and was happy in New York," he said.
He didn't know that he?d be even happier in Las Vegas.
"I love Vegas. I love being a performer here. It's a huge city but it's a small community of performers," he said. "Being in a popular show is very gratifying. Making enough money to not worry about bills is great. The company people at Blue Man people are great, too."
His life has been very different in Vegas, and it's exciting for Weiss, who gleefully refers to himself as a very immature 35-year-old, to be in a town where he can think about buying a house and settling down.
But that doesn't mean he settles for one job.
After one and a half years in Vegas, he had been itching to do more. Because the performing community is tight, he became friends with the cast of the Second City improvisational group, which performs twice nightly at the Flamingo Hilton. Even though he had quite of bit of training in improvisation (a skill he gets to use a little bit in Blue Man Group), he knew that the best way to get involved with them was to take their classes.
"I knew it was crucial to take their classes to get their techniques and their vibe," he said. "Continued training is always important."
Within less than a year, the cast and director got to know Weiss and his work ethic and abilities. And they cast him as an understudy, with no audition. Because he is committed to the Blue Man Group full time, he gets to perform with Second City only about once or twice every other month. However, he is required to find the time to watch the improv show at least once per week to keep track of its rhythm, structure, and changes.
And finding the time to get to Second City hasn't been as easy since he's been performing the lead in Nevada Theater Company's "Hedwig and the Angry Inch."
"Blue Man is really cool. They're a brilliant company to work for. They gave me every Saturday night off to do Hedwig, and I switched my day off to Friday so I could do the show."
Nevada Theater Company's artistic director Deanna Duplechain said that this was Weiss' dream role.
"Well, yeah, I did say Hedwig is my Hamlet," he acknowledges."I consider Hedwig one of those roles with incredible range and humanity to it."
He relates Hedwig's search for meaning in the world to his own, even though his character has a much harder edge and is much more conflicted than the actor himself. His haughty, sharp performance belies his gregarious and kind personality in real life.
Performing in three different shows is physically demanding, and Weiss is up for the challenge. His lean, muscular frame helps him with the demands of wearing platform Go Go boots for "Hedwig," and the physical demands of doing percussion and isolated movements for Blue Man Group. The fact that he's worked out four to five times weekly since college adds to his preparedness for the roles.
"I've always been athletic," he said. "But I train so that I am in shape, even beyond the shows' demands."
His passion for performing matches his passion for living and for his love, Corrine Spingola, who did the make-up design for Hedwig. "It was so cool because we got to work together on a project."
Because his talent--from singing to acting to improvisation--is so versatile, it's hard for him to say what he loves most.
"Certain things are a tighter fit. I love performing because I love connecting to other people. For me, it's very significant and I've thought about it a lot. I love to sing, act, do stand up... the reason I want to be onstage is to convey something that will move people intellectually or emotionally."
Versatility has helped him a lot. As an actor who drums, he's been able to master the heavy percussion demands of Blue Man Group. (He says that some of the cast are drummers who had to master the acting.)
His advice for other actors and entertainers who come to Vegas is a bit different.
"Work comes and goes pretty quickly. It's important to know people and keep up on what's going on."
Seeing the shows, meeting the performers and creative teams and making connections can help an actor a lot. He recommends coming to Vegas with a lot of guts, tenacity and perseverance. There's room to grow and with some of the new companies in town, it seems that Vegas is starting to embrace the theater, he says.
"It's been nothing but gratifying and fulfilling to live and work here."