Len Pfluger’s involvement in the theater dates back nearly 30 years when he began as an actor, but for much of the last dozen years or so, he’s been making his name as a director, especially through a series of massive, classic musical revivals with Lyric Stage in Irving, Texas. Pfluger has directed and/or choreographed “My Fair Lady,” “South Pacific,” “Gypsy,” “Evita,” “Kismet,” and more. But his latest work is on the marvelous, seldom-revived “Grand Hotel.” With 28 cast members plus 34 musicians, it’s the kind of elaborate showpiece musical that’s rarely seen today.
We sat down with Pfluger to get his insights into what it’s like leading such large-scale musicals, how he casts them, as well as working with a music director who’s also his significant other.
Working with a cast the size of “Grand Hotel” just doesn't come along much. How do you fill it out with such a talented ensemble?
There is a huge talent pool in North Texas! In all of the shows that I’ve done here, I think there have been only a half a dozen actors brought in from outside of Texas for very specific roles. You get to know a lot of talented and reliable local actors [and] you keep them in mind when casting. But it’s always exciting finding new talent: Actors just out of college, actors who have just moved into or returned to the area, and actors that have been around and just not available for certain shows. There’s a ton of great theater in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and a lot of wonderful talent that’s just rotated around the various companies.
Was there a “hardest role” to cast in this show?
There are a lot of tough roles to cast in “Grand Hotel,” [but] the one that concerned me the most was Grushinskaya. The role calls for a great triple-threat actress “of a certain age.” She has to be believable as a prima ballerina and a very strong singing actress. We really lucked out with Mary-Margaret Pyeatt—she’s a great singer, fantastic actress, “over 30,” and can still dance!
“Grand Hotel” is basically sung-through; how do you work with the music director to ensure the best actors and singers are cast?
Jay [Dias] is really great at knowing voices and what he can vocally get out of actors. I think we are just keen to each other’s needs for actor-singers and singer-actors. It’s not always the actor with the “perfect” voice that’s perfect for the role.
What's your favorite show (or type of show) to work on?
As far as [specific] shows to work on, “South Pacific” and “Guys and Dolls” happen to be my favorites; I’ve had the chance to direct “South Pacific” twice and still waiting on “Guys and Dolls.”
I really love working on shows with Jay Dias. He’s the most complete music director/conductor working in the country. He has the skill to understand how music fits into musicals, how it affects the show, how the music and underscoring reinforce the dramatics of the piece, and how orchestrations support the characters and help tell the story. If you’ve been [seen] a show at Lyric Stage, you know the sound he can get out of an orchestra. Besides that, he’s my life partner. He’s a pretty swell guy and I think we work well together.
“Grand Hotel” runs through Sunday at the Irving Arts Center.
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