Some Like It Hot, the 2022 Broadway musical take on the classic 1959 movie of the same name, hits the boards at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in downtown Chicago Tuesday, Oct. 22 through Sunday, Nov. 3.
Two members of the supporting cast already have plans for when they come to town. That’s the opposite of the plot of Some Like It Hot, which has two Prohibition era musicians fleeing Chicago by going in drag and joining an all female band after they witness a mob hit.
So it goes. And probably still does.
A ‘thrifty’ Irish-American
Anyway, to feed her love of crafting and thrifting, Some Like It Hot ensemble member Emily Kelly said she plans on visiting some vintage clothing shops and other stores recommended by some friends who live here.
As she loves exploring cities, Kelly might also hit a couple Irish dance studios or maybe the Irish American Heritage Center on the northwest side to learn more about her roots.
“I’m fourth generation removed, and my family first settled in the New York area. My dad’s Irish all the way, and my mom’s ancestry is Irish and Italian,” Kelly said.
Her dad’s grandfather, James C. Kelly, did radio and played a bailiff in 1957’s classic courtroom drama, 12 Angry Men, Kelly said. The family has a picture of him from an advertisement for a soft drink from long ago where James is dressed as Santa Claus.
“He looks pretty worn out as Santa, like he had a rough night,” Kelly said.
While that may be her family’s only past ties to show business, Kelly, who grew up in California, said she’s always wanted to be in the theater.
Along the way, she’s developed a fondness for embroidery, crochet, Shrinky Dink jewelry, candle making and sewing, with an emphasis in upcycled clothing.
In fact, on this tour, she’s decorating an old jean jacket someone left behind when they sublet a place where she lived in New York. Kelly said she’s adorning the denim with patches from the stops along the way to commemorate her time on the road with Some Like It Hot,
“I’ve done a lot of regional theater, but this is my first national tour,” Kelly said.
While on tour, she also feeds her reading habit, and has a preference for fantasy and romance novels. She recommends Sara Maas’ Celtic-tinged fantasy series Throne of Glass and Ali Hazelwood’s Bride as a good Halloween-time read.
Kelly, who holds a BFA from Indiana University, also serves as the “green captain” for Some Like It Hot. The role is related to the Broadway Green Alliance, an initiative of the theater community that encourages productions and audiences to be more eco-friendly.
Kelly said she started with small things, like having recycle bins backstage for used paper cups. She also puts out a newsletter for the cast on green things they can do on tour. With her own repurposing of things found and bought on tour stops, Kelly said she’s already mailed a box back to her place in New York.
As for the musical itself, Kelly said it’s a blast, with its Big Band jazz score, Prohibition era-inspired choreography and its comedy.
“And the women all have strong roles to play,” Kelly said.
Once the tour eventually ends, Kelly might return to tweaking a one-woman cabaret act she has in the works for herself. It features a redhead’s dream role medley.
“I haven’t had a chance yet to play the parts that have been written for redheads,” Kelly said.
Being a ginger has come in handy for landing another job along the way, though.
“They hired me as a waitress at an Irish pub in Inwood (a neighborhood in Manhattan),” Kelly said.
A dancer’s chance to visit her very smart sister
While Kelly spends her free time in Chicago thrifting, fellow Some Like It Hot cast member Rachael Britton Hart plans to visit her sister, Jessica, who is working on a doctorate in evolutionary biology at the University of Chicago.
“She’s researching the evolution of bacteria in the Great Lakes,” Hart said.
While Jessica was super-involved in activities and took to science in high school, Hart said she’s pretty much always wanted to be in theater and dance.
As such, Some Like It Hot is her second time out performing in a national tour of a Broadway musical, with the first being Pippin in 2017. (Warning: bad dad joke ahead. This is not about a former Chicago Bulls star. That would be called Pippen.)
With Some Like It Hot, Hart is the swing for seven ensemble tracks, an understudy for the role of Minnie, and she serves as the assistant dance captain.
Hart, who holds a BFA Dance Performance and Choreography from Temple University, also teaches Pilates.
She came to that after graduating college a semester early and looking for a side hustle as she pursued her theatrical career.
Issues with her own back led her to the mind-body exercise regimen, Hart said. She wound up studying with Teri Steele at Brooklyn’s renowned Steele Pilates, and has been at it for 10 years now.
Hart is very passionate about helping people improve their quality of life, lessen chronic pain and grow stronger through Pilates. She said she’s taught people from the ages of 13 to 96.
“It allows your neuromuscular pathways to move more efficiently,” Hart said.
Practicing further self-care, Hart said she journals every morning. She might also get back to blogging as she did on the Pippin tour – or spend time developing some ideas she has for children’s books.
As for being in Some Like It Hot, Hart said she loves the score, the style of dance and the laughs it’s delivering to audiences.
“It’s been a joy to learn and perform this material. And the show has a timeless message about love and acceptance,” Hart said.