Sherman: We’ re incredibly excited for your upcoming concert at Tanglewood. I’ m curious, when did you and Sutton first meet?
O’ Hara: It’ s been well over 20 years. We really became friends while working on a workshop of Little Women: The Musical. Sutton, of course, continued with the show to Broadway, but I couldn’ t. But we’ ve crossed paths ever since— galas, special events, things like that. We’ ve never been in a show together, but we’ ve known each other a long time.
Sherman: Are you recreating the Julie and Carol specials or drawing more loosely from them?
O’ Hara: It’ s more inspired by the idea of two women headlining together, which still doesn’ t happen very often. Their shows weren’ t always a compilation of their“ greatest hits.” Julie didn’ t necessarily sing from My Fair Lady. It was about chemistry and variety. Sutton and I wanted to do something that felt current and true to us. We start with an overture, combining both of our careers, and follow it with an opening number where we play each other’ s Broadway counterparts. There are solos, duets, some fun personal songs, and a few tributes. We use the exact orchestration and staging of“ Big D,” which Julie and Carol made famous. And of course, we do a medley, because … how could we not?
Sherman: Who first had the idea to do a Julie and Carol tribute?
O’ Hara: When we do shared interviews, Sutton’ s really good at jumping in and saying it was my idea, so I’ ll take the credit.( Laughter) Not only did I grow up on every Julie Andrews musical, but I never missed a Carol Burnett Show episode. I own the box set. I was obsessed with the art form of sketch comedy. I would come home from school and watch it. And I actually thought of Sutton right away, naturally, to be my counterpart.
Sherman: You speak so passionately about The Carol Burnett Show. What’ s your favorite character or sketch?
O’ Hara: It’ s hard to pick just one. The“ Went with the Wind” sketch [ a take-off of Gone with the Wind ] is iconic. I loved Mrs. Wiggins. I loved how Carol interacted in the opening with the audience, her Tarzan holler, the ear tug, the way she welcomed people in. Growing up in Western Oklahoma, I had no live theater access. Watching Carol Burnett was my lifeline. She was just fearless. I hadn’ t seen anyone like that before and certainly didn’ t know anybody like that. I was growing up on these movie musicals in which the actresses were always so proper. But Carol, she would just … bend herself. I’ m a huge fan. I just love her.
Sherman: You’ re known as“ Broadway’ s soprano,” very much in the tradition of the young Julie Andrews. People might not expect how deeply comedy speaks to you. Do you get a chance to show that side of yourself in this concert?
O’ Hara: Yes, I think that’ s the point. Sutton wanted to sing some more serious things, and I wanted to do things like wear chaps and turn cartwheels and make a complete fool of myself. People often ask me,“ How do you choose your work?” What they don’ t realize, I think, is that for a long while, when you’ re just starting out, you’ re just lucky to get work at all. You’ re not choosing your roles. You’ re saying a prayer and hoping for a star— and you leap on it, and you go. And then you start to understand what it is that you’ re passionate about and what it is that you offer. But in the middle of that process, your place becomes decided by others— not you. Your place is decided by the beholder, by the audience, by the industry. I didn’ t become an actress to play myself. When I was a kid, I dreamed of being every other type of person than what I was, because that’ s the fun of it. That’ s the craft.
So, even though people might assume I’ m taking on“ the Julie Andrews” part and Sutton is“ the Carol Burnett” of the concert, it’ s not true. In our hearts— and I promise you, I can speak for Sutton on this— in our hearts, we have a lot more to say than what we’ re allowed to say by the jobs we are given. That’ s why we decided to make a variety show of our own. I
thought,“ You know what? People don’ t know that I can be funny.” And she said,“ You know what? People don’ t know that I have a wealth of sincere and serious thoughts.” I’ m so proud of being a“ leading lady,” but what’ s really fun about this era of my life is that now I get to decide,“ What kind of leading lady do I want to be?” I think that’ s what’ s fun about putting together this show— Sutton and I get to decide who we want to be. It’ s not up to everybody else.
Carol and Julie were so multifaceted. And Sutton and I feel the same way. We’ re both more than what people expect. I’ m a mother of two. I’ m a grown woman— almost 50 years old. I’ ve lived. But many people still have this image of me as an ingénue who’ s never said a curse word in her life. It’ s pretty wild to me, actually. None of us— you, me, none of us— are one-note. n
" One Night Only: An Evening with Sutton Foster & Kelli O ' Hara," is on Friday, July 18, with Keith Lockhart conducting the Boston Pops, Koussevitzky Music Shed at Tanglewood. bso. org / tanglewood
Above and opposite page, Kelli and Sutton at Carnegie Hall, 2023.( Jenny Anderson)
Holiday July 2025 2023 BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE // 15