Subbing In for a Leading Role

This weekend, I saw Suffs: The Musical for the eighth time.*

But since I’ve seen the show much in the early preview performances, it was actually my first time watching an understudy “cover” for a leading role. 

Maybe it’s because I personally spend a lot of time professionally “covering” different types of roles in my own fractional work, but I am fascinated by the art of tapping in, temporarily. It’s no easy feat to jump into someone else’s shoes, particularly on a team that already gels so well operating in one mode. Particularly in a live performing environment, the pressure is on to knock it out of the park right away. 

You might think it’s overkill to see a single show this many times. But one of the best parts about seeing any piece of art multiple times is that, over time, you start to pick up on different nuances in character portrayals, audience responsiveness, and overall energy levels (all of which varies a bit from show to show).

In this case, I was particularly attentive to the dynamic on stage between the cover and the rest of the cast. It made me think a lot about what it takes to come in as a good substitute or “swing player” for someone else. I noticed a few things that felt applicable in many contexts, both on and offstage.

The Ensemble Effect

A lot of people think when a cover (read: understudy) steps into a leading role on Broadway, a successful performance hinges entirely on their shoulders. But that’s not really the case. It’s a crucial moment of teamwork and collaboration happening in real time, in front of an entire audience.

Anyone who’s ever acted or performed in a collaborative group (or sung in a choir, for that matter), gets the importances of the ensemble effect. You’ve probably sensed how energy flows between performers, or people on stage, and right out into the audience. 

If you’re sitting in the audience, and you feel a vibe that you might describe as “electrifying” or “captivating” that probably means the on-stage energy is really damn good. If you’re noticing that maybe, people aren’t picking up what the other is putting down, you might describe the energy as “lacking” or “flat.” 

By the way, sometimes the energy in a group is so good – like what you saw this year with the leads of Merrily, We Roll Along, that it simply cannot be contained on stage. The roles and interpersonal dynamics enmesh in onstage scripts and offstage friendships, each new nuance compounding against the last to form a formidable, unstoppable force. Much like the best startup teams, such true chemistry is highly unusual but such a treat when you stumble upon it, even once.

Obviously the starting lineup for a Broadway show – the original cast – was meticulously selected by directors and producers to optimize for making that energy level as good as possible on stage. But what happens when someone is out for a show? 

Well, that’s when you put in a cover. And it's up to the whole cast to adapt and match the new vibe on stage. Which is exactly what happened at Suffs this weekend.

Lessons for Any Team Based on Broadway Covers

Let me start by saying that Broadway loves covers. Swings. Understudies. Whatever you want to call them. The people who can literally jump into someone else’s role (and crush it) are sort of like modern-day superheroes.

So whether you’re prepping for a Broadway debut (or just preparing to step into someone else’s shoes in an upcoming job changed), here are some things I’ve noticed about the effective art of tapping in (and how to apply it to business in any context).

1. The show must prepare the cover.
   Covers and swings are critical Broadway infrastructure for the sustained longevity of any long-running production. The creative team gets this so much that they actually schedule special rehearsals just to get covers comfortable with the role. (Funny side note, these are called “put-in” rehearsals, often affectionately shorthanded to “puddin’” and sometimes even include pudding.) Yes, this is hard. Yes, this takes time. But it’s non-negotiable. This is the place for the cover to get their sea legs, to get some immediate feedback, and for the rest of the cast to acclimate to a different energy. 

   This lesson is immediately transferable to the business world. With any new hire, if you skip rehearsal time (or training/onboarding of any sort) you are just asking for disaster. It’s unfair to expect someone new to come in and knock it out of the park right away. If you’re bringing in someone new, you must invest time and resources to give them the rails of what they need. Period.

2. Good covers imitate, the best covers iterate.
   For anyone coming in as a cover, it’s a delicate balance of “copying what’s expected” and “making it your own.” If you try too hard to copy someone else, it’ll come off as forced, inauthentic, and maybe a little desperate. If you throw out their playbook entirely, the role (particularly in long-running performances, or pieces where people come in with some familiarity of the show) will be unrecognizable to the audience and director. Getting the balance right is tricky. I’ve noticed that good covers imitate, but the best covers iterate just enough to bring something a little different. I know this is easier said than done. But this is the only way to get authentic, fresh energy on stage.
   
   Interestingly, a version of this is also true for anyone who is “taking over” a long-standing role from someone else. Due to my husband’s role on the creative team of Hamilton, I’ve had the privilege of seeing close to 10 different “Eliza’s” play in Hamilton over the years, in many cities all over the world. Not to mention Thomas Jeffersons, Aaron Burrs, Angelica Schulyers, etc. In the context of a touring production, the leading role is in itself a distinct person from the one filling the seat on the Broadway stage. But the practice is similar. In the business context, if you’ve ever taken over someone else’s job who’s been at the helm for some time, you need to have just enough confidence and conviction in your own approach to be distinct, yet still familiar.

3. The cast must actively support the cover on stage.
   I think a lot of people generally underestimate how much effort it takes for the remaining ensemble to support a cover on stage. To a large extent, this is an invisible effort to the audience. It’s also generally unscripted stuff. It’s not like you need to change your lines, your individual performance, or your style. But you do need to change the way you relate to other people on stage. One of my favorite parts about seeing Suffs with a cover this weekend was seeing how all of the other leads brought an immediacy of energy around the new person. You could tell their eyes were locked in, that they were ready to pick up whatever that new person was putting down, even if it felt a little different.
   
   Now imagine you’re at a startup and you’ve just brought in someone new to cover some much-needed project management work. That person happens to like using Airtable but the rest of the team is hell-bent on using Notion. A supportive way to include the new person is to walk them through your Notion instance, explain what matters most to the team in terms of knowledge management, and respond positively to ideas they might have for how to bridge content from Notion into Airtable to organize it better. An unsupportive thing to do is to give them access to Notion and expect them to figure it out on their own, then roll your eyes when they suggest a new tool or workflow. Don’t leave your new people hanging out to dry. Remember: Startups are an ensemble, too.

I recognize that not everyone has the time, budget, or interest in watching a Broadway show 8 or more times in order to pick up on some of these nuances. All good, I’ve got you covered.