Lucky Stars

Luck is a fickle thing, but for alum Danny Burgos, it is something you can create.

Burgos graduated from Florida State in 2015 with a degree in music theater. Since then, he’s performed in the national Broadway touring productions of Beauty and the Beast; The Band’s Visit; On Your Feet!; and, currently, Moulin Rouge! The Musical. When reflecting on his resume, he can’t help but feel “lucky.”

“I know a lot of people don’t like to call it luck because it implies you didn’t work very hard,” Burgos said. “But one of my favorite quotes is, ‘Luck is when preparation meets opportunity,’ and I think FSU did a great job preparing me.”

Luck has played a recurring role in Burgos’ artistic life as early as high school when he worked at Coldstone Creamery.

Danny Burgos performed as an ensemble member and as Emilio Estefan’s understudy in the national touring production of On Your Feet!, a musical inspired by the real-life story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan. Photo by Curtis Brown Photography

“At Coldstone, whenever you got a tip, you had to sing a little tip song,” he said. “One time, I got a tip and sang this ice cream rendition of ‘My Girl.’ ”

The performance was so good that a customer left to grab a friend who proved to be the artistic director at a community theater two doors down. Before long, Burgos was cast in a musical.

It wasn’t until he saw a live performance of The Phantom of the Opera at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts that Burgos considered pursuing theater professionally.

“I was obsessed,” he said. “I remember seeing everybody come out on the steps for the song ‘Masquerade’ and thinking, ‘This is so luxurious and expensive and great.’ It was the first time I saw a piece of theater and thought, ‘Okay, this is something I could really do.’”

As fun as theater may be, it’s also rigorous, especially touring. Burgos said he and his fellow actors travel on Mondays, do sound checks on Tuesdays and perform several shows before doing it all again in the next city. And work isn’t limited to just the time spent traveling and performing.

Hannah Schreer, a 2021 FSU graduate currently starring as one of the fates in the national tour of Hadestown, said she spends most of her time outside the theater “gearing up” for the eight shows their company puts on each week.

Marla Louissaint, Lizzie Markson and Hannah Schreer in Hadestown. The women portray the three Fates, goddesses with considerable influence. Photo by T Charles Erickson

“I’m resting and taking care of my body, especially my voice,” she said. “And sometimes we’ll have rehearsals during the week if we need to brush up.”

Faith Northcutt, another 2021 FSU grad, has a couple of tours under her belt. She joined the national tour of Hairspray as Brenda, a dancer in the Corny Collins show, before being promoted to Dance Captain and Tracy Turnblad’s understudy. Now, Northcutt is traveling the country in Mamma Mia! While she loves touring, “It takes a big toll on your body,” she said.

“What I love most about the theater is that for 2½ hours, all you have to do is focus on what’s in front of you,” Burgos said. “They say in Moulin Rouge that ‘Moulin Rouge is a state of mind.’ And it’s very true. For these 2½ hours, you’re here with us on this journey — come with us. Forget about everything.”

Northcutt loves the positivity theater brings others.

“I love performing because I love being a part of a community that uplifts, enlightens and enlivens the people around them.”

Katerina McCrimmon, who currently stars as Fanny Brice in the national touring production of Funny Girl, describes being a performer as “thrilling.”

Faith Northcutt is no stranger to musical theater; Mamma Mia! is her second tour. As a swing, she covers eight different tracks, “meaning that if someone gets sick or injured, I have to step into their track at a moment’s notice,” she said. “I love the challenge.” Photo courtesy of Joan Marcus

“What I’ve always loved about performing since I was a kid is the sense of play that comes with it — the golden, magical feeling one experiences when inhabiting a different character and telling a story through that character’s eyes. It’s just thrilling and so much fun,” she said.

McCrimmon’s love of theater bloomed in the third grade while watching a production of Madeline’s Christmas at The Miracle Theater in Miami.

“For the first time,” she said, “I saw 12 little girls my age on a stage doing what I wanted to do. The next day, my mom and I looked up audition information for the theater, and I performed in my first musical a few months later. I haven’t stopped since.”

She debuted on Broadway in 2019 in the Roundabout Theatre Co.’s revival of Tennessee Williams’s The Rose Tattoo. At the time, she was still a student.

“My Broadway debut felt like a dream, especially because of the way it happened,” McCrimmon said. “Roundabout Theatre Co. contacted me and asked me to audition for The Rose Tattoo on Broadway. I was teaching at Miami Children’s Theater that summer and had no idea how they found me or why they wanted to see me.”

She headed to New York and auditioned for the role, which she won on the spot.

“I was going into my senior year when it happened, so I took online classes to stay enrolled. It was quite bizarre writing essays for my music history class from my Broadway dressing room,” McCrimmon said.

Katerina McCrimmon believes she was born to play Funny Girl’s Fanny Brice. “We both have this drive and zest for life, and we know what our purpose in life is,” she said. Photo by Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade

Burgos, Schreer, Northcutt and McCrimmon all credit FSU with helping to make them the performers they are today.

McCrimmon emphasized that, while she learned a lot during her time in The Rose Tattoo and through playing the role of Fanny Brice, FSU is where she truly “gained confidence and really learned to act in a more grounded and truthful way.”

“I owe it to my gifted professors like Gayle Seaton, Fred Chappell, Jean Lickson, Debra Hale, Sudarat Songsiridej, Tom Ossowski, Michael Jablonski and many more who gave me the courage to make strong choices and love what I have to offer just by being me,” she said.

Northcutt said her years at FSU allowed her to devote all of her time to developing her actor’s toolkit.

“I would not be where I am today without all the lessons and guidance I received at FSU,” she said. “I was exposed to dancing, vocal and acting styles, including several semesters of ‘acting for the camera,’ which I particularly enjoyed.”

Offered Schreer: “I graduated with a class of seven people, so we really got that individualized conservatory-style training, and I had a very close relationship with all my professors, which I really think shaped me into the performer that I am.”

Photo by Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade

Burgos said FSU’s theater school provides “interdisciplinary” education that enables students to study alongside other types of artists.

“What I love about Florida State is it’s a really collaborative environment,” he explained. “The musical theater kids are taking classes with acting majors and dance majors. You’re graduating with or taking classes with people who are going to be the best of the best in their fields in the hopes you’ll be the best of the best in yours.”

Burgos and Northcutt shared that they hope to one day originate a role, while Schreer wants to continue creating magic on stage. And McCrimmon wishes for “a long, fruitful career that is always artistically fulfilling” and “maybe a Tony award.”

Given their successes, why shouldn’t they dream big?

“If you’re passionate about something and you truly feel in your heart that it’s what you’re supposed to do, then go do it,” Schreer said. “I knew that I would be very regretful if I didn’t give it a try. You just have to go for it and give it everything you have.”

Danny Burgos

FSU alumnus Danny Burgos graduated in 2015. He previously worked as a standby in the Broadway musical On Your Feet! and performed in several national Broadway touring productions, including Beauty and the Beast and The Band’s Visit. He’s currently traveling as Santiago in Moulin Rouge! The Musical.

Hannah Schreer

Hannah Schreer graduated from FSU in 2021. Before joining the national touring cast of Hadestown, she performed in regional theater productions of Rock of Ages, Guys and Dolls, My Fair Lady and more.

Faith Northcutt

Faith Northcutt, another FSU class of 2021 alumna, spent two years in the national touring cast of Hairspray, where she fulfilled several different roles, including Tracy Turnblad’s understudy and Dance Captain. Now, she’s on the road as a swing in Mamma Mia!

Katerina McCrimmon

Katerina McCrimmon, FSU class of 2020, made her Broadway debut in 2019 in the revival of Tennessee Williams’s The Rose Tattoo. In September, she assumed the role of Fanny Brice in the Broadway national touring production of Funny Girl.