Philippa Stefani on Meeting Lin-Manuel Miranda, Keeping in Touch with Cynthia Erivo and Playing Mimi in London's Rent

Philippa Stefani has a wide-ranging list of musical credits that include Imagine This, Wicked, GhostI Can't Sing! and In the Heights,  and now the performer is taking on the role of Mimi in director Bruce Guthrie's new revival of Rent at the St James Theatre. Broadway.com caught the charming actress during her pre-London tour with Jonathan Larson's era-defining show in time for a chat as all-encompassing as her career has been to date. 

What is it like doing Rent having been in the revised Rent Remixed almost a decade ago in the West End, alongside Oliver Thornton and Luke Evans? 
This feels brand new, partly because that was quite a while ago now and also because we've really stripped [the show] to the bare minimum to start again. We've gone to the core of the characters and started from there.

Is it helpful to have had a prior association with so iconic a musical?
Yes, in all sorts of ways. I was in Wicked in London with Idina Menzel and at the opening night, I met Taye Diggs, and that was really cool, so these connections keep popping up. 

Weren't you understudying Mimi last time out, whereas you get to play her for real now? 
I was, and I think I went on maybe twice? But I'm not sure all those years ago that I was really ready to go to the depths of the character and do her justice; I don't think then that I could have done the job that I'm doing now. It feels as if this has come at the right time.

Aren't you too young to have known the show from its original incarnation?
Sure, but I was aware of it at college, so from my early 20s onwards, and I certainly knew the songs. I wasn't that clued-up about the story, but when I got out into the industry, it came on to my radar a bit more. That's what feels strange to me about approaching it again: although I've done it before and know the story, it still feels so fresh and relevant to things that are going on right now.

Are you referring to Jonathan Larson's much-needed celebration of diversity and inclusiveness?
Exactly that, as we had with In the Heights, which I just finished at the King's Cross Theatre. It's nice again to be in a show with a cast so diverse, especially when we're not going down the normal Rent route. Characters who were played by black actors before now are white or vice versa—or mixed-race. We've got a diverse mix in the show but not necessarily in the way it's been done in the past. 

How do you feel about Mimi, having lived with her to varying degrees for so long? 
I think Mimi wears her heart on her sleeve—she lives for every single second. She doesn't dwell in the past but lives for the now. I love the fact that she embraces every single second of life, but that she is so fragile as well. When she's healthy and she's living life, she's charismatic and lovable, but as the second act happens, she falls into this spiral of drugs and addiction and loss.

Do you find her decline difficult?
It's emotionally draining, which is a challenge in itself, but I just came to the point where I could handle it. The rehearsals were a lot and I was worried that I wouldn't be able to leave it onstage, but since we've been performing it, I appreciate that she has such an arc. It's so rewarding to play because you've got to be able to do it all. You have to get at where she is from the start of the show to the very end. It's a real journey. 

Have you redoubled your trips to the gym?
The show is the gym but I do take care of myself. I haven't had time for the gym while we've been on tour, but I certainly will be getting back to it when I have a bit of space in London. 

How do you feel about the fact that [original Rent star] Anthony Rapp will be performing downstairs in the St. James Theatre's cabaret space during the first few weeks of your run upstairs?
That's just crazy, right? When we first found out, it was mind-blowing. I hope we get to meet him because it would just be great to have a chat and talk about it all. 

Looking back on In the Heights, was that show a game-changer for you?
It really was: Daniela was just the most amazing part—she was like an exaggerated caricature of my normal personality, so not too far from me. And it was so much fun as well. We performed traverse-style with the audience on either side, and it was so nice to be able to get into people's faces and live that moment. 

What was it like meeting Lin-Manuel Miranda?
It was insane. We'd won three Olivier Awards, all of which were a massive deal for the cast, and then [Miranda] came with his wife Vanessa \ and gave a speech at the end. It was incredible. He was the most wonderful man. I'm just in awe of him as a person. 

Are you keeping an eye on Hamilton, opening in London next year?
Auditions are happening at the moment so who knows? You never know. Whatever comes next is not really in my brain at the moment. 

Do you keep in touch with your I Can't Sing! castmate Cynthia Erivo?
| saw her when I was doing High Society at the Old Vic during summer 2015. She came to my last performance just before she was going to New York to start [The Color Purple]. What's great about Cynthia is that when you have pinnacle moments like that in your life, you don't necessarily know how you're going to handle it, and she's just absolutely smashing it. To have known someone and watch them fly is the most incredible thing. 

Are you surprised that you're often referred to in print as Italian when you sound entirely English?
I know but I think it's that I look a lot more Sicilian than I do English, but it's true that I was born and bred here.

Are you related to American singer-songwriter Gwen Stefani?
I'm not, but I get that a lot. Who knows whether someday our paths might cross?