Wicked's Ginna Claire Mason on Her Nashville Roots, Putting on Shows in Her Living Room & More

The thrillifying musical sensation Wicked has been welcoming guests to the Gershwin Theatre for over 15 years, and in 2003, Ginna Claire Mason witnessed Wicked for the first time when she sat fourth row, house right seeing the original cast as an audience member in seventh grade. She had no idea how much the long-running musical would be involved in her life. After being a Glinda stand-by on Broadway and leading the national tour for 20 months, Mason is officially the reigning Bubble Queen on the Great White Way. Broadway.com talked to the Nashville native about how she got bit by the acting bug, her love for cowgirl boots and charging her parents admission for her living room concerts.

Music City
Mason proudly claims Nashville as her home and attributes it as being one of the reasons she began a music career in the first place. "You're surrounded by live music in that area. Music was just in my bones," she said. "Nashville's picturesque, it's very different now from what it was growing up. It's booming now, but it was definitely more of a small town when I was a kid." Not only did living in the Music City influence Mason's choices, but it also gave her inspiration at her wedding. "I wasn't planning on wearing cowgirl boots on my wedding day, but my dress was dragging just a little bit and boots had the perfect size heel," she said. "Nothing's as comfortable as your boots. I did end up saying 'I do' in my cowgirl boots, which is very Nashville."

Castle on a Cloud Couch
While she is the only professional actor in her family, Mason grew up in a family that loved to be dramatic. "We were raised on the musical theater classics," she said. "When I get together with my family, we'll burst into 'One Day More' from Les Misérables. All the first CDs I remember owning were My Fair Lady, Annie, Cats; the classics." Her love for musicals led to Mason putting on her own shows—and even charging admission. "Like a lot of performers at a young age, I put on shows in my living room for my parents to buy tickets to," she said. "They gladly bought tickets, I think I charged about a nickel. My little brother would join in on the on the dance routines. It was a family affair."

The Game-Changer
The musical-loving family took several trips up to New York City to see their favorite Broadway productions on stage. "I saw my first Broadway show in the fourth grade," she said. "I sat in row K at the Imperial Theatre for Les Misérables. I looked at my mom and intermission was like, 'People do this for a living? This is their occupation? This thing I do for fun after school is is their actual job?'" Mason's passion for musical theater continued to grow and eventually led her to the Gershwin where she would first dream about playing opposite Elphaba. "The big game-changer was in seventh grade seeing the original cast of Wicked on Broadway," she said. "I told my parents at intermission that I wanted to play Glinda someday, and here we are."

The Trensch Affect
After spending years doing school musicals and community theater, including her first stage performance as Little Miss Muffet in Goin' Buggy, Mason realized that her hobby could turn into a career move.  "I really thought I wanted to go to New York University," she said. "My very first college audition was at Elon University, and [then Elon student] Taylor Trensch walked me into my college audition. I fell totally in love with the department and the people and their program. I saw their Sweeney Todd, and I could not believe I wasn't in New York seeing a Broadway show. I knew I wanted to go to the school where these people are training and never looked back."

Heard It In a Past Life
When Mason isn't wearing a sparkly crown and reigning all of Oz, she enjoys living her life like any other Ozian would: listening to music and binge-watching new TV shows. "I really liked Dead to Me on Netflix and I love Billie Eilish," she said. "Obviously, Maggie Rogers, but everybody loves Maggie Rogers. Mary Kate Morrissey introduced me to her on the road before she was really popular, so I feel like I've loved her a long time."

There's No Place Like Home
Being Glinda the Good is no easy feat, and it is something that Mason has had years to perfect. "I started as the standby for about 16 months," she said. "I went on exactly 26 times and ended up re-auditioning to go out on the tour to play the role full time, which I did for 20 months." After traveling all across the country, Mason got the news that she would be returning to Broadway for good. "They say there's no place like home and after being the standby for so long and coming back to this building where there's already so many people I love, it feels very familiar. It's really good to come back home."

 
Photos by Caitlin McNaney | Video directed and edited by Mark Hayes