Liisi LaFontaine and Solea Pfeiffer Are Ready for the Revolution in Wanted on Broadway

“Texas.”
“1893.”
“Two girls.”
“One goal.”
“Get that money.”

So say Liisi LaFontaine and Solea Pfeiffer—in that order—when asked to break down the world of Wanted, an original musical coming to Broadway this fall. If you’re not already hooked, here’s LaFontaine’s elevator pitch: “Mary and Martha Clark, who powder their faces and pass for white, become notorious outlaws in the Wild West of Texas, robbing their way through to send money home to their mom. They end up at this saloon town where love, romance, drama and chaos ensues.”

LaFontaine and Pfeiffer first met during a workshop for the show in 2018. "I think from the second we heard a singular song, we were like, 'Oh, well, I need this immediately in my veins,'" says LaFontaine, a West End mainstay who will make her Broadway debut as Martha. “The obsession has only grown over time. Eight years of just loving this show, and now we get to bring it to the biggest stage in the world.”

“For both of us, it was the first time where we got to specifically explore our identities and delve into the history of what it means to be who we are,” says Pfeiffer, who plays Mary. She relishes that, “Once we open this show and it exists, there will be two roles in the lexicon that my 13-year-old self never had and always wanted.”

As for the characters they portray, LaFontaine says, “These women are so complex. I think that a lot of the time you get sanitized versions of people, especially in musicals when you don't have as much time to explore the depth of people. Over time, with a mixture of the collaboration of the team and us growing into ourselves and being able to share our experiences, they've become such complicated people.”

“They're flawed antiheroes to some degree and that's exciting to me. I love playing a character that gets to transform and [isn't] absolutely tethered to a romantic lead,” adds Pfeiffer. “This is about two people on a journey who are having to face every obstacle that comes their way in a way that then changes them and changes the world around them. This is a dramatic actor's dream come true. We are going through it in this show. I'll tell you that.”

The pair’s bond has helped inform how they characterize the gun-toting sisters. “Solea is literally like my sister in real life. So getting to do it together, there's a natural chemistry that we have,” LaFontaine emphasizes. “If this was third grade, we'd be the kids who the teacher would be like, ‘Shut up.’ We'd be getting in trouble all the time. Our boyfriends are so over us,” jokes Pfeiffer.

Expanding on their character’s trajectories, LaFontaine says, “Both these girls are so passionate about what they want. They'll do anything to get it. It's fascinating, because they're twins and in the beginning they're in lockstep, and then they both split and you just see these two sides of the same argument. We're both trying to fight for safety and security and freedom, and we just go about it in two completely different ways. I think that that's a very fascinating and necessary conversation.”

In addition to Pfeiffer and LaFontaine, Wanted features Luke James, Bradley Jaden and Grammy winner Ledisi. “Let me tell you something. This company has the most insane vocalists in the world; the most anointed throats I have ever heard,” says Pfeiffer. Speaking to Angelica Chéri and Ross Baum’s score, LaFontaine says, “The music is such a wide blend of genres. There's some country in there, there's gospel, there's R&B, there's classic musical theater.”

“I'm hoping that people end up leaving more curious about themselves, more curious about people in their lives, more curious about this country and how we've ended up where we are. But I mostly just hope they have a good time,” says Pfeiffer. LaFontaine frames Wanted as an invigorating call to action: “If you want to feel inspired and pumped up and lit and ready for the revolution, then you should come through.”

Wanted begins performances October 15 at the James Earl Jones Theatre. Get tickets!