Maria Friedman Says Musical Theater Is ‘Not Respected Enough’ in the UK: It’s ‘the Poor Cousin’

Maria Friedman may be starring in the UK premiere of the Tony Award-winning musical Kimberly Akimbo, but she feels musicals aren’t appreciated there as much as they are in the United States. 

Friedman — who is playing the title role in the musical by David Lindsay-Abaire and Jeanine Tesori at London’s Hampstead Theatre — told The Independent in an interview published Tuesday, September 22, that “the whole vibe of being an actor in musical theatre is taken in an entirely different way” in America. 

“In this country,” she said, referring to the United Kingdom, “musical theatre is the poor cousin of the ‘great play.’”  

“It’s not respected enough in this country, full stop,” the award-winning actress added. “Over there, a musical theatre artist is celebrated.” 

Friedman has won three Olivier Awards for Best Entertainment for her one-woman cabaret show, Maria Friedman By Special Arrangement; for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance as Fosca in Stephen Sondheim’s Passion; and for Best Actress in a Musical for playing Mother in the original London production of Ragtime. 

The 2013 West End production of Merrily We Roll Along, directed by Friedman, also won an Olivier for Best Musical Revival. 

Still, she seems to think that people have other priorities when visiting London — as opposed to tourists who visit New York City specifically to see a Broadway show. 

“You don’t go to Manhattan to see Buckingham Palace or the Houses of Parliament,” she said. “You go there to see Broadway. If you’ve got a Tony Award on Broadway, people will stop. People in the elevator stop. The person in the deli stops. It matters. Over here, [people are only interested] if you work with anybody famous.”  

Friedman has also been celebrated for her work in the States. She won a Theatre World Award for her performance as Marian Halcombe in The Woman in White, and she was Tony Award-nominated for her direction of Merrily We Roll Along starring Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez. 

While Friedman didn’t win the Tony for direction, the Merrily revival took home the Tony for Best Revival, and Groff and Radcliffe won for their respective performances. Jonathan Tunick was also awarded a Tony for Best Orchestrations. 

Despite her feelings about European audiences, Friedman is busy starring as Kimberly Levaco in Kimberly Akimbo at the Hampstead Theatre through November 7. 

“There aren’t that many parts for women of my age, so when one comes along that’s like that, you don’t want to miss it,” she told The Independent. “It’s lovely to be the custodian of a story that seems very important these days, about kindness and living in the now… it’s what we always strive for, isn’t it, to be present?”

Photo Credit: Bruce Glikas