Andre Eaton Jr. Studied theatre and English at Georgia State University. Some of his favorite roles were Ken Gorman in Rumors, Betty/Edward in Cloud Nine, Ophelia in Hamlet, and Douglas Panch in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. He was also an Acting Apprentice at Horizon Theatre.
Andre has spent a great deal of this current season on our stage and we have seen him grow with each show, from the Spoon River Project, where we got to enjoy is amazing singing voice, to Christmas Carol, where he dazzled us with his commercial voice styling, to Rumplestiltskin where he delivered his lines perfectly with children literally hanging from him. He most recently played a convincingly bumbling, Officer Dougberg in Stealing home. And for the next show, you are in for quite a surprise! Mr. Eaton will be playing Miss Cecily Cardew in our flipped version of The Importance of Being Ernest.
We have had the pleasure of sitting down with Mr. Eaton and discussing his feelings about the show and about Live Arts Theatre. Here follows our conversation:
Q: What attracted you to audition for The Importance of Being Ernest?
A: This is one of my all-time favorite shows. It has been on my bucket list for a long time.
Q: What made you audition for a flipped show?
A: It’s a show that I’ve been dying to be in. Playing a woman would also be a great challenge.
Q: What is your dream acting role?
A: Tom Collins – Rent, Tom Wingfield – Glass Menagerie, Austin – True West, Ken – Red, Othello, Romeo
Q: What is your dream acting role flipped?
A: Lady Macbeth, Velma Kelly – Chicago
Q: Why should audiences come to see our fun, flipped, fundraiser show, The Importance of Being Ernest?
A: It’s a fun, hilarious approach to a classic play.
Q: It’s been fun seeing you around Live Arts Theatre all season. What drew you to us?
A: I had nothing going on and decided to come to season auditions on a whim. I enjoyed it and kept coming back!
Q: Live Arts Theatre’s mission is to be a community focused teaching theatre. So, what have you learned in your time at Live Arts Theatre?
A: I learned that I was not as far ahead as an actor as I thought. I learned that there is a big difference between college and real-world theatre. Casting, most especially was a big surprise. Let’s just say that in college, people are more likely to “pretend” and ignore racial inconsistencies on the stage, so I was surprised to be ruled out based solely on not fitting someone’s preconceived idea of the character. I am glad that Live Arts doesn’t do that, and has given me a chance to continue to grow an artist.
Q: Live Arts Theatre prides itself on seeing our actors come through our doors and continue to grow and move on to other exciting ventures. With that said, where do you see yourself in the foreseeable future?
A: Within five years I would like to see myself working in large venues in the city of Atlanta. In seven years, my plan is to be on Broadway.
Based on what we have seen here; we won’t be surprised when he makes it! If you missed the announcement, Andre Eaton Jr. will be a Directing Apprentice at Live Arts Theatre for next season (2017-2018). We can’t wait to see what else he can do!
Our flipped show, The Importance of Being Ernest, is running only one weekend and it is a fundraiser as we prepare for our summer musical, Fiorello, which will finish out our “Death and Taxes” season. http://liveartstheatre.org/fiorello/ Be sure to get your tickets for The Importance of Being Ernest now! http://liveartstheatre.org/flipped-show/