This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:01] Julia Knitel: We did not move at all. It became like, oh, I'm an actor singer. And dancer was hidden. And now she's out baby. I'm pointing my toes. I'm doing time steps. Yeah, I got my limbs all over the place.

[0:13] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah, you're going back to your Thoroughly Modern Millie roots.

[0:15] Julia Knitel: Back to my roots baby. Jimmy Award nominee.

[0:20] Jason A. Coombs: Exactly. Very Millie. All right, you ready for this?

[0:30] Julia Knitel: I'm so excited.

[0:32] Jason A. Coombs: Oh, thank you for being on the show again, Julia Knitel. Welcome back to Where the Light Lands everybody. This is Jason A. Coombs and I'm so grateful to have this space and this platform to uplift and shine a light on artists that I deeply admire. Artists who continue to inspire audiences through storytelling, vulnerability, passions, and creativity. Today I'm so excited, excuse me, to sit down with the wonderful Tony-nominated Julia Knitel for the second time. We met almost a year, I think it was like almost a year ago.

[1:02] Julia Knitel: It must have been a year ago.

[1:02] Jason A. Coombs: Like literally.

[1:03] Julia Knitel: It feels like yesterday.

[1:04] Jason A. Coombs: I know. And especially because I watched it yesterday. I was like, I don't want to ask the same questions as I did last time. So let me listen again.

[1:09] Julia Knitel: So smart. Such a good interviewer.

[1:11] Jason A. Coombs: I try sometimes, but I was on Survival Jobs where I co-hosted with Samantha. Shout out, Sammy Toots out there. Julia is a Broadway actor and storyteller whose credits include Dead Outlaw, Operation Mincemeat, currently, Beautiful, the Carole King musical, Come From Away, and Letters to Harvey Milk, which I read a lot about last night. So I have a couple questions about that. Last season you received the Tony nomination as part of the celebrated company of Dead Outlaw and you continue to bring so much heart, humor, intelligence, and humanity to all the roles you step into. And you're my Aquarius sibling. I just realized you're January.

[1:45] Julia Knitel: Yeah, when's your birthday?

[1:45] Jason A. Coombs: I'm January 28th.

[1:47] Julia Knitel: Oh, we're real close.

[1:47] Jason A. Coombs: Yes. Come on, Aquarius. So welcome to Where the Light Lands.

[1:51] Julia Knitel: Yay, happy to be here.

[1:52] Jason A. Coombs: Yes, I'm so happy to chat with you and I was doing some research and I saw that you went to Marymount Manhattan College?

[1:58] Julia Knitel: Yes, I'm a perpetual dropout. So I dropped out of high school and college. I only have two years in each, but I was in a situation where like I had done my first Broadway show, had an amazing time, was like, oh, this is what I want to do with my life. Let's go full force. And I just was like 16.

[2:13] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah.

[2:14] Julia Knitel: So for 17 and 18 and 19, I was like auditioning and getting really close to things and not, it wasn't happening for me, but I only had a GED. So I was like, where can I go get a BFA in acting with a GED in New York City and Marymount was like, you can come here. And so I had two great years of training there. I learned a lot.

[2:33] Jason A. Coombs: That's so amazing. I applied to that school when I was a freshman, when I was a senior in high school and it was between Marymount and Pace and I chose Pace.

[2:42] Julia Knitel: But you know, the only reason I didn't choose Pace because I also looked at Pace was because so many of my friends who I'd been in Bye Bye Birdie with, Danny Quadrino, Kevin Shotwell, Jillian, no Jillian didn't go to school there, but Catherine Blades, like several of the company members all went to Pace and I was like, I want a fresh start.

[3:00] Jason A. Coombs: Right, you want to be somewhere new.

[3:01] Julia Knitel: I can always be friends with them.

[3:02] Jason A. Coombs: Yes.

[3:03] Julia Knitel: I'll like connect the bridge between the two schools, but I wanted somewhere with a fresh start.

[3:06] Jason A. Coombs: Oh, I love that for you. When thinking back to that time, you said you were there for two years. Did you imagine you'd be here now of working Broadway? Did you have that? I feel like you kind of have to have that, that believability in yourself, right?

[3:20] Julia Knitel: That's so true. I think there's a part of me that has always known my path and my desire for this life. And I think that like, especially when it wasn't my everyday, I was more certain. Like I think I actually feel less certain now, not certain that I'm on my path, but certain of the future and hopeful that like I will continue to get to do this. But back then I was just like, of course I will. Yes, I will. And I think that when you're young and you haven't locked in yet, you sort of have to have that blind faith of just like I'm going to jump off this cliff and only good things are going to happen to me.

[3:57] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah, but then when you actually are living it every day, like I've been so fortunate for the last year to be in three incredible productions in New York City.

[4:04] Julia Knitel: Yeah, and I am. I am now like, oh, I hope I get something else, which is so funny, but I think, I don't know. I think I'm right on, right on time with that.

[4:15] Jason A. Coombs: That's so amazing. You're good. I mean, I see nothing but good things coming for you.

[4:19] Julia Knitel: Thank you. Let's see. You worked across so many different kinds of productions from huge Broadway shows to more intimate productions, like Letters to Harvey and Milk. What kind of stories like really pull you in as an actor? Like when you're, because I know when you're like, you know, looking to audition, like what is this stuff? Like I want to be part of this. I gotta, I gotta make this happen for me.

[4:37] Julia Knitel: I love that question. And I was actually just having this conversation with a friend the other day. It's, it's, I'm so fortunate that so much of my career has already reflected the kind of art that I want to make. And I believe that this is like a little woo-woo, but I believe that a lot of that is the energy you put out into the world and it's the things that you manifest for yourself. And those things for me are like truthfulness, groundedness, simple storytelling, but also something that like pushes the boundaries of what people expect. And I think that like Dead Outlaw was such a perfect, it encompassed all of those things and more. Like I remember I, you guys, we talked about it when I was here last, like it was my literal dream come true.

[5:21] Jason A. Coombs: Right.

[5:21] Julia Knitel: I was living my dream and I, you know, the recognition that the show got, the recognition I got, it was all like, that was all bonus. But just to be able to tell something so beautiful in such a brilliant way with such a brilliant team of people on stage and off was like literal dreams come true. And so everything from there, I just have to keep hoping that I get those opportunities again and again and to originate something like that and to get to be in at the ground floor and help create and shape and put your, you know, your fingerprints on a piece of art that then lives on in, you know, the American songbook and like these, these shows that will be revived in years to come is like little me couldn't even possibly dream of that. It's, it's, I just want to, I want to tell stories that move people and I want to make things that last.

[6:14] Jason A. Coombs: That's a legacy.

[6:15] Julia Knitel: Yeah. I mean, we talked about this on the other show. I feel like we're going back to Survivor so much, but I just, I just truly think this is like so special that you got to originate a role that you're going to be the blueprint for. Like, I think that's so awesome and so like special and incredible. Like people are going to be like, I'm going to listen to Cash Recording. They're going to hear your voice. I'm going to make choices, you know, they're going to be a good actor, right? And make choices for them, but you're going to be the blueprint for them.

[6:39] Julia Knitel: It's such an honor and it's, you know, I remember as a kid listening to Sutton Foster, listening to Kelly O'Hara, listening to these, these voices, Bernadette Peters, Patti LuPone, like these people who made their mark on these roles and then they really are like they're in the DNA, even if you make your own fresh choice, like they are the blueprint and it's such a, it's such a wild thing that I actually, because the timeline of Dead Outlaw was such a whirlwind. We opened, we're nominated, went to the Tony Awards and closed. So it's sort of like, and then it was over. And I think that like right now is actually when I'm starting to process just how incredible that time was and just how fortunate I feel.

And I think I was very in the moment and very like in the gratitude of it, but to have the hindsight and to have the distance and to also get to be doing another incredible role in an incredible show on Broadway right now. I'm given this sort of safe, soft place to land to really reflect on all that's, that's happened.

[7:43] Jason A. Coombs: That's really incredible. We're going to talk about Operation Mincemeat, but I want to talk a little bit about last year.

[7:48] Julia Knitel: Yeah.

[7:49] Jason A. Coombs: For those of us who, because most of us will never know what that's like to be a Tony.

[7:53] Julia Knitel: No, I'm true.

[7:54] Jason A. Coombs: Like, you know, that's such a special thing, you know, so I guess, I guess my question is, I want to make sure I frame it correctly. Is there a specific moment about that whole Tony Awards season that like really stood out to you and was really rewarding to you?

[8:11] Julia Knitel: Yeah. I mean, there were so many. It's hard to pick just one.

[8:15] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah, I think sort of like I said about Dead Outlaw being so special to me.

[8:21] Julia Knitel: Yeah. Just the, the reality of getting to create this thing that as soon as I read the script for Dead Outlaw, I knew what it was. And as soon as I heard those songs, I was like, this show could change my life. Like it could change my life. It's the best thing I've ever laid my hands and eyes on. And I just felt so lucky to be there and to be with my friends. Like these men who I was in the trenches with and I just like, they are, we are, they are forever my brothers in that way. And to get to do it all together, to get to be there and to perform on the Tonys and to, to just be on this journey was, it was a dream come true. But I think like if there's one specific moment where it all felt very real, because I did, I think I said this when I saw you guys last, I felt like I was in a fairy tale. Like I felt like I was waking up every day in my dream life.

[9:12] Julia Knitel: Yeah, getting to just experience all these amazing things for the first time. And there's like luncheons and there's luncheons and meeting all of these wonderful people and just sort of like really feeling the community of Broadway and being held by it in such a beautiful way after having been a part of this community for 16 years.

[9:30] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah, it just felt like I had reached this new level of like, oh, maybe, maybe I do belong. Maybe this is my home. And that was really profound. But there's this one moment that I remember on the day of the Tony Awards, which as you know, is like a crazy day. You're up first thing in the morning. We were fortunate. We didn't have a matinee, but some people have matinees that day. We like had to go to the theater, get all in costume, get on a bus, drive like a block and a half, terrible traffic, trying to convince the police officers. We're like, we're going to be on the Tonys. We have to get through. And they're like, around the block.

[10:06] Julia Knitel: No, really?

[10:07] Jason A. Coombs: Oh, classic.

[10:08] Julia Knitel: There should be like a sign that says Tony Award bus.

[10:10] Jason A. Coombs: They do not care.

[10:11] Julia Knitel: We literally were like, it's a five minute walk and we took like a 20 minute drive to get there. But no, finally we got to Radio City and I was with all my friends getting off this bus in our costumes and I walked in and it was Floyd Collins was doing their tech run and I, it just washed. I'm going to cry if I talk about it now. It washed over me in such a profound way where I was like, oh my God, I've watched the Tony Awards every year. I grew up in a theater family. This was like, we would all sit around the TV and watch this for as long as I can remember. And not only am I performing on the Tony Awards, I'm nominated for the first time for a role that I originated for a show that I believe in so viscerally.

And I started crying and I couldn't stop. I couldn't stop. I don't think I really stopped the rest of the day, but I truly like, I just kept squeezing my friend's hands and like watching this thing happen around me and I just felt like, oh, I mean, I could die tomorrow and this would have just been the best last day on earth.

[11:17] Jason A. Coombs: Oh my gosh, that sounds really magical.

[11:19] Julia Knitel: Yeah, it was.

[11:21] Jason A. Coombs: So you have to go rehearse and then you go back.

[11:25] Julia Knitel: Well, yeah.

[11:25] Jason A. Coombs: So then you go back and some people have to do their matinee. I was very fortunate. I got in a car. I went uptown.

[11:30] Julia Knitel: Okay, my whole family was at my apartment waiting with breakfast foods, which was very sweet. And then, you know, what time is it that you go over there?

[11:39] Jason A. Coombs: We went over at like eight.

[11:41] Julia Knitel: Oh my gosh.

[11:41] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah, it's early in the morning.

[11:42] Julia Knitel: It's early. But then the red carpet starts at like four. So by the time you're done getting into costume, getting to Radio City, getting back to the theater, getting out of costume, it was like 1130.

[11:52] Jason A. Coombs: Okay.

[11:53] Julia Knitel: And then I had to go uptown, have breakfast thankfully and then hair and makeup showed up, the stylist showed up, the whirlwind. I'm getting like, I'm like literally dripping in diamonds like, where am I? This is crazy. And then like my dear, dear, dear friends, Jake and Amanda came over and took the most beautiful pictures of me that I've ever seen and will ever see probably. And then I got down into a cab and was sent off to the Tony Awards.

[12:21] Julia Knitel: And then again, because it's New York and traffic is crazy. Yeah, literally got out in my 18-inch heels and my gown, waddled my way to long block from like 7th or 8th. I don't know, I was driving down and had to walk in my heels because Lisa, my sweet publicist, was like, if you don't get here at this time, yeah, you won't make it on the carpet. And I was like, and running. It was a crazy day. I love Lisa. She's the best. Couldn't have done it without her. We love you, Lisa. We love you. Oh my gosh. That's incredible. And that doesn't even touch on what happens once you get inside.

[12:56] Jason A. Coombs: Yes, please. I'm dying to know.

[13:03] Julia Knitel: We have like 45 more minutes or 35 or so. I mean, it's actually funny. There's like a very long line for the red carpet. So you're standing there with like Victoria Clark and Andrew Durant and like Megan Hilty and there is no one cuts the line. Like you're all waiting. Wow. Everybody. And then like, you know, it's the craziest, most surreal, like cartoon Hollywood red carpet.

[13:17] Jason A. Coombs: Is it like a full block?

[13:24] Julia Knitel: Yeah. Yeah. And it's just, we've never been on it. This year's the year. But no, it's surreal. And there's just like more cameras than you've ever seen in your life. And everyone's like yelling your name. And it's just sort of like, what is happening? I definitely was nervous. It was good. I had like Jeb on one side of me and Andrew on the other side. So we felt like this little like dead outlaw faction. And then it's just madness. I mean, you've got Jenny and Emilio like running around and trying to snap pictures on the carpet and then like the press in there. And it's, you're just trying to like enjoy it and breathe it all in. And then once you're inside, that's when I started to see like friends.

And I'll never forget Rebecca Covington Weber, who I love so much, who I toured on Beautiful with. Rebecca, we love you. She found me and she put like a mint in my mouth and was like, what do you need? And I was like, I just need a hug. We hugged and it was so nice to see someone who just made me feel grounded. Right. And then my mom was my date.

[14:19] Jason A. Coombs: I'm sure you're just like floating. You're just like, oh, it's crazy. It's crazy. And you're just, you're just trying to like stay in the moment, enjoy it all, absorb it all while also like being nervous. I had to perform, not that I really had to do anything. I think I said one single line, but you know, like you have to perform.

[14:35] Julia Knitel: So then you have to like, is your wardrobe backstage, like your costumes are backstage?

[14:39] Julia Knitel: Yes. So my makeup artist and my dresser had all of my stuff. And so once like it was our time to, they like come and pull you from your seat. And I think it was after my category. So I was able to like sort of relax and be like, okay, yeah, this is fun. Now we just ride it home. Right. And they like pull you and you go into these dressing rooms backstage. This is like, I'm shout out to Audra McDonald, who is icon of icons. Right. She's like, this is not my first Tony Awards, obviously. And she had a onesie backstage and she looked so comfortable while the rest of us were like not at all noted. If I'm ever here again, got to do the Audra, get a onesie to like slip into and be comfortable because you're in these crazy shoes and whatever. And between whatever your gown is and your costume, it's got to be a onesie, clearly, because if Audra does it, then that's the best way.

[15:38] Jason A. Coombs: If Audra does it, that's the best way to do it. I mean, she's been here like what, eight times?

[15:42] Julia Knitel: I mean, probably more. Yeah. That's just the time she's nominated. Right. You know, like she's crazy. She's so cool. She's so cool. But yeah. So you go back there and, you know, I was like shivering in my stockings and should have had a robe. But yeah, you like get into your costume, you do the performance and you come back up and you get back in and they like fixed my makeup and then, you know, off all of my team went and I went back down to sit. But actually there's a crazy video. I'll send it to you if you want to like splice it in of me. I like loved Operation Mincemeat. I went to see it in January. I thought it was so fun and I knew that Montague was like a crazy cool role and I wanted to play it.

But I thought to myself, Dead Outlaw is going to run forever and Operation Mincemeat is a limited run. So like I'll never even get to see it if I don't see it right before we open. Yeah. And there's this video of me in my Tony dress backstage at the Tonys while Operation Mincemeat is performing downstairs. And I just took it for my partner being like, look, it's Operation Mincemeat. And I'm like lip syncing to Born to Lead. Talk about full circle. Isn't that crazy? That's crazy. I love how the universe makes it happen.

[16:52] Jason A. Coombs: Oh my gosh. We're going to jump into Operation Mincemeat. I have one more quick question though because I know that you performed on The View and The View is like my favorite daytime show since I was literally like a little gay high schooler. So I would love to. I'm going to manifest being on that show one day.

[17:06] Julia Knitel: I'm manifesting it for you. Thank you. But you got to perform on there. Whoopi introduced you. Can you talk a little bit about that?

[17:13] Julia Knitel: There's like a picture of me and Whoopi where I'm like this, like truly trying to shake her hand just like a kid in a candy store. She's so lovely and so genuine too. Like when you're Whoopi Goldberg, you probably like, I don't know, you meet people all day, every day. And she was so warm and so lovely and just a dream. But no, that was, that was crazy. I was so grateful that we were able to do Millicent's song. My song, my girl, it's like, you know, I originated this, this entire role, but there's a part of me that like Millicent is just, she's my inner child. And I got to, to be her and, and just feel her on stage with me every night. And it's been so lovely actually, to meet people at the stage door over the last year who, who really connected with Millicent in the way that I connected with Millicent.

And it's just so, I feel like there's a little like Millicent fan club of folks who, who get her. But yeah, it was, it was such a dream. And there was something about Millicent's song when we were recording the album or I'll go back when, when we were developing the role, I had this idea that as she ages, we can age her voice in a really subtle way where like she starts really straight tone, really sort of nasal and then grows as she grows into this sort of fuller, more vibrato heavy woman. Yeah, woman, exactly. And as the, the time changes, it's like the 1940s, she would have been listening to Rosemary Clooney, Judy Garland, like all of these really, you know, delicious full voices. And I was able to do that every night. And it was, I think one of the things that people connected with and it made it really effective and it sort of helped the passing of time. But when we were recording the album, it didn't work.

[19:06] Jason A. Coombs: Really?

[19:06] Julia Knitel: Yeah. And David Yazbek, obviously the smartest person in any room he's in, he was like, I'm obsessed with that choice. We love that choice. It's not, it's not reading, just hearing it. There's something missing that can't, it can't tell the story in the same way.

[19:16] Jason A. Coombs: Exactly.

[19:16] Julia Knitel: And so he had me do some vibrato throughout and just sort of find like, like one smooth Millicent voice instead of these three parts. Gotcha. And it was something that I forgot about because we recorded it when it was off Broadway. And then we did it on Broadway and they released that recording. And there were a lot of people who were like, where's the Millicent vibrato? Where's the, where's the growth? And I was like, I know, and I'm sorry. And it's something, it's a decision we made last year for the quality of the piece. And it just, it didn't work. But then to get to do it on The View, I was able to give it its fullest, you know, arc and really, really grow and show it the way that we all wanted it to be every night.

And it was just, it was so special and so exciting. And I'm just so glad it's immortalized in that way for my own memories, just because I, I, that was my favorite part of the show every night. And we always joked that like, Andrew had it easy that day. Andrew was working hard, very, very hard at night. And that morning, all he had to do is come and stand on The View in a coffin. And I was like, just take a nap, baby. Just take a little rest.

[20:21] Jason A. Coombs: I love how at the end, I guess the audience didn't know.

[20:25] Julia Knitel: Oh yeah, no. That was a real person?

[20:30] Julia Knitel: Yeah, yeah. So he pops out and then the audience is like, yeah. And Whoopi's just so cute. She's so cute. She's so cute. And it was such a warm audience. And like, you know, those things are really early in the morning.

[20:36] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah, like 11am, right?

[20:40] Julia Knitel: Oh, I think it's, they recorded like a little bit ahead of time. It's not live.

[20:43] Jason A. Coombs: Okay.

[20:43] Julia Knitel: Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I think we recorded it at like eight in the morning or something.

[20:48] Jason A. Coombs: Oh, wow.

[20:48] Julia Knitel: Yeah. So has, oh my god, Alan. Has Alan ever fallen asleep over there?

[20:53] Julia Knitel: All the time. Can't keep this man up. Has Andrew ever fallen asleep?

[20:58] Julia Knitel: I have to say, I don't think he ever fell like into a deep sleep. But there were definitely some like meditative states that he had to find to survive. Of course. Like because it was such a long time that he was there.

[21:09] Julia Knitel: 45 minutes in a coffin. Yeah. And he would sort of like find this like, really zen, zen state, which was almost sleep.

[21:14] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah.

[21:23] Julia Knitel: I love that. What a cool, just cool freaking show.

[21:28] Jason A. Coombs: I know. I miss it every day. I miss it every day. Bring us to the West End. I'm manifesting that. There, I said it.

[21:36] Julia Knitel: I love London.

[21:40] Jason A. Coombs: Okay. Operation Mincemeat.

[21:40] Julia Knitel: Yeah. Speaking of London, that's a good transition. And when I saw you in the elevator, you were, we didn't get to really talk about it, but you said it's the hardest thing jumping into this?

[21:44] Julia Knitel: Hardest thing I've ever done. Yeah. Can you explain why?

[21:48] Julia Knitel: Oh my god. Every, in every single way. First of all, I've only done 90-minute shows for the last several years. It's a full two act, which is lovely. And actually, you know, is, is exactly the amount of time we need to tell the story. So it's like totally justified and amazing, but I do miss my 90 nos. It's RIP. But I, this show, they made it look so easy. Yeah. These brilliant people who wrote it and originated these roles are comedians and they just like threw themselves into it so fully and just gave it their all every night. And so there were really large shoes to fill. Oh yeah. Especially, you know, like I I'm, I'm such a fan of Natasha and just, it was, it was very intimidating. I remember there was one moment in rehearsal where I genuinely was like, I think she should just keep doing this.

Like, I think I should go home and she should stay. She should do it. Um, you know, and it's, it's true. I mean, it's, it's the hardest thing I've ever learned. Literally like learning the words that I have to say and sing and sometimes rap every night. Yeah. It was a massive undertaking. I had to spend, I usually am like a quick study and I can just sort of absorb as we work. Like I'll, we'll block the scene. I'll learn this song. And then the next day I just kind of know it. This was like every single day I was rehearsing 10 to six. And then from seven to 10, I would sit with my book and I would try to learn my lines. And then I would stand up with a, an archival recording of it leaned up on my toaster because I famously don't have a computer.

I only have a phone leaning against my toaster and I'm trying to do like, and it's not a mirror image, so I have to do the opposite of whatever they're doing and try to do the blocking as my cat and my dog just like absolutely freak out and hate me. Um, and yeah, no, it was just like learning. It was hard. Yeah. And then stepping into it. Sometimes I really do think like, Oh my God, I can't believe I ever did this for the first time because replacing is so different than originating.

[23:54] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah. Maybe you could talk a little bit about that. Like how much rehearsal do you get? Who do you rehearse with?

[23:59] Julia Knitel: Well, I'm very lucky because, uh, they there's five people on stage and five people off stage. So five standbys and they had three people stepping up from standbys and two new fresh people in the onstage company. So the two of us who were fresh in the onstage company and the three new standbys rehearsed together to make one entire company. Got it. Which was incredible. Yeah. And obviously like I just, I fell in love with these folks and they're, I just love them so much. And we were all able to sort of like trauma bond and learn this show together, which was a delight, but that meant that we had a full company and so we were really learning everything on our feet, but we're learning everything in a studio and we were very fortunate. We had some small set pieces, but it was a six weeks. It actually.

[24:41] Julia Knitel: It's not common. When I've replaced in the past, it's been like three weeks, four weeks. I replaced in Come From Away. And that's like, that actually, that show prepared me a lot for this show with the multi-character and the quick switching and the amount of words. But that, that was three or four weeks. And this was a full six. And there was even like a week prior. So I guess it was five weeks with everyone. But the first week they flew over the director Rob from London and we like sat and did bookwork and just talked about the role. And Montague is such a feat. It is, it's a feat to learn, but it is a feat to do every night. I feel like I'm running a marathon and I'm so grateful because it's such a challenge physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually.

And it's that like, to me, that is the kind of work I want to do. Like, I don't want to just phone it in and like, that's like never going to be me. So I'm like giving 150% when I probably could give 110 and it would be fine, but I'm like, no, let's go. But no, it's, it's so hard, but that also means that it's really, really rewarding. I get to the end of the night and I'm just like, wow, I can't believe I did that. It's like running a marathon every day, twice a day sometimes. Yes. Many times. Yeah. It's, it's, I mean, I have to eat like a football player. That's, that'd been the new thing. The calorie burn is so high that I get home and I'm like, unhinge my jaw, shovel in the food. It's crazy.

What's a, what's a, what's a meal? What's an after show meal for you? This is going to sound not that appetizing, but I promise it really is. I love like roasted vegetables. I love a roasted cauliflower that leaves like really high heat, like get it caramelized and brown. And then I'll make like a little like miso tahini drizzle and I'll like dip. Yeah. It's, I like, I love a vegetable at night, but honestly, most times that's not enough. Yeah. But needing a lot of biscuits. I'm like, gotta get like biscuits with butter. Like, you know, is that like a British, a British, a little biscuit or is that a cookie over there? I think that's a cookie. Yeah. Nevermind. These are like, these are American biscuits.

I'm obsessed with this bakery called Bubz. It's a new bakery downtown. That's gluten-free and their biscuits are life-changing. Yeah. Shout out to Bubz. Do you, did you feel, and I'm sorry if this is a stupid question, cause you're a professional, obviously a Tony nominee, but was there like a sense of pressure to step into like a role on a show that's so famous? And how do you, how do you deal with that? 100%. Um, I think I actually had a conversation with Michael Cerveris when I was doing A Christmas Carol with him. He's a magnificent actor and an, a magnificent company leader. And I am in awe of, and in love with him, but I had this conversation with him where I was like, Michael, I feel like the pressure has changed.

Like I would think that now that I have this thing that I've wanted my whole life that sort of does give me like a little like certified check next to my name. Why am I more nervous now in work sessions, in auditions than I was before? And he sort of was able to help ground me and make me feel a lot less crazy for feeling that way because he has felt the same way where it's like all of a sudden now people have an idea of who you are. They have, you have something to lose because they have an opinion of you. Whereas before I was just walking in and it was like a pleasant surprise if they liked me, but now it's like, Oh yeah, didn't she get a Tony nomination? And not that anyone's thinking that, but there's a part of you that thinks maybe they're less likely to, I don't know.

I don't want to say this the wrong way. It's something that got me in my head, which is definitely more of a reflection on my anxiety, but it was very, it's very real. I think we, I think anybody in any other kind of industry who's coming into something where there may be like people have like giving you something or you're coming from some history that you might feel that way. So I don't think, I'm not going to tell you how to think, how to feel, but I don't think you should feel weird about having those feelings. That makes sense. That made so much sense. And that's exactly what Michael said to me too. And you know, he's won two Tony awards and he just was like, that's real. You're right on time.

That's so normal. Like I'm still, you know, although I've been in this business for 17 years, I'm still a baby. I'm just getting started. And I have to like, Oh, I'm just so young. No, but I, you know, I I'm, I'm grateful that I often work with such magnificent, uh, and accomplished people that, you know, people like Michael Cerveris, Nancy Opal, Beth Level, Adam Heller, these like people who are, who are ahead of me in, in this timeline and are able to like look back and say, Hey, you're right on time. Don't stress. Yeah. And it's really helpful. But when, when stepping into, to get back to your question, when stepping into something like this with such a strong fan base, Oh yes. With such a, uh, such a enormous shoes to fill and someone who was so beloved by the fans in the role, I was very fortunate that the creative teams fully supported me to make it my own.

No one ever said you got to do this. Like she did. And I'm very grateful for that because I was able to just really make it my own. And there's, you know, I think a lot of the fans who come see the show again and again are like, Oh, it's, it's a new thing. And that's not, you're not always given that as a, as a replacement, there have been situations where it's like, this is, this is the blueprint. This is what the fans expect. This is where the lighting needs to be. And they were like, pretty much, this is where the lighting needs to be. We're going to make it bigger because you're eight inches taller than Sasha. But like, we're going to, we're going to let you fly. And I, I, they, um, speaking of flying, they flew over the choreographer to add choreography for me.

We do a little soft. You're a dancer. Yeah. And I've been hiding it for years. Um, thanks to some advice I got from Beth Level many moons ago. Do you know about this? Yeah, we know Beth. I mean, ask Alan's girl. He just produced a show, a show starring Beth. Yeah. Like truly one of my favorite people on the planet. Yeah. You know, we all did gypsy together at the Muni where like, that was the first time I was like, I could retire now and my career could be over and it would be great. Um, no, they're my people and I love them. And Beth sat down with me when we were doing gypsy. And she said, Julia, if I can give you one piece of advice, don't let anyone know you can dance because then everyone will make you.

I said, thank you, Beth. And I think like what she meant it was, it was many fold. Yeah. What she meant was like, literally it's hard on your body when you're made to dance eight shows a week in perpetuity. And she was, you know, she was of the 42nd street world and everyone knew she could kick her face and dance. And now every role she does for the most part is dancing. Yeah. And, um, you know, even now she was like thrown down in the prom. Like she's, she's a dancer and I think she was trying to save my body, but there was also like the second level of like, at that point in my career, I had done some understudying and I had understudied Carole King and I w then I took it over and I was at the, on this precipice of like, okay, my agents are saying we're only going to submit me for leads right now.

And I'm not going to go into the understudy or ensemble world. And I think part of what Beth was saying is if you can play the lead, but you can also dance the ensemble, that makes you incredibly valuable. Right. And that is a whole career trajectory that so many magnificent people choose. But she wanted me to try the go of like, don't let them know you can be on the ensemble. Yeah. Just align yourself with this world of like, no, I'm a leading lady. Because they might, because they know you're, you'd be the leading lady, but you could also dance. They might just like keep putting you. And I listened to her and it really like, I mean, I stopped dancing. I went from beautiful to come from away where we didn't dance a letter to Harvey Milk.

We did not move at all. It became like, oh, I'm an actor singer and dancer was hidden. And now she's out. I'm pointing my toes. I'm doing time steps. I got my limbs all over the place. Yeah. You're going back to your thoroughly modern Millie roots. Back to my Jimmy award nominee. Exactly. Very Millie. I love that for you. Oh my gosh. Congratulations. Yes. Okay. So for people like me, like me, cause I'm an idiot who hasn't seen the show yet. And there's some others. Yes. I know. I know Alan. Have you seen the Americans? Yes. Without me. Oh, have you seen the American company of operation Minsky yet? Yes. Well, you got to come. Yeah. The whole team needs to come Alan. Let's go. Let's do it. Really good.

I mean, I've seen it. I've been following it. I just carry Russell, carry Russell, but for people like me, idiots like me who haven't seen it yet. Oh no, you're not an idiot. You're not an idiot. It's okay. Um, what's your quick elevator pitch? Spirit people should come down and come see the show. Okay. It's extended nine times to February, 2027. That's wild. It is really crazy. I mean, it's, it's a hit for a reason. It's it's okay. Wait, where do, let me give the clean elevator pitch. Operation Minsky is unlike anything you've ever seen before. It is five actors playing 87 characters. It is a British farce in some ways, but also a very beautiful, truthful tale of one of the moments in world war two that turned the tide of the war away from the Nazis and toward the allied troops.

And we tell that story over two and a half hours of singing and dancing and madness. And it is incredibly cathartic, incredibly moving. You will laugh till you cry. You will cry till you laugh. And it is a joy to do each night and a joy to take the audience on this ride each night, especially in America right now, where it's more important than ever to watch the fascist. And I have conversations every single day at the stage store with people who are so grateful to have this story of good triumphing. Triumphing? Yeah. Triumphing. Triumph being triumphant. Triumphing. We're making it a word today. That's not, that's worse. That's definitely not the word. Let's, let's, let's all phrase it differently.

It is so cathartic to see good triumph over evil every night. Yeah. And you know, it's, it's so important and it's moving to me. There are many times where I am brought to tears by the fact that I get to tell such an important story in this time in American history. And I just, I feel so lucky. Yeah. Well, I wanted to ask you a quick question because we are going into pride monsoon and I was reading about letters to Harvey Milk, which I didn't get to see. Of course I'm doing a bad job. No, that's okay. That was a long time ago. Yeah. But why it's important to like have stories like that, right. And that are, that are uplifting queer and I say queer storytelling and, and in 2026 when shit is bleak, if you haven't noticed.

Shit is bleak. Shit is really bleak. And I am, one of my favorite things that happens at the stage door of every show I've done since a letter to Harvey Milk is that someone saw it, someone heard the cast album, someone connected with it. Some people have come into their queerness. And I had someone the other day in this is 2026. We did this show in 2018. Yeah. Someone said to me, I heard the cast album of a letter to Harvey Milk and I was able to come out to my mom and that too, to be a small part of a moment like that, where you were the art that we made helped you step into your truth. Yeah. That's, that's all you can ask for. And a letter to Harvey Milk was, it was very interesting. I did not.

[37:02] Julia Knitel: No, I did not. I was not fully aware of my queerness when I was doing that show. And it was a real eye-opener for me to play Barbara Katziff, who was this queer woman and who went on this journey of self-love and self-acceptance. And it certainly kicked off my true journey within myself. And it's so moving. It's also a story that deals with the Nazis and the Holocaust. And it had many layers of points to connect. And I know that we had many Holocaust survivors and many queer people, people who just connected with the Harvey Milk aspect of it. It really brought together so many generations. And it brought Adam Heller into my life, who is not only one of the best people I've ever known, but one of the best actors I've ever known.

And I learned so much from him, getting to do that every night. And he really helped shape me as an actor. And it was just, it was a really beautiful time. And it was a nice, it was a sort of a bridge between Carole King in Beautiful the Carole King musical and Come From Away. I think that I did that for the eight months between. And it was a really great time.

[38:20] Jason A. Coombs: Oh, I love that. Well, this show is called Where the Light Lands. And we're talking about spotlighting and people stepping into their lights. I want to ask you, and maybe you already answered this in a way just a while ago, but do you remember the moment when you finally stepped into your light, either personally or professionally? I love this question. I want you to know. And I think it's such a beautiful thing to build your show on. So I thank you for having me. And I thank you for spreading the light wherever you go. I am someone who has come to the realization, which I hope that many of us do, that I keep growing. I keep reinventing. I keep metamorphosing. I keep opening myself up to the next level and the next level and the next level.

And so when I look at that, when I hear that question, my answer goes like, well, which one? Like, my brain just wants to point them all out. But if the most recent, I, not to bring up Dame Audra McDonald again, but I remember last winter before Dead Outlaws started rehearsals, I wanted to see everything in the season. And I bought myself a very expensive ticket to Gypsy on Broadway. And you have to, I mean, it's Audra, how are you not? And I sat down and I went on, I was going through a lot in my personal life at that time. And I was really like caught up in it and hurting and didn't know how to move through it and had never really been through anything like that before. And I went into the theater and I sat down and for two and a half hours, I didn't think about anything I was going through out in the real world.

I was just in it. I was locked in with this once in a generation performer who was giving a masterclass in the art form that I have chosen to build my life around. And I, it was a real aha moment for me because I realized, oh my God, performing is an act of service. Like Audra McDonald is performing an act of service for me right now, for all of us in the audience. But for me to leave my troubles at the door, to come in here and heal, to realign my energy, to engage with the community around me and shared catharsis. And that moment I realized like acting is not about me. It's not about anyone on stage. It's about the audience. It is an act of service for the audience, whatever they're going through, whatever America's going through.

However, I can be of service for you to come on this journey. Then that's like, that's the real gift of being a performer. And I was able to take that and combat a lot of my nerves, especially during Dead Outlaw, where it's like those things that I was doing were so exposed. It was like me on stage by myself in front of a dead body, both of my solos. And it was like just a tiny spot on Julia, silence in the audience. And that to me off Broadway was really intimidating and like really sort of hard to get around. And then I just shifted it and like, oh, I'm providing a service and providing a service and I'm giving my gifts freely, nothing to prove everything to share. And that was a real, it was a real turning point for me.

And I'm trying really hard in Operation Mincemeat to fold that back in. Cause I'm still new in the show and I'm sort of like still in my head a little and still trying to remember what to do in which moments. And I want to be able to always be in such a pure state to give and then receive.

[42:25] Julia Knitel: I love that. Yeah. Um, my first guest, Rod Cyrus says something very similar about that, that, and it's, I think it's incredible and so honest. And so as someone who only acts, you know, once or twice a year, but I feel like that's so true because we, everyone turned to the arts during the pandemic, right? You were all glued to storytelling and wanting to escape. And I think that you just hit the nail on the head with that. It's real. And it also helps again, like if you can take the focus off of you and put it on them, it just makes like the energy flow easier. You just kind of ride the wave.

[42:58] Jason A. Coombs: Yeah. Yeah. Well, thank you for sharing that. Thank you for asking such a thoughtful question. One more question about lights. Did you want to shine a light on someone else or an organization or cause or something that you want to share with us today?

[43:10] Julia Knitel: I would love to. Um, I have a dear friend, Ellie, and he just started a trans mask choir in New York City. Yeah. Okay. I'll send you the Instagram. It's incredible, but they're gathering, I think once a month to come together and sing as a community. And I believe this is the first of its kind in New York City. I may be misquoting, but I believe that this is it's filling a void. And the first time they met, I watched a video the following day and just burst into tears. Um, and I think it's so incredible. And I'm so proud of my friend for forging this path and creating a safe space for people like him to come together and express themselves. And, um, especially during pride month, I think it's more important than ever to shine a light on the incredible trans community and how big a part of LGBTQIA they are and how, you know, gay rights would not exist without trans rights. And more than ever in America right now, we need to protect all our brothers and sisters and siblings. And, um, I am honored to shine the light on Ellie. Ellie, the light is shining on you.

[44:20] Jason A. Coombs: Mike drop, drop, go listen to trans bass choir on Instagram.

[44:26] Julia Knitel: That's amazing. We have like two minutes left, but I love this part of the show and I can't, I can't not do it. Um, this is called scoring the moment. And I'm going to ask you a couple moments in your life. And you tell me what would be the score. If this was a biopic about your life, like songs, songs.

[44:37] Julia Knitel: Oh my God, this is so hard. I thought you were going to make me feel like, yeah, I'm going to write this song. Oh, I love that too. No, no, I don't want to do that. So I'm going to ask you a couple, cause I don't want to take up too much of your time, but, uh, I guess a good first one would be what song would be playing during the opening credits of your movie.

[45:02] Julia Knitel: This is maybe the hardest thing I've been asked to do in months. Um, opening credits. No, no, no. I love it. It's Claire de Lune. Do you know that song? I don't think so. It's a piece by I believe Debussy. Am I, am I being so ignorant right now? Claire de Lune. Is it, uh, there we go. It's a completely gorgeous piece of music. It's, it's I listened to it several times a week. It brings me to like a transcendent state. So that would be the opening credits.

[45:41] Jason A. Coombs: Okay. You, uh, your parents had a community theater in a church basement from what I remember.

[45:47] Julia Knitel: Yes. So when we, maybe when you were younger and you were seeing artists working in your, your parents' basement, would it be a song that would kind of scoring that moment?

[45:56] Julia Knitel: Oh my God. There's a, there's a cover of there's no business, like show business that I actually, I made like a dead album and I released it on the anniversary. Not like a, like a Spotify playlist that I released on the anniversary of our openings and some fans saved it, which made me really happy. But there's a cover on that playlist that is like, um, it's from the seventies and it's like this really like, like sultry kind of silly version. And she's, she's singing it. And I, I just, it's, that's, it's no, no business. Yeah.

[46:29] Jason A. Coombs: That's so perfect. Uh, obviously two more quick ones. Uh, how about the song that played when you met your first love?

[46:34] Julia Knitel: Oh my God. Oh gosh. Maybe it would be yesterday by the Beatles. Yeah. I don't know. That's, that's, or maybe I want to hold your hand, but the version from across the universe, which is by the way, the only song I've ever sung in any audition that I've booked. Really? Yes. I have it in my book. I sing it all the time. It's it's a classic. I love that. Okay. How about the song that you would, that was playing when you're getting ready for the Tony awards, when you got back to the apartment and the hair, your family was there, there was like breakfast hair and makeup was there.

[47:21] Julia Knitel: Can I tell you, I actually like in my Spotify wrapped, there was, it was like, you listen to the most music on this one day. And it was the Tony awards day. Cause I just had it playing all day. And it was like showing me the arc of the day. And it started with Joni Mitchell, my girl. And it ended with Beyonce. Oh, okay. So it's like, you got to have two, you know, fierce Queens who are there for your feelings and also for the bops. But I mean, yeah, Beyonce definitely got me through that day.

[47:50] Jason A. Coombs: Oh, of course. Couldn't have done it without her. Who run the world? Girls.

[47:54] Julia Knitel: And last one, last one. How about your first, your opening night of operation Mincemeat?

[48:00] Julia Knitel: Oh, I mean like the first thing that came to my mind is some sort of like really like, like intense spy music. Oh yeah. Yeah. Like a mission impossible. Literally. Yeah. Yes. Um, no, it was, it was the scariest thing I've ever done. I still can't believe I did that for the first time. I said that to my dresser, like literally yesterday during one of our last quick changes, I was like, isn't it crazy that I ever did this for the first time? Isn't it crazy? And I'm doing it every night until February, 2027. Yeah, baby. Yes. Catch me at the Golden. Catch Julia at the Golden. Get your tickets. Come with me. I haven't gone yet. Come on, Ellen. Let's do it. Julia, you're such a gift. I love speaking with you.

You're such a light, literally. So thank you for spending time with me. I love you. I love you. I love you. Thank you for spending time with me and go see Operation Mincemeat. Oh, your social medias before you go. We gotta, we gotta punt those out. All I have is Instagram.

[48:55] Julia Knitel: Okay. Just Julia and I tell. That's it. Yes. Come on, follow. Follow, support, like, share.

[49:03] Jason A. Coombs: And I'm Jason A. Coombs or Where the Light Lands on Instagram. Thank you, everybody. Thank you. You rock. You rock. I always have the best time when I'm here, you guys. Thank you. Like I'm always just like, oh, it's so easy.