N.Y. – At nine or ten, Jordan Donica’s aunt took him to New York City to rid him of any concept he could make on Broadway. Thank goodness, that plan completely bombed.
“It was pouring outside, but that didn’t stop me from dancing around Times Square. In his own words: “My aunt had to tell me to slow down,” he reflects on his time in New York, where he is now a contented resident. Here, in the center where all things radiate outward, is what I love most.
Donica hasn’t slowed down, either, as he has just been nominated for his first Tony for playing the handsome, brave knight Sir Lancelot in a stunning Lincoln Centre Theatre rendition of the classic musical “Camelot.”
I can only be grateful, and that gratitude fuels my desire to strive even more. Really. In his own words, “my first thought was, ‘I’m excited to get back to work.'”
The life of Donica, a man with a big voice who moved about a lot as a young man but always kept Broadway as his ultimate goal, is inspiring. He began telling his middle school pals that he already had his life figured out. The words “Broadway Bound” were included in his initial email address.
Donica, who graduated from Otterbein University in 2016, honed his skills in regional theatre, performing in productions such as “Jesus Christ Superstar” at the Weathervane Playhouse in Ohio and “South Pacific” at the Utah Shakespeare Festival.
Donica hasn’t slowed down, either, as he has just been nominated for his first Tony for playing the handsome, brave knight Sir Lancelot.
In 2016, he made his Broadway debut as Raoul in “The Phantom of the Opera,” completing a full circle. As a young boy, he had watched the Phantom’s performance in New York and been blown away by his talent. To paraphrase, “I was thinking, ‘I need to learn how to utilize my voice the way that man is using his voice.’ Then I went out to accomplish that.
Donica has appeared in “Charmed,” “Blue Bloods,” and the Los Angeles and San Francisco productions of “Hamilton,” where he played the roles of the Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson, respectively. When “My Fair Lady” was revived at Lincoln Centre Theatre in 2018, he debuted in the part of Freddy Eynsford-Hill.
He portrays a noble but self-centered knight in the epic “Camelot,” who finds himself in a love triangle with King Arthur and Guinevere. Songs by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe remain, but Aaron Sorkin has rewritten the plot to center on the democratic ideal.
In “My Fair Lady” and “Camelot,” Donica played roles that needed him to be both passionate and sweet and brave and sword-catching, respectively, under the direction of Tony Award–winning director Bartlett Sher.
She comments, “You have a wonderful artist on your hands who is capable of immersing themselves in a part and in a world and delivering very different things in both cases.” “What makes him so unique is the way his body and voice are so in sync with each other, as well as his profound intelligence and boundless creativity.”
Donica in “Camelot” starts out appearing on stage almost like a holy angel (singing “C’est Moi” with the words “Here I stand as pure as a prayer/Incredibly clean with virtue to spare”), but by the end of the music she has become quite human, a process that he characterizes as both sobering and enjoyable.
Donica hasn’t slowed down, either, as he has just been nominated for his first Tony for playing the handsome, brave knight Sir Lancelot.
“America is my personal Camelot. And every day, we must struggle to spread the word about what freedom and the United States mean. If we don’t bring it into being through words, he argues, it doesn’t exist.
The part requires a lot of vocal and physical stamina. He planned and acquired 15 pounds, reasoning that he would lose water weight by sweating. His physical therapist immediately saw that Donica had dropped weight during his most recent visit because the table’s settings no longer accommodated him.
Donica celebrated his first birthday in Chicago after being born in Minnesota. He then spent the next eight years in Tennessee before relocating to Indiana. He wondered if there was a future in Kidz Bop and commercials featuring singing children (such as those for Oscar Mayer hot dogs and Welch’s juice).
When I was a kid, I watched those advertisements with my mom and thought, “Those kids there are so cute! I bet I could do that!” He questions, “Why don’t I try that?” I don’t think she took me seriously at all. However, I truly believed that I was being serious.
At a theatre camp, he went to in Indianapolis, Donica was the only one who committed to falling back into the arms of a stranger as part of a team-building exercise for the actors.
He reflects on his elementary school teacher’s words, “You’re going to do well in this because you trust.” When you’re in the theatre, you’re safe. I’m afraid you will put me in a bad place since I’ve been taught to trust.
The trip to New York City was challenging for a young man who preferred open spaces to crowded ones. His mother wasn’t trying to discourage him; she only checked to see if he was serious. Now since they’re friends, he’s invited her to the Tonys.
On June 11, he competes against Kevin Del Aguila (Some Like It Hot) and Kevin Cahoon and Alex Newell (Shucked) for the greatest performance by an actor in a featured role in a musical.
Donica, who has been known to watch reruns of the Tony Awards on YouTube, is still in disbelief that he will be in attendance. To this day, I don’t believe it, mostly because I never intended to become a Tony Award winner. As a kid, I wanted to participate in a Tony Awards performance.
SOURCE – (AP)
