Peter Pan is flying into the Cadillac Palace Theatre for a short run and we have an interview with star himself—umm, herself.
Cathy Rigby began her career as a gymnast in the 1968 Summer Olympics. She was the first U.S. woman to win a medal at the World Gymnastics Championships, for the silver balance beam.
She then performed as Peter Pan before appearing in the Wizard of Oz and Annie Get Your Gun. She returned to Neverland on Broadway where she was nominated for a Tony Award. Rigby took the show on tour before retiring it in 2006.
She proves she will never grow up one last time, with her own production company called McCoy Rigby Entertainment taking the show out on the road again. Chicago is lucky enough to be one of her stops because Cathy Rigby is Peter Pan!
Windy City Times: Hey, Cathy.
Cathy Rigby: How are you, Jerry? Is it cold out there in Chicago?
WCT: You might want to pack an extra pair of green tights! It's not like the summertime, when you were here last.
Cathy Rigby: I know. I heard you have had a balmy winter and it's going to be cold just when we come in.
WCT: Lucky you. I did see you in Millennium Park for the preview and you were wonderful.
Cathy Rigby: Aww, thank you. I did my little handstand there.
WCT: I heard you were a fan of musicals, even as a child with West Side Story.
Cathy Rigby: It's funny because I never thought musical theater or the acting world would be part of my life. When I look back at my life we used to make shows in our garage, like Chorus Line. We would dance around the living room. Even though I was in the gym six to eight hours a day, we always listened to musicals. We listened to everything from Hello, Dolly to West Side Story to Mary Poppins. As we trained, unless we were doing floor exercises, we would have music on. It must have been a premonition as to what would come.
WCT: After you were in the Olympics, did they come to you to play Peter Pan?
Cathy Rigby: I was doing an arena version of Peter Pan. It was more like a Disney Ice Capades, where it was an extravaganza. We used big sets and costumes. It emphasized the athletic sides of things. Someone in the group that year told me to take some voice lessons and acting classes so I did. That tour ended but I studied for about seven years. My voice teacher wanted me to go audition for Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. This was in 1981 and I got the role, which was terrifying enough and had to perform in front of 2,000 people. Once I got that show I was hooked and went on to perform with Gordon MacRae in Paint Your Wagon.
I never thought I would have the courage to stand up in front of anybody onstage let alone sing. It has been an amazing second career.
WCT: It changed your life. You met you husband in The Wizard of Oz.
Cathy Rigby: It changed it for many reasons. I was really shy. I used to cry giving book reports in school. When you are working with an inanimate object like a balance beam then you are only focused on perfection and what you do. To suddenly be asked to relate to other people and take emotional risks you have to not be in your own head and to let go. That was a big fat lesson for me. You can do all the technique you want but acting is really about reacting and being alive.
WCT: You stopped doing Peter Pan for a while, correct?
Cathy Rigby: We did other shows like Steel Magnolias and Sylvia. I even got to play Mammy Yokum in Li'l Abner. I haven't come back to Peter Pan until the tour this year. The great thing about returning to a role is bringing a different perspective to it. In my experience something different and magical happens with Peter Pan.
You let go of any preconceived ideas about how children act. They are direct, honest and politically incorrect. They don't care about feelings they just react. That has been such a joy to play. There are no apologies. You just are. Kids are funny. They have a belief that anything is possible that we don't have as adults. They bring characteristics to Peter that makes it great fun to do every night.
WCT: And you get to travel all over the place…
Cathy Rigby: You get to travel and fly. People ask me why I keep doing it but what a great job I have! I get to fly every night and be a kid.
WCT: Are there some days where you just don't want to fly?
Cathy Rigby: Flying is the easy part. I think the seven shows a week can be rough. It's like Richard Simmons at the end of the workout!
When I am crouched down in the window before I make my entrance into the nursery then I come flying through wakes you up real fast. If you are not in the mood then that will tickle your stomach a little bit. It is a really good way to warm up.
WCT: I read you are into nutrition and taking care of yourself.
Cathy Rigby: You have to. I am better as an adult when I am more focused and doing Peter Pan. There is no playing around. You have to do exercises. I know the role so well, the steps, the flying. The great thing about being older is that I don't white knuckle it. I'm more relaxed, which makes it easier to do.
WCT: You have a great cast to work with.
Cathy Rigby: Yes! I have my buddy Brent Barrett who worked with me in Annie Get Your Gun and is now playing Hook. He's so wonderful. Everybody gets along including the crew. The fact is after touring for 15 months we have had very little turnover, except when the kids grow up and get too old to play their roles.
WCT: How does the fairy work in the show?
Cathy Rigby: We started off trying to make it a little more literal. We wanted her to flap her wings. We found out that if she was a little ball of light that bounced around the stage it was better. The more literal we tried to make her the less magical she became. She reflects off my face and you will see her pulsing.
WCT: Neat. Touring gives audiences a chance to see this show that normally wouldn't get to New York. I read several gay papers that wrote about it on the West Coast.
Cathy Rigby: I have done several interviews with gay papers specifically and they have been great. I'm cross-dressing, so what the heck? I think I should be an honorary member, right?
WCT: "All you need is trust and a little bit of pixie dust!"
Look for Rigby and the gang at the Cadillac Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St., flying high Jan. 30-Feb. 10. Visit www.BroadwayInChicago.com for details and ticket information.
