Pa'Tina Miller: Live in the Delfont Room

Pa’Tina Miller is the unquestionable darling of the West End. Her quick rise to stardom from humble beginnings has been an irresistible story to the London press. Her face literally dominates London’s cultural topography, because every Sister Act advertisement carries her image. Cameron Mackintosh’s Live in the Delfont Room series is a high-profile platform on the West End scene for newly-minted stars to make an “I Am” statement, introducing to the world the full story behind their choice to become an artist and showing off what they are and what they can do outside of the trappings of the role that made them famous. The great British stage actress Hannah Waddingham – excellent in the role of Desiree in Trevor Nunn’s revival of A Little Night Music, which will be portrayed in New York by Catherine Zeta-Jones – was another featured artist in this series on my last trip to London in July.


I first worked with Pa’Tina when she was an acting student at Carnegie Mellon. Even then, she had a few close calls with superstardom, making it to a final round tussle with Jennifer Hudson for the role of Effie in the Dreamgirls film. I directed her in BoyGirlBoyGirl, a play of Jason’s, and in Homemade Fusion, a song cycle created by two other frequent collaborators and friends, Chris Dimond and Michael Kooman. In the latter project, Pa’Tina created Random Black Girl, a song that was created to allow her to show off every vocal pyrotechnic in her considerable singer’s arsenal. The song was posted on YouTube, and quickly went viral amongst musical theatre fans online. The song cycle eventually made it to New York in a production I directed at The Zipper Factory (featuring Broadway stars Marty Thomas and Natalie Venetia-Belcon), for which Pa’Tina created another song, this time a duet with friend and classmate Anderson Davis.


In the two years since she has graduated from school, Pa’Tina has slowly but surely built an impressive resume of credits. She originated a role in Romantic Poetry, the John Patrick Shanley & Henry Krieger musical, was prominently featured as Dionne in Diane Paulus’s spectacular revival of Hair in the Park, did a stint on All My Children, and eventually won the role of Sister Deloris van Cartier in the West End production of Sister Act the Musical. It is already the kind of career that many actors dream of, but throughout the entire process, Pa’Tina has stayed grounded and thankful for the opportunities and doors that have opened for her. When I visited her in London in July, I found an actress determined to preserve her ability to perform and give the audience every cent they’ve paid for. She entered a state of vocal rest in between shows, went straight home when her obligations were done, and attended to the health of her physical and vocal instruments. I had found the experience of watching a dear friend play the starring role in a West End production utterly exhilarating, but watching her take such care to maintain her productivity and potential was deeply moving.


(Pa'Tina's gruelling 8 time a week schedule has also given her legs to die for!)

The dramatic concept behind Pa’Tina’s cabaret was to take a journey through all the influences that shaped her as a musician and a performer. The set list was diverse, and musical director James Sampliner arranged each song to showcase a different style of music in order to put Pa’Tina’s signature upon some well-known songs.


The highlights for me were a funk cover of Alanis Morissette’s You Oughta Know, a jazz ballad version of Grandma’s Hands and a sensational gospel song, Thank You, that had the crowd on its feet. In between the songs, she followed the American tradition of telling her life story in a series of concise intimate confessionals.


(Above, Billy and the Black-Ups)

The Delfont Room was packed to the rafters (well beyond the legal limit, but who’s counting), and the audience ranged from acclaimed stage actor Jonathan Pryce to Scarlett Strallen, recently seen on Broadway as Mary Poppins (below), to the entire nun ensemble of Sister Act the Musical.


Industry hawks and fans alike enjoyed a unique one-woman show that heralded the emergence of a true sensation. We celebrated the overwhelming success of the venture well into the morning.


I was quite touched by Pa’Tina’s vulnerability throughout this process. Despite (or because of) the amount of industry attention that has been rightly lavished upon her performance in Sister Act, she negotiated the rehearsal process with some trepidation and insecurity. She second-guessed herself as an actress and a musician, despite her overwhelming natural gifts. I remember being puzzled as to why the process proved so difficult for her, given the fact that she is already the star of a West End show.


I realize now that of course, when the focus is you, and only you, the prospect of appearing on stage and sharing yourself with the crowd assembled can feel like allowing the masses to gaze at your naked body! I certainly feel some of my own trepidation at the upcoming rehearsal process for The Red Umbrella. It sunk in only this week that this will be a huge calling card for me in New York, that I must not skimp on getting in contact with everyone in the industry that I want to know about my work, and that I must not second-guess my instincts in the rehearsal room. Easier said than done, but I will have the example of my dear friend Pa’Tina to hold myself against. Her perseverance, preparation and grace under pressure will stay with me throughout the weeks to come. Thank you for letting me share this incredible journey with you, Pa’Tina. Til the next one.



(posted by Ed)