The pop singer Nicole Scherzinger is giving the performance of a lifetime as Norma Desmond in the sensationally entertaining revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard at the St. James Theatre. (Just engrave the Tony Award now.) But the well-deserved mid-show standing ovations occasionally eclipse that her co-star, Tom Francis—starring as her cynical paramour and ambitious screenwriter Joe Gillis—is Scherzinger’s equal match.
Francis, a mere 25, won the Olivier Award for the London production, and he’s has already started his own path in Hollywood, as a cast member on the final season of You on Netflix.
“I had the best time ever on set,” says Francis. “It’s 100 percent something I want to pursue.”
For now, though, it’s all Broadway all the time, which the actor describes as a “wonderful whirlwind.” New York audiences, he explains, “find things funny that UK audiences didn’t necessarily respond to. They are definitely more vocal here for sure. I’ve never heard a cheer like that for the final bow of our opening night.”
A centerpiece of Francis’ performance involves singing the complicated and wordy second act opening number while walking backstage, outdoors and back into the theater. The feat is so seamless it’s often mistaken for being a taped feed. “Every single night people would question me about it at the stage door,” Francis says. “Singing in ⅞ time and walking is quite tricky.”
Of course, the song had to be re-blocked for West 44th Street. (The show played at the Savoy Theatre in London.) “I would say the route is slightly longer, so we had to figure out what pace to walk at to hit all the points we need to hit,” he explains.
To cool down from a show, Francis says he watches some television and uses a steamer before bed “for 20 minutes.” But other than that he’s looking to enjoy New York City as much as, at least, Joe Gillis probably would.
Says Francis: “I want to catch as much theater as possible, try as many good restaurants as possible and fully embrace the New York City lifestyle.”
Grace Hodgett Young and Tom Francis in Sunset Boulevard