Interview: Olivia Elease Hardy Talks Originating KIMBERLY AKIMBO's 'Delia' & Her Journey to Broadway

Olivia Elease Hardy is currently making her Broadway debut as 'Delia' in Kimberly Akimbo at the Booth Theatre! Kimberly Akimbo is not only Hardy's Broadway debut, but her second professional show.

Prior to originating the role of 'Delia' in Kimberly Akimbo's Off-Broadway run, Olivia toured with the First national Tour of Summer: The Donna Summer Musical as 'Duckling Donna.' Originally from Southern New Jersey, Olivia attended the University of Michigan to earn her BFA in Musical Theatre.

In the latest edition of BroadwayWorld's Debut of the Month (brought to you by Atlantic Acting School), Hardy tells us about her journey to the Broadway stage, and how she and her character have become one! Read the full interview and check out photography by BroadwayWorld's own Jennifer Broski below!

Your journey began with Kimberly Akimbo off-Broadway. How does it feel to have brought this show to Broadway?

It feels awesome! It feels incredible. We had a really great time at Atlantic Theater Company. Everyone at the Atlantic is so fantastic, we really felt so accepted and right at home there, and we were set up with a great team to succeed, and everybody at the Atlantic really loved the show as much as we all did, so it was a really great environment to be in. And then, having everybody there also support us enough to get us to Broadway has been unlike anything I have ever experienced before in theatre. It's very exciting to have taken it from such an incredible company like the Atlantic to Broadway, because they did some great work over there, and it's been really nice to have them cheer us on and support us on our journey to the great Broadway.

What did it feel like to take your first bow on Broadway?

It felt surreal! We did these little Broadway diary things for our TikTok, and I remember I got home after our first preview, I said hi to my parents and all of that, and I said, "I don't think this will hit me until 7 months from now." It was so great to take my bow on Broadway because it's the thing I've dreamed about since I was five years old, it really just felt surreal and full circle. And to have such an incredible cast, with a couple people that I knew before we even got cast, it was really awesome. It's not something that I think will really sink in for me until a couple months from now. But it was amazing, it's something I'll never forget, and something I'll revel in every single day and night.

This is your first time originating a role. How has it felt for you being able to develop this character from the very beginning through her journey to the Broadway stage?

It's really kind of crazy! My character Delia, and all of the other teen characters like Teresa, and Martin, and Aaron, it's crazy how much our characters have bled into our own lives and vice versa. I feel very much that we are our characters, just with different names! So, it's really kind of fun to think about. Delia is so much of Olivia that I kind of think, "Oh my gosh, if I leave the show and somebody takes my place it's kind of weird to think they would be playing me!" [laughs]. We got to have some say in the lines we get to say, and maybe change, so a lot of our characters have become us as people. And so much of us as people are in these characters. It's really special to say that I kind of get to play myself on Broadway! That's definitely a perk.

What has been the most exciting and/or surprising part for you about making your Broadway debut with Kimberly Akimbo?

The most surprising part has been being a part of a team that's so amazing from top to bottom, from behind the scenes to all of the cast on stage, to the production team and the producers, our press team, everybody, I've never been a part of a production where everybody gets along so incredibly well. It really does feel like a team, it feels like a family, there is not a single person that has ever caused problems or anything like that! I think that was the most surprising part, to be part of a show where I feel so at home and so safe because we're just surrounded by the best people in the business you could possibly find. I couldn't ask for anything better. One other surprising thing, I did not know that the Booth Theatre has so many stairs backstage! There are so many stairs! We have to go flight after flight after flight all the time! That was probably the most surprising thing. But I said "All of us are going to have great butts, so it's going to be fine!"

Now that you've made your Broadway debut, what's something you learned from a teacher that has stuck with you/helped you on your journey?

I've had a lot of vocal teachers that have taught about pacing and longevity about your voice, and about your body, and how important it is to keep up with that. Because eight shows a week takes a lot, regardless if you're doing a really dancey show like MJ, or doing a show like ours where it's more story-driven. But it really does take a lot out of you, and I've had teachers that have told me everything about taking care of your body, and drinking water, and exercising, and cool-downs, and warmups. It does really make a difference, and it's something I'm really grappling with more than other teachings, I would say.

And also they taught me about what you do to make yourself be able to get through doing the same exact thing eight times a week, re-igniting that spark of the reason why you do theatre, the reason why you want to share this story. I feel like a lot of that has been very helpful in the advice my teachers have given me in terms of, "How do you keep going?" That's been the best advice teachers have given me, "Take your time, pace yourself, don't push yourself more than you need to, eight shows a week is a lot, make sure you're taking care of yourself."

What do you want to tell people who are planning to come see Kimberly Akimbo?

If you're planning to come see Kimberly Akimbo you're going to have a really great time! You're going to laugh a lot, you might cry a lot, I cry a lot sometimes even still doing the show after how many times I've done it. You are going to leave feeling rejuvenated, and reinvigorated, and with a brand new understanding of life, and maybe a brand-new outlook of maybe how you are living your life versus how you want to live your life, or if you are content with the life that you have.

I think that there is something for everybody in this show, for all ages, from all walks of life, whatever situation you come from, there is something that this show can relate to in a bunch of different ways. I think that anybody who comes to see it will just be charmed and have a really great time. It's a wonderful, heartwarming story, and a great cast, amazing people that will really make you believe in what we have to say, and the message that we want to share.

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