Interview: Emma Hunton – GIRL's In EUPHORIA With Her Booked Schedule

Cherry Poppins presents their one-nighter XOXO Euphoria Girl - A Burlesque Musical Parody September 26, 2022, at The Bourbon Room. The team of Alli Miller-Fisher, Chadd McMillan and Sarah Haworth-Hodges direct this Burlesque musical parody mashup set to chart-topping music with the cast of: Ty Deran, Kristyn Evelyn, Everjohn Feliciano, Bianca Gisselle, Emma Hunton, Carly Jibson, Janaya Mahealani Jones, Meredith Lim, Alli Miller-Fisher, Matthew Scott Montgomery, Shelly Regner, Sarah Wines, Lauren Avon and Brin Hamblin.

Emma managed to carve out some time to answer a few of my queries.

Thank you for taking the time for this interview, Emma!

First of all, thanks! That really means a lot!

I've seen you command the stage at Rockwell Table & Stage many times with your incredible vocals. How old were you when you discovered your vocal talent?

I feel like I've always been a very musical person, I grew up in a house where blues and rock where played 24/7, but I definitely couldn't hold a tune when I was younger. It wasn't until I was about 6 or 7 that it started sounding good (much to the surprise of everyone around me)

Where did you see yourself when you were little? Broadway? Concerts? Television? Law office?

I've always wanted to be a performer. I would grow up watching Michael Jackson videos, and they were like these little movies where people got to sing and dance and act. I think at the time, because I had no concept of what theater was at 5/6, I did realize that WAS theater, and what I was yearning for WAS theater. I felt really drawn to people like Bette Midler who would star in their own films and be on the soundtrack and I always thought, "Well, that would be great if I could just combine it all." It's funny you mention law though because there was a period there in high school where the head of my school was really pushing for me to study law at Yale. He said I could argue my way out of anything.

What acting advice did your mother Erica Hunton, an actress herself, give you that you always try to adhere to today?

My mom was the best with advice because she wasn't a stage mom. She always said the minute it wasn't fun anymore I was done. The best thing she always said after every audition was, "Leave it at the door!" because it's out of your hands at that point and so little has to do with whether you were the best or not. One of my favorite stories that I think perfectly exemplifies this was after my first audition (the Annie musical remake) I was extremely distraught that I was cut after the dance call. Screaming, crying, MESS. After 10 minutes of this, my mom pulled the car over on the side of the road and looked back at me and said "if you're going to do this every time you don't get a job, we're pulling you out of this right now. There are going to be a lot more no's than there are yes's, and you need to suck it up." I sniffled my tears back and never put that much weight on an audition again. I was really lucky because I think this mindset set me up for success. And it didn't make my career my entire world.

You put the burlesque techniques you learned at Cherry Poppins to good use for your character of Davia Moss in Good Trouble. What cosmic forces first brought you into the Cherry Poppins universe?

Like most good things in my life, it starts with Lindsay Pearce. I met Alli Miller through our mutual friend Lindsay (we had many friends in common. Lindsay is just proactive about introducing people she knows will get along) and it kind of snowballed from there. Alli, Sarah and I have similar senses of humor and it's such a collaborative space I feel were rarely afforded in theater, so when they asked me to do a show with them I jumped at the chance, and I pretty much beg them to let me do every other show since.

Will The Bourbon Room audience see you dance as well as sing?

They will! This show is such high energy and vocals I don't think there is a single moment anyone has to rest.

Are you performing one or more characters?

This time I get to focus on just one character which is rare in these kinds of shows. Bringing Serena from Gossip Girl into Euphoria world has been absolutely hilarious for me.

What songs will you be singing?

I get to sing a lot of fun stuff in this show but I would have to say my favorite moment is singing Chandelier with Sarah while dancing, and Meredith and I are doing burlesque. It's such a powerful moment of three women owning their sexuality on stage, it gives me goosebumps.

What would your three-line pitch of XOXO Euphoria Girl be?

if you want to laugh, cry and question your sexual preference, then you won't want to miss this.

Have you worked with any others of the cast or creatives before?

I have! I feel like the theater world, and especially the Cherries world, is so small. So, we all tend to work with and for each other. It's always nice to see a familiar face.

I've seen one of the shows you directed at Rockwell. What gives you more gratification: Connecting with your audience with your vocals from the stage? Or watching off-stage your directed cast get their applause?

I love directing, but it feels like a completely different sense of pride. I'm a control freak (Hi, Leo/Virgo cusp here!), so I'm really someone who likes to do things themselves because it's easier and I know it gets done the way I want it. Directing really taught me how to trust everyone around me and release that sense of control. I kind of gave them the keys and said, "Let's see what we can open with those" and in turn I felt it make me a much more open actor, and someone who can let choices and cuts go.

Do you still hold the records for being the youngest Elphaba (Wicked) in an English-language production and the second youngest in the world?

You know what, I actually don't know but I hope so. Only because I think it's too much to put on someone that young, my voice hadn't even finished maturing yet! I think of all the things I would sing or act differently now with more life under my belt.

What's in the near future for Emma Hunton?

Right now we're getting ready to start Good Trouble back up in its fifth season, and due to the high volume of episodes per season that really takes up a lot of my time. I fly to New York next week to work on a new musical, so I definitely try to fill the down time when I can, I've never really been one to sit still.

Thank you again, Emma! I look forward to seeing you slay on The Bourbon Room stage.

Thanks! See you at The Bourbon Room!

For tickets to this September 26th event, click on the button below: