Every night, Lauren Chanel spends two hours playing Frankie Healy, a Black, adopted 16-year-old who rages against her wealthy, white, Stepford Wife-like mother, Mary Jane Healy. For Chanel, diving daily into the role of Frankie in “Jagged Little Pill” can be overwhelming.
“This show requires all of you,” Chanel told the Herald. “It’s mentally, physically draining. Yes, acting is not real, and we know that. But sometimes your body and mind have a disconnect, so your mind knows it’s fake but your body is going through something physically. That can mean trembling. It can mean hearing words that trigger a certain experience. The show is exhausting.”
But the exhaustion comes with tremendous artistic satisfaction.
Despite being based on Alanis Morissette’s 1995 album “Jagged Little Pill,” this is no silly jukebox musical indulgence. This is a decidedly modern Broadway production – “Jagged Little Pill” plays at the Citizens Bank Opera House June 13 -25.
Developed at Cambridge’s American Repertory Theatre before it went to Broadway in 2019, the show pulls Morissette’s ’90s angst into today. Morissette, Tony Award-winning director Diane Paulus, and Academy Award-winning screenwriter Diablo Cody collaborated on a show that follows Frankie, Mary Jane and the rest of the Healys through a suburban hell. What starts with little family failings (light pill popping, mild online porn addiction, keeping up with the Joneses) graduates to spectacular breakdowns (overdose, abuse, assault).
While the material is intense, Chanel finds rewards in the role of Frankie – her first on a national tour.
“I enjoy how raw the show is, how realistic the show is,” she said. “You can think of somebody in your life who has dealt with the topics (explored in the show).”
Confronted with her mother’s relentless-but-hollow cheer, Frankie struggles to find her place in the world and develop a real relationship with her adopted mother. As Frankie’s girlfriend, Jo, tells her, “You’re a Pinterest fail.” While other actors might try and keep their emotional distance to the role, Chanel worked hard to connect with Frankie.
“I had to learn to be Frankie from within myself, meaning, I had to relate to her,” Chanel said. “I grew up in a suburban area (in Atlanta). I grew up in a predominantly white area. I had to navigate how that made me feel.”
“I also did research on real-life transracial adoptees,” she added. “I had interviews with them to get to know, generally, what that is like because I don’t know what that is like.”
Chanel says she did the research and goes into each performance with a deep breath knowing what it takes to pull off the role.
“I like to sit with being uncomfortable, and this show lets you explore that,” she said.
For tickets and details, visit boston.broadway.com
