New York Post
March 11, 1998
Show's 'I Have Confidence' Could Be Luker's Own Credo
By LARRY WORTH
BROADWAY'S revival of "The Sound of Music" has yet to officially open, but Rebecca Luker - the latest actress to sport Maria von Trapp's dirndl - has already heard every question and thought every thought about making the hills come alive in 1998.
For the record: No, she didn't see Mary Martin originate the role on stage. (At 36, Luker hadn't even been born.) Yes, she always loved Julie Andrews in the classic 1965 movie. No, she's never been to Austria (the tale's real-life setting). And, yes, she felt privileged when Andrews recently gave her some input.
Luker answers the basics - and everything else - with enthusiasm, patience and lots of smiles. Those are qualities that come
easily to the glamorous Alabama native, whether addressing her beginnings as a beauty contest runner-up, waitressing at Windows on the World or maternal feelings for the show's 10 children (seven Von Trapp kids and three understudies).Taking an hour's break from rehearsals at the Martin Beck Theater, she sits cross-legged on a balustrade overlooking the lobby, seemingly oblivious to the fact that leaning a bit off-center would mean a 20-foot drop. If Luker fears falling, she keeps it to herself. Just as she sports a brave - but never cocky - face about wearing Maria's legendary mantle in style.
"Actually, I don't think about it," she laughs. "That would really mess me up. I run down a ramp at the beginning of the show, do my "hills are alive" thing and try to have fun with it. But I'd be lying if I said my heart wasn't pounding."
Actually, her heart's been pounding since the show's grueling audition process began nearly a year ago. Five callbacks later, the part was hers, and so began the endless comparisons to Martin and Andrews.
Then again, Luker's used to holding her own. When taking over the role of Christine in Broadway's "The Phantom of the Opera," she was compared by reviewers to her predecessors, Sarah Brightman and Patti Cohenour (who's currently playing the Mother Abbess in "Sound of Music"). Even her Tony-nominated role as Magnolia in Broadway's 1994 "Show Boat" invited parallels to Kathryn Grayson's big-screen interpretation.
"All I can do is be myself," she says. "Sure, this role will always be associated with Julie Andrews. That's a fact. But I'm discovering how to bring Maria alive in different ways, little enriching things."
Playing a squeaky-clean character in such classic family entertainment has another potential pitfall: keeping one's personal life above reproach. And once again, Luker has confidence in herself.
"I'm not planning a Pee-wee Herman," she laughs, "but my job is just my job. I have to live my own life and be happy with it."
And what's making Luker happy now - aside from "The Sound of Music" - is boyfriend Danny Burstein. Following her divorce from actor Greg Jbarra, Luker and Burstein recently moved into a Manhattan apartment together.
The pair met two years ago during a California workshop for Barry Manilow's Broadway-bound "Harmony," getting cast as the romantic leads. Friendship developed into dating, which led to their current situation. Actor-singer Burstein is currently shooting an episode of NBC-TV's "Law & Order."
And mention of TV gets Luker thinking about her own acting future. With only a 1989 "Matlock" guest appearance on her resume, Luker would love to segue into film and television. But big Broadway opportunities keep getting in the way.
"Come on, how could I turn down a part like this?" she asks. Yet, she did give it a moment's pause, and not just because Maria was another ingenue role. When talking with her three siblings - all of whom are married, have kids and "regular jobs" back in Alabama and Georgia - Luker sometimes questions her life choices.
"Sure, you think about everything you don't have," she says. "But I've decided to be happy. When I started out, acting was my whole life. Then I got less serious about it. But a show like this - where you're playing a real person - has made me more serious than ever.
"But I've also filled my life with love from family and friends and activities that mean something to me. It's not just about work for me anymore. And that's what makes the difference."
Copyright 1998 N.Y.P. Holdings Inc.