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In terms of my own experience, my dad is first-generation, so his parents were from China, and my mom was born and raised in southern Illinois, and she was involved in the arts. My dad's a doctor.
Phillipa Soo -
I've prioritized taking care of my mind, having fun, and doing things that make me laugh. And eating well - as in, really good food, like steak or pasta or fresh vegetables or an amazing dessert. You know, 'treat yo'self.'
Phillipa Soo
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I learn something new about love every day. For example, loving yourself is just as important as loving other people.
Phillipa Soo -
I like that Amelie is strange, just like me. I'm happy I've gotten to be on this journey following my 'Hamilton' journey because they're so different.
Phillipa Soo -
I took dance from a very early age, although my first recital, I remember refusing to go onstage. I think I was three. It's funny because that stage was also my high school theater stage.
Phillipa Soo -
During the winter of 2013, we were running 'Comet' up in midtown - as opposed to downtown - and across the street in the Standard, and that was, like, our third time going at it, from Ars Nova to downtown to near Broadway. We weren't on Broadway. We were near Broadway, as we said.
Phillipa Soo -
I really love being in a room and developing work.: being at the table, looking at the script for the first time, and putting a story on its feet.
Phillipa Soo -
I'm half-Chinese and half-Caucasian. My grandparents came here from China. My father was born in New Jersey.
Phillipa Soo
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My mom always told me to follow my bliss. And I remember specifically with my father, when I was out of school and not knowing how I'd get a job or make money - should I take some classes? What do I do? He said as long as I was working - to enrich myself in some way - that I was on the right path.
Phillipa Soo -
Now, when building a show, I ask myself the question - like, 'Jumping off this table will be really cool, but can I do that eight times a week?'.
Phillipa Soo -
I eat a light but sustaining dinner before the show: a bunch of greens and some non-gluten quinoa or rice. I'll have a snack at intermission. I'm trying so hard not to have meals after the show because it's so late, but sometimes I just want a big bowl of pasta.
Phillipa Soo -
I wake up around nine, drink a cup of coffee, answer some emails, and ease myself into the day.
Phillipa Soo -
At night, I'll do coconut oil or almond oil on my face as a mask to replenish my skin. I've found those are so simple but work better than any other product. Coconut oil is so good, but if you don't want to smell like a cookie, sweet almond oil isn't as pungent.
Phillipa Soo -
I think as a young person, leaving high school or college, you're like, 'All right, all right, enough already.' But now there's a part of me that would like to go back and relish those moments when you could sit down and just... read a book.
Phillipa Soo
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I've been very lucky. I made a choice, getting out of school, to follow the work and the people that really struck my heartstrings; 'Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812' was one of those - maybe it was an accident.
Phillipa Soo -
I think I've learned, really, just how to let go - if an idea doesn't work, or it's not perfect, that's O.K.
Phillipa Soo -
On long car rides, we would always listen to the 'Blues Brothers' soundtrack and try to emulate everything that Aretha Franklin was doing. There was soul and grit in it that I think a kid from the suburbs really needed.
Phillipa Soo -
'Hamilton' is, of course, closely tied to the Obamas because Lin first performed the opening number at a White House poetry jam.
Phillipa Soo -
We did a student-initiated project of 'A Little Night Music', which was the first time that all of the divisions - music, dance, drama, opera - came together and put on a piece. It was a black box kind of feel. We had to get costumes that were pieced together. We had our own lighting that we finagled.
Phillipa Soo -
There's a very old tradition of theater actors doing their own makeup. It's like putting on your mask. There's an element of storytelling involved in it - you put on your character when you put on your makeup. At least, that's how I like to look at it.
Phillipa Soo
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I think in general, people are baffled by love and what it does to them and how far they'll go to have love and be loved.
Phillipa Soo -
Doing something out of town is so beautiful because it really becomes about the process, and the product will be a result of it, but process is what is the goal - to really see what works and create the best story possible.
Phillipa Soo -
There's the cool factor, right? You see your face on a sign or your name on something, like, 'Ahh! Here I am!' And then there's a huge responsibility and the scary part of it, which is like, 'Now what happens?' And then you realize, 'Oh, yeah, this is my job.'
Phillipa Soo -
Doing a show eight times a week is kind of like doing yoga or tai chi. A vinyasa is the same every single time you do it, but depending on how you're feeling, it tells you a lot about what's happening in your life.
Phillipa Soo