She may be just 9 years old, but Zeya Grace has already had the kind of theatrical career far more seasoned performers can only dream of.
The Palm Beach County third grader made her Broadway debut on April 22 in the new musical “Beaches,” an adaptation of the beloved 1988 tearjerker that made Bette Midler an indisputable star, but was not on Zeya’s radar until recently.
“I never saw the movie,” she said in a recent phone interview. But once she learned that she would be auditioning, she watched just the parts featuring the children. “Parts of it are very sad,” said Zeya, cautious to not give away too much despite being reassured that most of the world knows how the movie ends.
She plays Little Bertie in the musical (the character is Hillary in the film), which sticks more closely to the Iris Rainer Dart novel that the movie is based upon. She’s on stage for much of the show, which jumps back and forth in time to tell the story of an endearing friendship between the prim and proper Bertie White and the over-the-top entertainer Cee Cee Bloom. We first meet Little Bertie lost on a beach near the Atlantic City boardwalk when she’s discovered by Little Cee Cee, with the show following their on again/off again friendship over the years.
Director Lonnie Price said the production team was drawn to Zeya’s “enormous sweetness and gentleness. She’s kind of uncomplicatedly lovely,” he added. “She seemed so right to play Little Bertie.” She’s turning out to be a real pro, said Price, noting that when Zeya first started rehearsals, she’d lost some teeth making it difficult to articulate certain words. “It’s all good now,” he said. “Her teeth are back.”
“She brings such real pure heart to Little Bertie,” said Kelli Barrett, the actress who plays Bertie as an adult. “She’s a real pleasure to be around, on stage and off,” said Barrett. “We’re lucky to have her in the cast and in our lives.”
Zeya and Samantha Schwartz, who plays Little Cee Cee, basically carry the first 20 minutes of the show, said Barrett. “That’s not easy for any actor,” she said, “but they do it.”
A 9-year-old with a theater resume
It’s obviously a heavy lift for a 9-year-old, but Zeya is taking it all in stride, says her mother, Linda Carbone. Prior to “Beaches,” Zeya was in the national touring company of “Les Misérables,” playing young Cosette and young Eponine. She traveled to more than 20 cities on that tour starting last September, from San Diego to Pittsburgh. The highlight was performing Cosette at the Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale on Dec. 21, her birthday.
Touring had its ups and downs, said Zeya, who didn’t love having to get up so early to travel to a different city every week. “I did not like the flying part, but I liked the bus part,” she said, mostly because it was easier to hang out with her friends. “We quickly learned to get rid of as much baggage as possible,” said Carbone, who accompanied her daughter.
While still on tour, Zeya’s agent called about the “Beaches” opportunity, which involved a round of self-tapes, followed by in-person auditions. That ended with what Carbone thought was a final audition. Zeya and her mom were asked to come into a room to meet with the production staff, an event Carbone said was more overwhelming for mother than daughter.
“We have some questions for you,” said Price, in a viral Instagram post (nearly 2 million views) captioned “we’re not crying, you’re crying.” Price gets right to it. “What I wanted to ask you Zeya,” he said, before stopping himself and saying, “wait, I shouldn’t be calling you Zeya. I should be calling you Bertie because you’re going to play Little Bertie on Broadway.” Tears flowed.
“Thank you,” said Zeya. “I’m going to take good care of her.”
It was a moment every parent of a talented child dreams of, but still surreal, said Carbone.
She traces Zeya’s love of musical theater to Carbone’s late mother, who passed her appreciation of classics like “The King and I” and “The Sound of Music” on to her granddaughter. Carbone recalls that after watching the movie “Annie,” Zeya “never stopped singing the songs. She was in the shower one day singing ‘Tomorrow’ at the top of her lungs” and I asked her if she wanted to take singing lessons.
She wound up at the Boynton Beach School of Music, said Carbone, where they told me she was “gifted beyond her age. They said she had a natural mixed belt” (not that Carbone had the slightest idea what that meant). But she knew her daughter. “She’s one of those kids that takes on something and gets really good really quickly,” she said.
“Looking back my heart wants to explode,” said voice teacher Madison Schwarz, who’s worked with Zeya since she was six. “She was born with innate, natural talent,” said Schwarz, of Boynton Beach. She recalls Zeya being able to instantly take direction. “It’s unheard of for a six-year-old to be able to take those kinds of corrections,” said Schwarz, who now teaches privately.
Zeya appeared in a recital just two weeks after starting voice lessons, singing “Tomorrow” – shocker! “She nailed it,” said Schwarz. “That was the moment it clicked for me that she was something special,” she said.
The young performer quickly booked her first job, playing one of the kids in “The Sound of Music” at Lake Worth Playhouse. “Les Mis” and “Beaches” were soon to follow, but what’s more important to Carbone is that Zeya is having a good time.
She remains friends with the other kids from both shows and treasures the video the “Les Mis” crew made when she left for Broadway. Needless to say she and Samantha, the 10-year-old actress from Long Island who plays Little Cee Cee, have become best buddies, along with the other kids in the cast, affectionately known as “the Beach babes.”
Zeya started rehearsing “Beaches” Sept. 16, which was her grandmother’s birthday. “I think,” said Carbone, “that she’s had her hand in this all along.”
But make no mistake, having a child on Broadway requires serious commitment from the entire family. Carbone basically moved north from the Lake Worth Beach area with Zeya and her half-sister, taking an apartment in Union City, New Jersey, an easy commute to New York. (They stayed in Manhattan hotels on occasion during previews when the show rehearsed during the day and performed at night.)
Meanwhile, Carbone’s husband stays home with his daughter, and the family reunites for school breaks whenever they can. Zeya’s studies at Citrus Cove Elementary School in Boynton Beach are on hold, but the show is mandated to provide tutoring for its young performers, so add a few hours of school into the crowded schedule.
“Beaches” is a limited run, scheduled to close on Sept. 6. What’s next? “I’d love to do movies,” said Zeya, “maybe some TV.” But first, there’s one goal topping her list — going to a famous Florida destination she has yet to visit. The determination in her voice impossible to miss, Zeya said, “I want to go to Disney World.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach County’s Zeya Grace made her Broadway debut in ‘Beaches’
Reporting by Barbara Schuler, Special to the Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
