Robyn Hurder is treading the boards once again in, “A Beautiful Noise, The Neil Diamond Musical,” her seventh Broadway show.
On the latest episode of “The Broadway Show with Tamsen Fadal,” Hurder chats with Paul Wontorek about her physical and emotional journeys with the production. Hurder shared that just days before the musical’s Dec. 4 opening night, her father passed away. Instead of immediately traveling to her family in Maine, she chose to remain at the Broadhurst Theatre to open the new show.
“I knew deep down, after freaking out for the whole day, this is what he wants,” Hurder shared of her father. “It was actually a beautiful escape to go into the theater; and you just, weirdly, compartmentalize your feelings,” Hurder said, adding that it was therapeutic to do what she loves most.
Before the pandemic-induced industry shutdown, Hurder was playing Nini in “Moulin Rouge! The Musical.” After earning a Tony nomination for the role, she took her final bow on Feb. 20, 2022.
“Once I left ‘Moulin Rouge,’ I was so prepared to just be a mom, take a seat in my house in the woods and just enjoy life,” Hurder, who has a 9-year-old son, confided. Despite plans to take it easy, two months later Hurder received an audition for “A Beautiful Noise.” “I was like, ‘I think I should probably go in for this,’” Hurder recalled.
Within a few days, Hurder landed the role of Marcia Murphey, Neil Diamond’s wife of 25 years — and another Broadway show. “That’s when you release and you throw your hands up and say, ‘Take it away, universe,’” she said.
Hurder shared that she’s grateful for the path the new musical has provided, even if it was “completely unexpected.”
“Never in my life would I ever expect that I would be starring in the Neil Diamond musical,” she laughed. “It is the most fun I’ve ever had and it’s the happiest I’ve ever been onstage.”
Hurder plays opposite Will Swenson, who spoke about taking on the title role in the new musical in the Dec. 11 episode of “The Broadway Show.”
“To have [Diamond] in the rehearsal room while I’m portraying him has been crazy,” Swenson said of the show’s creation process. “And, thank goodness, never intimidating.”
Hurder, meanwhile, shared that she felt nervous about taking on the role of a real-life celebrity.
“The roles that I’ve been able to create on Broadway have been made up. They’ve not worn a lot of clothing, and they really like to dance and express themselves,” she laughed. With Marcia, Hurder noted that there’s not much public information about her as she’s led a private life since her divorce from Diamond. Nonetheless, Hurder cherishes the experience.
“Not only do I get to wear clothes in this show, I’m creating a real human that’s here, that’s alive.”
This week’s episode of “The Broadway Show” features interviews with the new queens of Broadway’s “SIX.” Original “Rent” star Anthony Rapp sits down with Tamsen Fadal to discuss bringing his new musical, “Without You” (based on his eponymous memoir), to New World Stages Off-Broadway. Viewers can also catch a chat with Broadway alum Todrick Hall, who teases his new MTV reality show “The Real Friends of WeHo.”
“The Broadway Show with Tamsen Fadal” airs on weekends. Check your local listings for air time and channel.
