Seen by over 20 million people across the world, Starlight Express is a true theatrical event, fully immersing audiences of all ages inside a world of speed, song and storytelling, as the incredible cast of 40 whizz around and above, performing some of musical theatre’s most beloved songs.
As a child’s train set magically comes to life and the engines race to become the fastest in the world, Rusty the steam train has little hope of winning until he is inspired by the legend of the ‘Starlight Express’.
We had the pleasure of sitting down with Jeevan Braich [who plays the character Rusty in Starlight Express].
A chance introduction via TikTok
I was back in Birmingham doing my A-Levels, Jeevan explains. “I was trained in the singing route. So i was classically trained, and i was doing an acting course, along with studying English Literature. It just so happened a casting director saw one of videos on his “For You” page on TikTok. I was singing a cover of a song from Hamilton. Then he came into contact and said, would you like to audition for this role…absolutely”. I did not have any professional training, so it just makes it that much more of a blessing”.
Rusty & The Starlight Express
Rusty is a dreamer. He is a young and naive underdog who despite the people in his life who tell him you are limited to certain directions, turns around and says i know i can, and even though he may be down in the dumps some times. He can do whatever he puts his mind to as long as he believes in himself. Jeevan goes onto explain how in his life that is something that will always resonate with the actor. “I’ve had my own obstacles in my own life. We have all had people in our life discouraging us, and it is one of those stories which offers a very simple message, that often gets overlooked because of how many other messages there are coming through in our lives. And its one of the messages that is the most important i’d say. Its a nice similarity between myself and Rusty. The young and naive sort of characteristics that cross over between us”.
Jeevan points out how he had done a lot of singing outside the west end. Having taken two auditions in the lead up to the role. He recalls his friends saying why not audition for the Lion King. So never afraid of a challenge, Jeevan found himself emailing the casting director constantly, to the point where he feels he exhausted their inbox to the point where their reaction was to offer an audition.
Right Place Right Time
Jeevan humbly points out that he is not going to be too naive. A lot of theatre involves a huge amount of talent but equally a huge amount of luck. In the actor’s view, such luck that his video happened to show up on the casting director’s phone, acutely aware that it could have been someone else. The actor has to remind himself of this very fact. “What i’ve learnt very quickly is there are more orthodox routes with theatre. I’ve got my debut, but there are also 13 other debut’s in the show, and these people all went to drama schools. I felt a bit of imposter syndrome at the start. Thinking i have not been trained, all these people have, are they going to be upset. The truth is they don’t celebrate how you got there, they just celebrate that you are there. And for me that is the beauty of being in the right place at the right time”.
The actor highlights that he would say that the imposter syndrome was very much there in the beginning, and feels there is an element of striking the right balance, as he very quickly realized that the talents he had as a foundation even from a very young age. Having trained in classical singing and opera. His singing teacher reminded him that if you are good enough to get the job with what foundation you have, then you are good enough to do the show.
The Strength of coming from a music Dynamic Artistry
Jeevan feels a little part of himself would have loved to have gone to a drama school to have that performance/theatre experience. “I’m sure there was some training in specific styles of singing, and drama which would have merged together. However, this being said, i would not have changed my journey for the world. I think one thing i find myself saying a lot to people is you are on your own path. And just because it may not be as conventional, does not mean that it is not right for you. We are all on our own paths and i need to remind myself on where i am at the present, and respect the journey that got me to this point”.
The actor has found that being part the show has opened up more avenues that he would not have explored before getting into theatre.
“In any show your eyes are open to so many new sub routes of not just theatre but the arts itself. Specific to Starlight Express, when we had all the creatives in the room at the same time. It made me look at the costume department alot more. To the point where it has made me think about potentially going down the fashion route in the future. I know of a lot of dancers who are far more talented that i am, and they are considering futures in choreography. It really inspires all of us, and you never truly know where your fate will take you, until you are doing something else. I think this is something we can all thank Starlight Express for. Just how much it has opened our eyes to other sub categories in theatre and within the arts”.
STARLIGHT EXPRESS has music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Richard Stilgoe, is directed by Luke Sheppard (&Juliet, The Little Big Things), with set designer Tim Hatley (Back to the Future), costume designer Gabriella Slade (Six), lighting designer Howard Hudson (&Juliet), sound designer Gareth Owen (MJ the Musical), video designer Andrzej Goulding (Life of Pi), new orchestrations by Matthew Brind with Andrew Lloyd Webber, Musical Supervision by Matthew Brind & David Wilson, Musical Direction by Laura Bangay and Casting by Pearson Casting.
www.starlightexpresslondon.com
