GlobalGrind spoke to Tony Award nominee Nikki James a day after the New Jersey-born actress learned she was nominated for her stellar performance in the Matt Stone and Trey Parker religious musical, “The Book of Mormons”, about two Mormon boys on a mission in Africa. The musical received 14 Tony nominations including James’ Best Featured Actress nod.
The musical is hailed as the best and brightest ticket in town.
James, in her 30s, spoke to us by phone from her Manhattan apartment.
GlobalGrind: Where were you when you heard the news of your Tony Awards nomination?
Nikki James: I was in bed, pretending to be asleep. I was so terrified of being that person who was sitting alone in their apartment watching it and not getting their name called. So I stayed in bed and one of my best friends, who is also one of my fellow cast members, called me and was like, ‘Congratulations.’ And I was jumping up and down and so excited. It was a pretty incredible moment.
As a kid performing in Jersey, did you ever dream of this happening?
I mean, it was my fantasy. My friend Shannon, who was one of my closest friends growing up and still is, and I started a website called, “Nicki and Shannon Broadway 2000.” And we wrote all the things we wanted to do. The Tony Awards: I’ve been fantasizing about this moment my entire life. It’s pretty sweet.
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Do you know what you’re going to wear?
No, I just got an email from all the powers that be asking me if there was any kind of designer that I wanted to wear. It’s crazy. I mean, to me, I’ve never been one of those people who really fantasized about a wedding dress, but I feel like this will be that moment for me. Like, if I put it on I’ll know, that kind of thing. I have all my best gay friends who are giving me advice: it has to be tight, it has to be long, you have to show off this asset (laughs). I’m sure I’ll have a lot of people weighing in on what the asset will be.
Can you tell us about the audition process? How did you hear about the part and how long did it take for you to get it?
It’s a funny thing because I never “technically” auditioned because I was invited without an audition to do a reading of the show in 2008. So it was a very short little rehearsal process and I had worked with the musical director before and Bobby Lopez who is our composer said that he’d seen my work and heard my voice and he had said that it was going to be great for this part. So it was through him that I was invited to do this workshop for the show. So I never quite auditioned but everytime I got back to the next level it was like an audition. So I was constantly auditioning in a way, so you never want to have an off day or sing an off note because at anytime they can say, ‘you know what I think? We should say something else.’ So that was two and half years ago that I started this process. And we did two readings and two workshops which were more full scale with small audiences but no sets built yet. So it’s been a long time coming, but I knew it was going to be incredible. People ask me when did I first know it was going to be good. I knew when I first heard all those songs. It’s so smart, it’s so fresh, it’s done so well and I was chomping at the bit to be a part of it because I knew we would take the world by storm, which we have (laugh). Fourteen nominations later. When you know, you know.
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Can you tell me a little bit about the character you play?
Yeah, I play a young girl named Nabalungi, she’s probably like 18, who lives in a village in Africa. A fake African village. It’s sort of like a composite of all the things that could go wrong in a small African village. There’s famine and there’s a warlord that’s trying to circumcise women and we don’t eat, everyone’s dying of AIDs. The idea that we’re trying to get across is that everyone is really down and out. We’re really having a bad luck streak. And these two Mormon boys accidentally fall into our village and I am very interested in what they have to offer, which, in my mind is salvation, an invitation to paradise. And I think that they’re going to put us on a plane and take us out of this country. So I get up on board and hilarity ensues and all sorts of funny and crazy things happen over the course of our two and a half hour play. But I sort of play the straight woman. I’m very earnest in comparison to the silly stuff that’s happening around her so I feel like the foil to the comedians in this show.
Now, is that a real name or is that something the writers made up?
I don’t know, I never asked them because some of it is real and some of it is made up. You never really know with Trey or Matt because they’re smarter than anybody gives them credit for being. For example, the lyrics of our one song “Hafadigibuli” are jibberish. It’s not a real language. But originally it was, we had a different title which sounded similar but with different vowel sounds and consanants. And that was Swahili, it was a Swahili translation of “Ef you God.” We ended up making it jibberish because they don’t really speak Swahili in Uganda, it’s mostly an English speaking country and at one point they were thinking of placing it somewhere else. But they showed Uganda in particular because there is a Mormon mission center in Kampala, the capital of Uganda. Originally it did take place in Kampala, but at one point Trey went to visit Kampala and realized it was actually really nice (laughs). So we just took it out of Kampala and put it in some fictional Northern Uganda village.
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Have you ever met Mormons in your personal life?
Yeah, a lot, which is weird. It’s like when you buy a red car and then all of a sudden all you see around you is red cars. Once your eyes are open to something you realize all the ways in which you haven’t been seeing it in the past. But I live in Washington Heights and there is a Mormon church there and I see Mormon missionaries all the time in my neighborhood. In fact, one day I walked out of my apartment, which is on the ground floor of my building, and there were four missionaries just sitting in the lobby waiting for someone. And I had a long talk with them. I didn’t let them know exactly why I was curious but I was like, ‘What are you doing here, are you an investigator?’ And they said, ‘Yeah, we have someone who lives in your building who is interested in joining our church. Would you like some information?’ Which I took. And they were just like the nicest boys. The point of the story is, it’s a very strange situation to send these young boys out on their own into this big city and ask them to proselytize in New York City. We’re getting handed stuff all day long on the street corners: “Save the Children” and “Do you have a moment for Green Peace.” So it’s got to be a hard thing that they’re doing trying to get people to talk to them and listen to them. But they really do believe and that’s admirable.
Do you come from a religious background?
I do and I don’t. I was raised Catholic and my Mom is practicing Catholic. I cannot say that I am one as well. I’ve always had doubts. Not doubts, I guess, questions. I’m still finding my way, honestly. I practiced Buddhism for awhile. I have a lot of close friends and loved ones who are Orthodox or not practicing Jews, so I’ve been curious about that. So I’m not sure where I fit into that world, though. I’m still asking questions.
When you were growing up in Jersey, were you an only child, did you have siblings?
I have an older brother who is my best friend. He’s six years older than me so we’re far enough apart that we never had direct competition with each other. By the time I was in high school he was already done with College. But he’s a lawyer, lives in Brooklyn and we’re really close. He’s really excited about the Tony nomination, like really excited.
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So what was your first night performing in a Broadway play like?
I have to think back. It must have been 2001. I remember, I was 19, and I was thinking that I was the S.H.I.T. That I had arrived and then that there was no going back from here. And that’s the thing that’s really humbling about this business, about this career, is that, for all of your success – you know, in this hit Broadway musical I was just nominated for a Tony award, but over Christmas time, to get money to buy presents I sold lipstick at Barneys, you know what I mean? Humility is a huge part – so I remember thinking I was the shit. And I also remember feeling – my father passed away when I was in high school, and he was my biggest fan and also my biggest champion. He always said, ‘You should never doubt yourself.’ When I told them I wanted to spend $30,000 a year studying acting at NYU he never blinked, never batted an eye. So it’s sort of bitter sweet. Actually, everytime I perform at a bigger venue there’s a moment of sadness that he couldn’t be here to witness it. But at the time I’m lucky enough to get my own personal angel, maybe facilitating these things happening in my life. Because I definitely acknowledge how lucky I am. I have a lot of close friends who are very talented who have not been given the oppurtunities that I have, so there’s not a moment that I don’t feel grateful and extremely blessed.
Can you tell me what it was like playing opposite Christopher Plummer in “Cleopatra”?
(Laughs) That’s the best question. He’s incredible. I was in awe of his performance and I honestly have to say I grew more as an actor working with them than I ever have in my life. I’ve never worked harder. I’ve never thrown myself deeper into a job. He is an inspiration and he works so hard. You would think that someone at his level would have even a second of coasting but he doesn’t, he works so, so hard. I’m so proud of the work I did on that show. Other than this being the highlight of my career as far as notoriety and being in something that’s so exciting that people want to see, at that point in my life, that was the most exciting challenge I ever had.
Nikki James as Cleopatra opposite Christopher Plummer.
