Most recognizable for her portrayal of seasoned triple-threat Ivy Lynn in NBC’s musical drama Smash, Tony nominee Megan Hilty has consistently been recognized as a dynamic performer. Hilty is currently playing the role of Madeline Ashton in the hit Broadway musical Death Becomes Her, earning a Tony nomination, a Drama League Award nod and two Broadway.com Audience Awards. (Recently, she announced that her run as Madeline Ashton in Death will end Jan. 11.)
Making her Broadway debut as Glinda in Wicked, Hilty has been in projects such as Broadway’s 9 to 5: The Musical, Hulu’s Difficult People, the CBS series The Good Wife and the animated film Shrek the Third (in which she provided Snow White’s singing voice). Now, in A Merry Little Christmas with Megan Hilty, Hilty and her longtime friend and music director Matt Cusson will offer classic and contemporary holiday tunes along with Broadway favorites at Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre.
Note: This conversation was edited for clarity and length.
Windy City Times: Hey, Megan! How are you?
Megan Hilty: Oh, man—I’m so happy. It’s a day off and it’s Christmastime, which started Nov. 2 for me. We start early at our house. [Both laugh.] People were, like, “Let it be Thanksgiving first,” and I said, “Nah—okay.”
WCT: So you’re not one of these people who dislikes that Christmas seems to start earlier each year.
MH: Well, I don’t know about that. What I don’t like is when it starts before Halloween. I have Christmas up two months out of the year. But I say, “Let Halloween be Halloween,” and then we can get into the holidays.
WCT: Congrats on Death Becomes Her, which, of course, is a queer favorite. Even though the movie [with Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn] came out in 1992, I feel that many of the film’s themes are relevant today.
MH: Oh, 100%, if not more! Just the questioning of what you’re willing to do in the name of youth and beauty has only gotten stronger.
WCT: And I don’t know if you’ve heard of this skincare brand [Rini] that caters to children as young as three…
MH: That’s insane! [Laughs] We’re in trouble.
WCT: I know that your run on Death Becomes Her is ending soon. What has this role meant to you?
MH: Being a part of this show has been life-changing in a lot of different ways and I feel so deeply lucky to be involved in the creation of this story in this particular moment. First of all, what an honor to be part of something that makes people laugh in a time that we really, really need [laughter]! And for the [theater] to be a safe space for the LGBTQ+ community—I feel so honored to get to come out in a trans pride flag in the beginning of the show.
I’m grateful for those reasons alone but it’s also a story about finding your person. And maybe this relationship isn’t a typical friendship, but it works for them—but they found their persons in each other. And, like it or not, this is the person who makes them feel most alive.
WCT: You’ve been a Broadway figure for a little while. I’ve seen many kids who have followed in their parents’ footsteps, and you have two children. What would your advice be to them if they decided to perform on Broadway?
MH: The only advice I give anybody going into this business is to do as much as you can, including the things that are off-stage, like building sets and taking tickets. These shows take an army of people; just because the spotlight is on the actors doesn’t make us any more important than anybody else. The best way to understand that is to actually do those jobs, and I certainly did that in my community-theater days as well as my time at Carnegie Mellon [University]. And just be nice to people!
WCT: That’s pretty cool, as some parents see their kids starting at the top.
MH: Oh, no—they’ll be getting no special calls from me! [Laughs] Everyone has to forge their own path. I’ll help as much as I can, but they’ll get no preferential treatment.
WCT: Regarding your show A Merry Little Christmas with Megan Hilty, what can audiences expect?
MH: For all of my concerts, I hope that you walk away feeling a little lighter. With this specific concert, I hope it fills people with the holiday spirit. And the whole point of going to any concert is to get to know the artist as a person outside of their work and the characters they play—that’s always my goal. At the beginning of every concert, I tell people that whether you know me or not, we’re going to be best friends by the end of the show.
WCT: What are a couple of your favorite holiday tunes?
MH: I put out a little holiday several years ago [2016’s A Merry Little Christmas] and it has most of my favorite holiday tunes on it. I love “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” I also love Joni Mitchell’s “River” and we do a cover of it [on the album]. It’s not on this album but there’s also [Dolly Parton’s] “Hard Candy Christmas.” “The Christmas Song” is probably one of my favorites of all time and there’s “A Place Called Home” that I’ve been singing for years; it’s from A Christmas Carol: The Musical.
WCT: Could you talk a little bit about producer Mark Cortale, who’s helping to present your show? He was a member of the OUT100 list last year.
MH: He’s incredible. Honestly, I want to be a part of anything he’s producing because he’s one of those people who is so talented—and he’s also the nicest man. Anywhere he goes, I will follow. When he called about this, I said, “100%—I’ll be there.”
WCT: You have been such a staunch ally of the queer community. You’ve been in Pride on Broadway and you’ve attended the GLAAD Media Awards, among other LGBTQ+ events. Why is being an ally so important to you?
MH: It’s hard to answer this question because my initial response is “Why wouldn’t I?” I will always be there for my friends. It’s as natural and easy as breathing. I’m going to show my love and support for my friends.
WCT: Is there anything you wanted to add?
MH: These shows are among my favorite things to do. I did my first concert back in Colorado a couple weeks ago with my music director, Matt Cusson—who will be in Chicago as well—and it was this wonderful homecoming. I feel like I get to connect with the audience in a much more personable way. And I’ve never done these concerts in Chicago, although I’ve performed Death Becomes Her there. I’ve never been there as me so this will be really special, especially during the holidays.
And audiences will fall in love with Matt as well. He’s a Grammy nominee and an incredible singer/songwriter in his own right, so I force him to sing with me. And it’s a treat for the audience because everyone’s delightfully surprised by his voice.
A Merry Little Christmas with Megan Hilty will play three performances on Dec. 12-13 in Steppenwolf’s Downstairs Theater, 1650 N. Halsted St. More info is here.