"P" is for Phantom

“P” is for Phantom

Paloma Garcia-Lee made her Broadway debut in The Phantom of the Opera,at age 17.

When I first met Paloma, she was this tiny baby doll. She was the daughter of the artistic director of the dance school I attended, where she received no special treatment. Terri Garcia-Lee, her mother and Broadway vet, turned her into an independent woman early on, and avoided being a stage mom. As it is bound to happen, Paloma wanted to rebel. In her teens she asked to be called “P” and decided that horseback riding was her true calling, while dancing was a “side-thing.” Those dreams melted away soon and she rediscovered her love for dance.

“P” is for… Paloma

At age 13, she was accepted to North Carolina School of the Arts−where Tony winners Mary Louise-Parker and Gary Beach trained, as well as her Paloma’s mom. I remember talking to her about how much she loved it there, and visited once when I auditioned for the school, myself. I realized how much she had grown from that little baby doll. Her conversations changed from horsies to Sutton Foster. She also decided to take after her mother not only as a performer, but with her name; She went from Paloma Lee to Paloma Garcia-Lee. (Ahem Gypsy… )

She became a star ballerina with some of the finest teachers at NCSA, but something was missing. I recall Terri telling me that Paloma was unhappy with ballet, and she yearned to be a consummate performer. With a recommendation from her acting teacher and an audition, she changed her major to Musical Theater. That year the school had the honor of housing the 50th anniversary production of West Side Story, “P” was cast as Graziella. (Her mom was in an revival that never made it to Broadway.) She soon graduated from North Carolina School of the Arts, a year early.

In the summer of 2008, Paloma was my assistant director and choreographer for Honk!, for The Pennsylvania School of the Performing Arts‘ summer program. Before I get to that, let me take you back to the early days of PSPA where the smell of fear was prominent, and the words “young professional,” were murmured.

“P” is for… Professionalism

In the late 90s I started taking classes at PSPA (then known as Spirit In Motion Ballet Theatre). The atmosphere of the dance school was truly electric! It was a place you could get away for an hour or more and just study your craft like a professional. Attending classes in dance, musical theater, singing, acting and more. We were pushed so hard that we wanted to be the best, and we were. It was both a stressful and loving environment like none other. The staff at PSPA consisted of dance instructors from the finest schools in the world. In addition, they held workshops and master classes with Broadway professionals.

Terri still gives her students passion not only in the arts, but in life. What I got from the program was how to be a professional in theater, along with how to work in the real world. In my mind, anyone who graduates from this program experiences success in life. I know it gave me confidence and definitely changed my life.

With Honk!, Paloma and I worked famously together. She’s a hard worker, which makes my job easier, and soon her hard work paid off when she made it to Broadway.

“P” is for… Phantom

That summer she commuted back-and-forth to NYC for auditions, and we would discuss them. I remember her telling me about two in particular: One, the Broadway revival of West Side Story, which she got a called back for several times, but did not get cast. The other audition was for the Broadway, Tour and Vegas companies of The Phantom of the Opera. She sang, did a classical monologue, and got called back−a big accomplishment alone. Months passed and she assumed she didn’t get it.

“P” is for… Prince

About six months later she got the call. Paloma, the recent high school graduate and brand new New Yorker, got cast in the Ensmeble and understudy for the leading role of Meg. One week and three rehearsals later, she was performing on Broadway!

I got word that the show’s director, Hal Prince is thrilled! In the 21 years the show has been open, Paloma is the second cast member to be only 17 years of age. It is quite astounding she got it, because cast changes are infrequent with that show.

Paloma’s story is awe-inspiring. Hundreds of girls audition for Phantom every year, but few are chosen. The Phantom of the Opera is still a box office marvel. It plays the Majestic Theatre on Broadway, located at 247 West 44th Street.

Let this story be a lesson to you. Forget horseback riding and do a Broadway show instead!

Paloma is currently in the Broadway company of Phantom.