Enjoy this exclusive interview between Westport Country Playhouse artistic director Mark Shanahan and Deanna Giulietti, performer and host of “The Playhouse Sings: A Night for Swifties & More!”
MARK: What are the songs you are most excited to hear at our next PLAYHOUSE SINGS event and why?
DEANNA: I am the most excited to hear from Taylor Swift’s new album TTPD! Taylor gave us a whole new album to devour and I cannot wait to hear these songs live in concert.
MARK: What was your experience like at the last PLAYHOUSE SINGS concert where you sang Taylor Swift’s “ALL TOO WELL”?
DEANNA: This was hands down the best concert I have ever been in! I am usually singing “All Too Well” – so being onstage with 600 people singing it WITH me at the top of our lungs really was a moment I’ll never forget. We all get to sing and dance together and celebrate the music we all know and love.
MARK: Can you tell me how you first fell in love with music and what made you want to be a performer?
DEANNA: My mom always says that she needed another child to entertain my sister. So I really was born to be an entertainer! I had the most amazing drama teachers and music teachers growing up who saw my talent before I did. My music teachers chose musicals with roles that they knew I would thrive in, my drama teachers chose material that would challenge me as an artist, and my college professors encouraged me constantly that I was born for this. I may have been born an entertainer with a love for music, but my teachers did everything possible to shape me into the performer I am today.
MARK: What marks the current crop of pop stars’ music in a way that you feel speaks to this generations of music fans?
DEANNA: Taylor Swift. Sabrina Carpenter. Lana Del Rey. Beyoncé. Kelsea Ballerini. Reneé Rapp. Tate McRae. Chappell Roan. I think it’s safe to say these women are all we are listening to right now. They are relatable, they are honest, they are vulnerable, they are a good time, and that is what this generation of music fans are looking for. Everyone is looking for music that makes us feel something. Music that makes us want to scream at the top of our lungs. Music that makes us feel seen.
These artists – these FEMALE artists- are beautifully taking over the world and it is a very inspiring time to be alive.
MARK: You’ve become quite a presence on social media. Tell us about your following! What kind of community have you discovered in sharing your talents- and your love of music?
DEANNA: I started my journey on social media when the pandemic started in 2020. I had just finished playing Mary Delgado in Jersey Boys the Musical on board the Norwegian Bliss Cruise Line. When that job ended and the world shut down I had no other option but to join my father’s construction company. I had went from applause every night performing in front of thousands- to my dad and I building fences and backyard patios for an audience of none. I took to TikTok and was very open and vulnerable with my audience on how lonely it was and then I would share how auditions for musicals were then online!
I started sharing my journey of painting an office during the work day and running home on my lunch break to do a zoom audition for SIX the Musical or American Idol.
I think during this time it was fun for my audience to see how I would stop at nothing to perform or even for the chance to perform. Then truly my audience became online. I got to make people laugh everyday and share all different parts of my life. My following to me has seen the best of times and the worst of times. They have cheered for me getting a my first ever role in a movie and then they also watched me cry when I lost an off broadway role when the company lost funding. They are the most supportive and loving friends slash audience I’ve ever known.
CLICK HERE or on the the graphics above to read Deanna’s full bio.
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