TL;DR
- Shoshana Bean hesitated to join ‘The Lost Boys’.
- Director Michael Arden helped her change her mind.
- The role explores motherhood and sacrifice.
- Bean’s character navigates family dynamics.
- The musical features original music by The Rescues.
Shoshana Bean, the powerhouse vocalist known for her electric performances, almost turned down the chance to star in Broadway’s latest spectacle, The Lost Boys. But thanks to a pizza party and a little persuasion from director Michael Arden, she found herself diving into the role of Lucy, a mother caught in a whirlwind of teenage vampires and familial chaos.
As Bean sat in her dressing room at the Palace Theatre, she reflected on her initial reluctance. “I get scared sometimes that women of a certain age are diminished or dismissed into only being a certain type of role,” she confessed. After her recent Tony-nominated performance in Hell’s Kitchen, she was hesitant to step back into the motherly shoes so soon. “I just put an album out, and I wanted to tour it and focus on my music,” she explained. But as she dug deeper into the material, her perspective shifted.
“It just didn’t feel like the next right move for me,” Bean admitted about her first impression of the role. However, the allure of working with Arden, whom she’s known for over two decades, and the excitement surrounding the show’s original score by The Rescues, made her reconsider. “I’m so glad I said yes,” she added, her enthusiasm palpable.
In The Lost Boys, Bean plays Lucy, a divorced mother trying to navigate the tumultuous waters of raising two teenage boys while dealing with a gang of vampires. “Lucy, like most of my women, thought life was going to go a very different way than it did,” she shared. This character, unlike her previous roles, posed a unique challenge for Bean as she sought to find common ground between herself and Lucy.
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“I’ve had the hardest time finding where she and I intersect and overlap,” she said, highlighting the complexity of the character. Lucy is a woman who sacrifices her own desires for her children, all while searching for her own joy. “One of the songs I’ve been gifted goes, ‘Can I be wild and messy and free and still be a fucking good mom?’” This lyric encapsulates the struggle of balancing motherhood with personal aspirations, a theme that resonates deeply with many women today.
Despite not having children of her own, Bean relates to Lucy’s journey of finding balance. With her recent album Only Smoke and a duet with P!nk on The Kelly Clarkson Show, she knows the struggle of juggling multiple identities. “It’s about brotherhood and family, and — fuck, the music is just so good!” she exclaimed, emphasizing that this is more than just a vampire musical.
As The Lost Boys prepares to open, Bean is ready to share Lucy’s story with the world, proving that even in the realm of fantasy, the themes of love, sacrifice, and self-discovery are universal. So, if you think this is just another vampire flick, think again. This is a tale of family, music, and the wild, messy journey of motherhood that we all can relate to.
Catch The Lost Boys now in previews at the Palace Theatre and witness Shoshana Bean bring this complex character to life. You won’t want to miss it!