Broadway Swing Performed for The Britney Spears Musical: Once Upon a One More Time
November 5, 2023
Eager to start fresh in the fast paced, electric streets of New York City, Salisha Thomas Weiss swiftly packed up her belongings in California and moved across the country to pursue a career in theater.
At the drop of a hat, her transition to the Big Apple gave her the ability to display her talents on and off the Broadway stage.
The 30-year-old star made her theatrical debut on Beautiful: The Carole King Musical in August 2015. Simultaneously, she earned her crown as Miss California for Miss World America in June 2016 while on the road during the national tour for Beautiful. She continued her journey under the bright lights and performed as Diana Ross in Trevor: The Musical before rightfully earning her Broadway debut in 2017 in the Beautiful: The Carole King Musical in New York City.
As the COVID-19 pandemic halted all Broadway productions in 2020, she returned to the stage in 2023 as a Broadway swing on the original Broadway cast of the Britney Spears Musical: Once Upon a One More Time. Playbill editor Mo Brady details a swing’s primary role is understudying multiple ensemble tracks for a show.
Out of 123 total performances of Once Upon a One More Time, she swung on 68 of those shows for twelve roles as a swing and five roles as a principal stand by performer. Even more, she was one of the four total swings for One More Time– two females and two males.
Talkington: Paint a picture for me, Salisha, on your days as a college student and early career into theatrical arts.
Thomas Weiss : I majored in musical theater at California State University, Fullerton. I worked at Disneyland as a character host, then as a vocalist in the show Mickey and the Magical Map as Princess Tiana. One day I wanted more! I secretly went to New York City. I came to the city for 30 days to see if I would like it. As I got off the plane, I instantly fell in love. I gave my notice and left for NYC. The weekend after I moved, I got an audition for the Beautiful musical and got the job.
Talkington: How did you make it to the Broadway stage?
Thomas Weiss: After touring with Beautiful for two years and playing Diana Ross in a show called Trevor, I got a text from my agent saying that the role I did on the Beautiful tour opened up on Broadway. I had been wanting to be on Broadway for the last 13 years of my life. And it just came through a text message!
Talkington: Describe your role as a Broadway swing and a principal standby.
Thomas Weiss: I started off as a swing, then I got moved to be the principal standby. I covered 12 roles. Being the standby, I am only allowed to cover five roles, all being lead roles or five principal roles. I ended up going on for six roles total. Every role that I played; I got thrown on without rehearsal. I was rehearsed after I had gone on for it in front of a Broadway audience. I have never been stressed out more in my whole life.
Talkington: How do you memorize all the roles you could possibly perform at any given minute?
Thomas Weiss: I would watch the rehearsals with the whole cast and learn every step on the side of the room next to them. But remember, I covered 12 people in rehearsals, so whose role do you watch? Who do you look at? You just have to watch everybody and pick one and study them to learn each role one by one. I would basically memorize the whole script, going over everyone’s lines and singing everybody’s lines each day.
Talkington: In what ways were you taking care of your mental health during such a busy season of life?
Thomas Weiss: Honestly, I was at capacity. All my energy went into these shows, and I would not know what the crew and cast would ask of me. I am also a newlywed and needed my husband to feel prioritized as well. I realized when I am at capacity, I really do try to put myself first. Whereas when I am not stressed out, it is easy for me to feel like I need to do everything for others and not myself. I needed to take care of myself when I was at my lowest. If I needed a milkshake, I would get a milkshake. If was to turn off my phone for a moment, I would shut it off and only answer the show if necessary.
Talkington: What are ways that you combat anxieties on stage and in your personal life?
Thomas Weiss: I imagine my boat. I am floating on the ocean, and I am okay. As soon as I let the water get in the boat, now I am drowning. The water is everyone else’s fears, everyone’s anxieties and worries. But I am an empath. If I allow all their anxieties onto me, now I am feeling what they are feeling, when I am actually fine. I now realize there is a delineation of what am I feeling and what everybody else feels?! Everyone’s worries or priorities are not mine. When I stop caring about what other people think about me, I can show up as my authentic self.
Talkington: How did your position on One More Time alter your character and change your perception on life?
Thomas Weiss: It is the first time in my life where I learned how to advocate for myself. During my first Broadway show, I was willing to do anything for anyone. But One More Time was a hard show to perform. I drew the line with some of the things the crew asked of me. I was willing to walk away and tell the show that if I were to be thrown on for this role today, you are not going to be pleased, maybe even fire me. Having those conversations opened the dialogue to make things happen in a way that was safe for my body and mind.
Aside from her theatrical career, Salisha is more than just a Broadway performer. She keeps her followers updated with her life through her lifestyle blog and YouTube channel. She also hosts her two podcasts Black Hair in the Big Leagues and The Salisha Show, while coaching her Masterclass.
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