According to the World History Encyclopedia: A mandala is an artistic representation of higher thought and deeper meaning given as a geometric symbol to focus one’s attention. This week we’re focusing on a different Mandala, performer Adam Mandala. The talented Mandala is a dancer, singer, and actor currently performing in “Rocky, The Musical” at the Walnut Street Theater.
I hear you’re a Jersey boy.
I am: Cedarbrook, NJ, near Montclair. Twenty minutes away from New York, so me and my family grew up going in and out of the city, which was awesome. I also grew up going to the shore, we’d go to Long Beach Island every summer and it was my happy place.
Tell me about the family.
It’s me, my dad, my mom, and my sister. My parents are separated but we still have an awesome family dynamic. My dad’s the one who was the stage parent, he took me to all my dance classes, but both my parents are really supportive of what I do and who I am. My sister is the complete opposite of me but we’re really close. She was always the athlete of the family while I was the little ballerina girl. I didn’t have the eye-hand coordination for sports.
How long have you been dancing and what’s the first musical you remember seeing?
I’ve been dancing since I was 11 years old. And my first Broadway show was “The Lion King.” I was 5 years old and I don’t remember much, I think I fell asleep in the 2nd act! But the first show I was obsessed with was “Hairspray.” I had the cast album on CD and I’d read all the liner notes and sing along. The first musical I ever did was “The Music Man, Jr.” in 5th grade. I loved it. I came from a small, conservative town where if you didn’t play sports, you were not cool and I had a hard time fitting in. I was trying to find myself and what I was passionate about. It was my father who suggested I try dance.
What style of dance?
I started with hip-hop classes, and they immediately put me in the highest level even though I’d never taken a class before. Soon after I got into jazz, tap, ballet. I hated ballet… it’s beautiful, just not for me.
How were you in school?
I liked school, I was good at math, I loved to read, I was the kid who always had a book in his hand. My closet was filled with books, crossword and word search puzzles. But I spent a lot of time in New York, and in 7th grade I became an official ensemble member for a Children’s Youth organization called, “TaDa! Youth Theater” which was pretty well known in NY. We toured a lot and it was where I found my first group of friends. It was the first time I found people like me.
Who was a favorite teacher?
Joanna Grier; she was my dance teacher and she was awesome. She was from TADA! and always made you feel so comfortable. I’ve had some teachers who motivated with fear and intimidation and that’s harsh, especially for kids. I had one teacher look at me and say, “Do you EVER want to get better?” It was so demeaning, it took the joy out of the experience, but Joanna made it fun and would always give positive affirmations and feedback to help you reach your full potential.
And dance is such an intimate art form…
It is, you’re asked to do things with your body that can feel weird or uncomfortable and then you have to do it with other people and also have people watching you, it makes you very vulnerable.
As an outsider we think dancers have the best bodies of all, so you must be super confident. But I interviewed one dancer who said, “You’re looking at yourself in a mirror for 8 hours a day, then you perform and have hundreds of people staring at you. It’s easy to get a complex.”
And in super tight clothing. Back then, ‘body shaming’ was not a thing, people felt free to tell you that you were too fat or not fit enough. I still have body dysmorphia issues to this day. Granted the pandemic did us all a little dirty, but even before when I was in some of the best shape of my life I still remember looking in the mirror and thinking, “Ugh, disgusting! You look horrible.” My mindset is that I’ll never look good enough, even though other people are like, “What are you talking about?” [Laughing] Us dancers definitely psyche ourselves out when it comes to our bodies!
What was your craziest stage mishap?
It’s hard to say because when those things happen, I find them so funny, I live for those moments, it’s what live performance is all about and I think the audience loves them too. I remember we were doing “Young Frankenstein”. For the “Puttin’ on the Ritz” number we tap dance in tails with a top hat and cane. On my second move, my cane flew out of my hand and across the stage. The whole dance was centered around the cane and it was too far away to get so I had to mime it the rest of the seven minute number! I was trying so hard not to laugh because I was right in the front row!
What’s a favorite theater moment?
After the pandemic, the first show we did was “The Little Mermaid.” I love taking our bows at the end of a show because it’s an exchange between the cast and audience. It’s like we’re thanking them for coming out and them thanking us as well. It’s a cool exchange, and I remember being in tears because we’d been away for two years and I missed the people and the work and was so happy to be back.
Is your boyfriend, also named Adam, in “Rocky”?
Rocky is the first show that we haven’t done together in ages, but we’ll both be doing “Cinderella” next month. It’s so great working with him, some people need their space but we love being able to work together and come home and share the highs and lows of the industry. If one of us is having a bad day or questioning why we’re in this crazy, competitive business, it’s nice to talk about it with someone who truly understands.
Tell me about “Rocky, The Musical.”
I didn’t know what to expect going into it because it’s such a crazy idea, but it’s a cool show. There are all the classic moments from the movie, drinking the eggs, running up the steps and a lot of Philly references built into the show. The way they move the set around to go from the apartment to the pet shop to the boxing ring, even the skating rink, is unbelievable. Our choreographer and director Richard Stafford is amazing, he combined the dancing with boxing moves like jabs and hooks, and it works really well. We have a fight coordinator too, Maleek Jackson, who has a boxing gym in Fishtown. He showed us how to properly throw the punches and use the speed bag, etc.
When did you get to Philly?
I came here to go to Temple, and after that I worked and bounced around a little before landing in Philly. I’ve been here consistently since 2018. I feel like a Philly guy now, I’ve lived and worked in all different areas, I know the spots to go and love it here.
Who was your first boy kiss?
Oh boy! Ian P., sophomore year of high school. It was after school and we were at a friend’s house. She left the room and I don’t know what came over me but I just went for it. It was like, I have to do this! And it was great! Obviously, I knew deep down that I was attracted to boys, but that was the first time it really hit home. I remember coming home that night and texting all my close friends, “I kissed a guy tonight, I’m not going to label myself, I don’t know what it is yet, I’m still trying to figure it out but I hope you’re cool with it” and everyone was, well most people.
A couple of months later my dad caught me with my first boyfriend; we were just cuddling, but still. Right after he had to drive me to dance class and I was dreading getting in the car but on the way home he said, “We don’t have to get into it, but I want you to know that I love you and support you. I just want you to make sure that you’re respectful of your mother and sister being in the house, and I’d say that no matter who you were with.” It took my mom a second to get there, we’re a Catholic, Italian family and though she was always cool with gay people, it was hard to process when it’s your son. Now she comes to every show!
You mentioned being bullied, what was that about?
Yeah, when I was younger, but I think once I figured myself out it made all the difference. When I’d go back home if I saw people who might have said something when I was younger, it was like, “Yeah, I’m gay, you have anything to say about it now?” People were more respectful after that.
And you look pretty butch these days which probably helps.
Me? I guess so, [laughing] until you hear me talk, then it’s a different story! It’s funny, for a while after the pandemic I worked at a restaurant and this girl left me her number on the receipt and I was like, “Did she friggin’ hear me talk at all? It’s not like I try to hide the way I sound when I’m working. Girl, get a clue!”
What was the most serious instance of bullying you dealt with?
I remember in 6th grade I had really bad acne, and one of my friends, Kira, gave me her makeup compact so I could cover it up. I went to gym class, forgot it was in my pocket and was changing when the compact fell out of my pocket in front of everyone. Of course it hit the floor and shattered with the makeup dust going everywhere. If I could have been anywhere else in the world in that moment… it was mortifying. Immediately I heard the snickers and slurs from all the guys standing there staring at me and the compact on the floor. It was horrible.
I’ve heard that surprisingly the dance world can be homophobic. People are told to butch it up for roles.
I haven’t found it to be homophobic. If anything I’ve found more straight people who are welcoming and kind here. Maybe when I was younger, 12 or 13 taking acting classes I was told that if I wanted to be cast in certain roles I’d have to be a boy. That in my personal life I could be whatever I wanted, but on stage, boys act like boys. It didn’t offend me back then but now I’m glad there’s more diversity and casting isn’t so black, white, male, or female, which is the way it should be. It’s boring to see the same types of people in the same roles in 2022. Look at the new Disney “Little Mermaid”!
And yet people are in a tizzy about it.
Which is so ridiculous! First of all, I don’t care what you grew up with, she’s a fictional character in a fictional story about a mermaid so she can be anything she wants. We did the show, and Diana in our cast was the first Asian American woman to play Ariel. She did it in the national tour before she joined us and said that she got a lot of negativity about it. It’s so wild that people are still of that mentality. It’s gross, that’s not what the world is, the world is made up of people of all colors, all sizes, and they need to be represented. Our cast had everything, Black, White, Asian,Trans, we had a really diverse cast which is how it should be.
One of the things I noticed on your resume under special skills was that you were aerial certified.
Yeah, I worked on the Royal Caribbean Cruise ship and it was incredible. They had a huge theater with full on cirque du soleil type equipment. They taught us how to do a lot of the aerial work as part of the show, it was strength training that I’d never experienced before! It’s a full body workout, scary but fun.
Were you single at the time?
[Laughing] Very much single, and very much misbehaved. I mean, you meet so many people, just within the crew there are about 1,000 people. Cast members, the bartenders, the sports staff folks, the hospitality people, and not counting the guests. They’re from all over the world, so yeah, I was 22 and I had fun.
Nice. So back to the present day, when you’re not in the theater, what do you like to do?
I like to work out; I’m in the gym pretty consistently, I still take dance classes when I can, and my boyfriend and I are gamers. Him mostly, he has a ton of game systems, the PS4, the Nintendo Switch, you name it. I still read, though I wish I had more time for it, and I just started teaching kids at the Walnut. I teach a youth musical theater class to 8 year olds, and it’s really fulfilling. I miss being that age, innocent without a care in the world. And I love to explore the city, go on adventures around town.
Any pets?
I grew up with dogs, I had a black lab named Coal who was so cute. Now my parents both have dogs, so I’m an uncle to them. I’m not really a cat person.
You can leave them for the lesbians. Three smells that are nostalgic for you?
My mom’s meatballs cooking on a Sunday morning, the smell of the gravy and the meatballs, the smell of sunscreen, which reminds me of the beach, and it’s not always pleasant, but the smell of New York, [laughing] that pungent city smell.
Thing you like most about yourself?
I like to think that I’m easy to talk to. I think because I was shy as a kid, once I broke out, I really learned to love speaking to people. I’d like to think that I make you feel comfortable in a conversation.
People tell me I need to stop…
Biting my nails.
What’s the worst pickup line you’ve heard?
Do people even use lines anymore? It’s just usually just, “Do you want to [makes a noise]?” or they just send a picture and you’re like, “Oh that’s chivalrous.” It can be blunt and ruthless. I’m more of a traditionalist.
Hidden talent?
I like to cook. Over the pandemic I was Facetiming with my mother to learn how she makes her dishes because she doesn’t use recipes. I did her meatballs and they came out great, so I think maybe I have the touch!
How did you and Adam meet?
We knew each other beforehand, but we got together when we both were in “Shrek” at the Walnut. He was Pinocchio and I was the Mad Hatter. We were in these ridiculous costumes falling in love.
So you’re telling me that you fell in love with a liar.
[Laughing] Yes, and when the show closed the pandemic hit and we figured that it was going to make or break us, and luckily, it’s been happy ever after!