Perhaps the marking of a great stage actor is that when you meet them in real life, it takes you a second or two to realize they’re the same person you saw on stage just a few nights before. Such was the case with Laiona Michelle who as Nanna in Amazing Grace rips your heart out of your chest as she conveys an entire history of suffering in a few scenes, and who, out of character had an endlessly cheery, sunny demeanor. Onstage, she seems to age far beyond her years as she plays the world weary Nanna with equal parts wisdom and illusion. As we met for an afternoon drink at a Midtown café to talk about her career and her hopes for Grace, she eloquently discussed how much of herself she actually brought to the character, as well as talking about her many dream projects some of which include Sondheim and a certain HBO television series.

You’ve been involved with the show since the very beginning, can you talk about the road to Broadway?

It’s been a very long road, six years! I’ve been involved with the show from the very first invited reading, it was a pretty big script at the time, it was really epic (laughs) they told John Newton’s entire life story.

You’re making your Broadway debut and you’re also originating a part...

It can not get any better than that, to be a principal on Broadway, originating a role, on such an important piece of history. It was like everything on my checklist when I thought about how I wanted to come to Broadway, and I’ve been a regional theatre girl all my life. My agent called me to tell me they were making the offer and started talking about the contract and numbers, so I said “wait a minute, slow down”, he said “you’re going to Broadway”, and I said “I’ll have to call you back, because I have to get my hallelujah dance in”. I hung up the phone, fell on my knees and thanked god, because this is the perfect role for me to sink my teeth into.

Can you talk about your involvement in helping create Nanna?

The table and the creative process have been very open, they’ve allowed me to speak my opinions and help develop this character. Most shows that I do, I’m coming in and they’re looking for a specific type because someone’s already put their stamp on it, but this is the first time I’ve walked into a show and been asked to bring what I have to this. I was able to bring in the roots of my grandmothers to this show, one of them worked as a maid the majority of her life, and the other who was in the service of missionary work. So I infused both of those women, who are my everything, into the character. One of them passed on, but I did over twenty interviews with my other grandmother, in which she carefully talked about her experiences.

Being from a completely different generation, what things surprised you the most about your grandmother’s revelations?

My grandmother now lives in a house in Lexington, Kentucky where she worked for a white woman. She took care of all her children and looked after her in old age, this woman wasn’t the kindest person, but when she passed away she passed her home to my grandmother. So it’s a beautiful house that she was blessed with, this showed me that no matter what you’re going through in life always choose kindness cause there’s a payoff to that. When she told me that story, it was a great gift, because my grandmother lived with very small means all her life, and now she has a home where she can celebrate with her grandchildren. It’s the gift that keeps on giving. My grandmother taught me about choices and consequences, about thinking of what you’re gonna say before you even say it. Not every battle is worth fighting.

Which is basically what Amazing Grace is all about…

Yes!

Before taking on the show did you have any idea about the backstory?

No, I sang this song in church so many times and now the song has taken on such a deeper meaning for me. To know its roots and how it was created. I did not know John Newton was a slave trader and that he’d been enslaved himself. Our writer Christopher Smith, used to work as a police officer, and in his younger years he lived as an atheist, so as he retired and was browsing through the library he came upon a book about Newton. It was as if the book popped up to him, the story came to him and now he’s written this epic story which is now on Broadway. He’s also no longer an atheist. How amazing is that? There are so many wonderful things attached to this story, there are so many Broadway debuts here, but what’s most amazing is you realize every night, how many lives you’re touching within two hours. People always open their hearts to me and I feel so privileged listening to their stories. People tell me how much they needed the show the day they saw it.

Your mother ran the Choir at Holy Temple of Church of God in Christ in Springfield, can you talk about the relationship that exists between church music and becoming interested in musical theatre?

The one thing I learned about singing in the choir is that there’s a part of you that forgets about “performance”, you surrender yourself to praise. I learned as a very young child to surrender myself to worship, but throughout the years and the training, the muscle of being a vocalist developed, so now performing a piece like this where I can sing a song like “Daybreak”, I’m able to release whatever the voice is giving and remember my training. I surrender to the story and the moments. There’s such a liberation in surrendering yourself to the moment and the art. Even when I’ve done racier pieces likes The Book of Mormon, I perform for God and that helps keep my performances fresh and open.

You jumped ahead to one of my questions…

Ooh (laughs)

You were in the national tour of The Book of Mormon which is a religious satire, and now you’re in Amazing Grace which can be considered a faith-based musical. One is completely irreverent, the other is more serious in how it discusses religion. Yet I feel that both can be enjoyed equally by believers and non-believers because they make their points so intelligently, essentially they both remind us to be kind to others which is the basis of most religions. Did you find any similarities between them?

Oh my god, I struggled with it, absolutely! As an artist when I was younger I used to say “I won’t do this, I won’t do that, I won’t do nudity...” but you don’t know what your lines are until you’re faced with them. I read the script of Mormon and when I looked at those words on the page I thought “oh no, can’t do this!”, but then my agent asked me to go see it. I was so deeply moved by the absurdism (laughs) and I understood it, I got it, I found it refreshing, brilliant, funny and heartbreaking so I knew I had to be a part of it. That was the lesson there, don’t draw your lines until you have to really draw your lines. I was so grateful to be in that show.

Amazing Grace is set so close to the audience that it reminded me of church, was this always the case? If not, have people who’ve seen it in New York reacted differently to it than when you did it in Chicago?

Actually when we were at the Bank of America Theatre in Chicago it was very big, because it’s a very large theatre and the Nederlander in New York is actually one of the smallest Broadway houses which lends itself to more intimacy with the audience. You have very high ceilings, which make the show very tall, but I feel that being so close to the audience makes the show more powerful, because it’s so epic but it’s also very intimate and personal. Sometimes I can literally feel the audience breathing with me and I’d never felt that before doing any piece of art. We take the ride together.

Is that scary?

It is scary, but it’s also very exciting.

I was not expecting people to become so involved while watching the show and by the time everyone in the audience got up to sing “Amazing Grace” I had goosebumps!

You know what I’ve learned about this show? That feelings and emotions are contagious. When we do that song I’m holding hands with two of my cast members and all of a sudden I can feel their energy and it takes over! I think that starts with the audience, it’s electric!

You played Dinah Washington onstage as well, as an actor do you approach playing a real life person the same you would a fictitious character like Nanna?

Not at all, playing Dinah I had a great thrill of immersing myself in all of her music and reading her biographies, and inviting her in to use me as a vessel so to speak, so there was a great responsibility with that. Playing Nanna I kinda feel like the shoes fit just right for me, because I know exactly who she is, I identify with her, I get her and my spirit just rests with this character. And I don’t know if I’ll ever get this kind of experience again where I feel something both so comfortably and uncomfortably.

You’ve paid your acting dues by already doing Law and Order and Criminal Intent...

And I just did Bryan Cranston’s Sneaky Pete! (Laughs)

That’s wonderful. I read that you were interesting in doing more TV as well, what are some of your dream projects?

My current dream role is to be on Game of Thrones (laughs) and I hope they’re listening! I wanna be a major player on that show and I could write my whole storyline you know, if they need help. When I was a little girl I really wanted to be on The Cosby Show, I really wanted to be Vanessa! (Laughs)

What about musical theatre dream roles?

Just about everything...when I first listened to Barbra Streisand doing Funny Girl I wanted to be that girl. It’s always been the roles that have been so far away from me, you know things like Gypsy, roles that I could never play because I’m not quite right for those roles. But I always thought outside of the box and I think now theatre is different and there are roles opening up for women like me, roles that aren’t written for “a black woman” but just for “a woman” that can do them. I want to see more of those shows and I want to get those roles.

Even though Amazing Grace takes place more than two hundred years ago, it’s a show that speak about today, since we’re still seeing racial conflicts all over the world and especially in America. I wasn’t expecting that at all, I thought I was just in for an entertaining epic musical!

I’m so glad you said that! During one of our final rehearsals with director Gabriel Barre, he talked to us about how we’re living in complicated times, there’s so many changes that are coming forward, and we have to remember, gay marriage has happened, the Confederate flag was taken down, the lives of the nine people that were taken in South Carolina...don’t be afraid to breathe all of these things that are happening in the world today. Breathe it all in, don’t play that, but allow it to be part of your soul when you’re onstage, because even though this is a period piece, it’s so relevant. I’m so happy you said that because I feel people are happy to have a show like Amazing Grace right now. It’s not dated, it’s so necessary and current and perfect for our times.

Amazing Grace is now running. For tickets and more click here.