When the Marriott Theatre wanted to attract the Phantom of the Opera himself to spend several months in Lincolnshire, it didn’t take long to come up with the perfect inducement.
Hire his wife.
Sometimes bring-the-spouse deals — which are more common than you might think in regional theater — involve compromise on the part of producers. Casting directors will sometimes take a second-tier husband, say, to get the wife they want. But that wasn’t even remotely applicable in the case of John Cudia, 37, and Kathy Voytko, 35, who star in the Marriott Theatre’s superb production of “Les Miserables” (Cudia plays Jean Valjean and Voytko plays Fantine).
It’s hard to say who has the more impressive roster of credits, or who is the most talented. But they’re surely cute together.
“I like watching Kathy go through the rehearsal process,” Cudia said, in a recent interview, hanging on to his spouse’s hand and staring at her, rather than the interviewer.
“I like watching her, her … “
“John,” interjected Voytko, “you can’t leave an ellipses dangling like that.”
Anyone who has been separated from his or her loved one will surely empathize with Voytko and Cudia’s dilemma. They’ve been apart for most of their four-year marriage. Cudia has spent the last two years playing the title role in the national touring company of “The Phantom of the Opera.” His final performance was Nov. 25 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago.
Meanwhile, Voytko (the better known of the pair in Chicago theater circles) has been going back and forth between Chicago and New York (they own a home in Bloomfield, N.J.). In Chicago, she recently appeared (with and without clothing) alongside Ana Gasteyer in Gary Griffin’s “Passion” at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. And in both New York and Chicago, she was the understudy to Stephanie J. Block in the title role of “The Pirate Queen.”
That job turned into something of an ordeal. Not only did the show have all kinds of problems in its gestation, but Block became ill on the very week that critics in New York were coming in to see the show. At one unforgettable press performance, Block danced off into the wings halfway through the first act, only for Voytko to dance out unannounced. In the same role.
“There was,” Voytko says judiciously of that show, “a lot of unrealized potential.”
The couple met on the “Phantom” tour. That long-running musical sparked many a similar match, Cudia says. “‘Phantom’ has fueled many a house, marriage and child.”
But in many ways, Voytko and Cudia have followed separate paths to theater success. Cudia stuck with the “Phantom” tour for the long haul — when you include a stint on Broadway, he has played the man in the mask more than a thousand times. That means a reasonably stable lifestyle, as long as you can stand the travel.
Meanwhile, Voytko has moved around more, taking on a lot of riskier new productions. Along with “Pirate Queen,” she appeared in “Nine” on Broadway and in Trevor Nunn’s revisionist revival of “Oklahoma.”
“Kathy has been part of a lot of original casts, ” Cudia says. “Opening nights. Tony Awards. Things like that. I’ve been very envious.”
“But you had the steady paycheck,” Voytko says.
Until May, at least, they now have a hit new production of a proven musical, their family dog, and each other. It’s not all fun and games — the role of Valjean is a bear to sing eight times a week. And Cudia says that Sundays are especially tough. “We have performances at 1 and 5,” he says. “It’s basically like doing one six-hour show. The weekends are incredibly difficult.”
Voytko’s role, Fantine, is easier on the pipes. But especially in Voytko’s hands, it’s also one of the emotional centers of the show.
“Really,” Voytko said, “I said to the people at the Marriott that I’d be happy to just be the second woman from the left, just so John and I could be together for a change.”
But the people who run the Marriott know how to double down.
‘LES MISERABLES’
Redemptive tale set during the student revolutions in 19th Century France (this description as published has been corrected in this text)
When: Through May 11
Where: Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire
Running time: 2 hours 45 mins.
Price: $45 at 847-634-0200 and www.marriotttheatre.com
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cjones5@tribune.com
See also
“Take a bow, Mr. and Mrs. / Stars of ‘Les Miserables’ share a lot, including a home address” On the Town section, Page 1
“Stepping back through ‘Les Mis'” and “Quick review,” On the Town section, Page 8
