“I've Been Manifesting This For Years”: Laura Marano On Her New York Stage Debut And Lessons From "Austin & Ally"

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For Laura Marano, making her New York stage debut feels like a "pinch-me" moment.

After growing up performing in her mom's children's theater, starring on Disney Channel's Austin & Ally, and manifesting Broadway dreams since she was a kid, Laura is stepping onto the New York stage as Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

I caught up with Laura to talk about making that dream a reality, the connection between Logainne and Ally Dawson, and what this experience has taught her.

Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Your career began in film and television, but was live theater always something you hoped to do?

Laura: Absolutely. In fact, my mom owned a children's theater that I grew up in. Both my sister and I fell in love with acting because of it. The first play I ever saw was You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown at my mom's theater, and my sister was in it.

I did plays all throughout my childhood — even while I was on Austin & Ally, I was still helping out in my mom's theater. I did musicals in middle school, like playing Miss Hannigan in Annie and Rizzo in Grease. I actually wasn't able to do my high school musical because I was doing Austin & Ally at the time.

I remember becoming obsessed with Rent when I was only 8 years old, which is kind of wild when you think about it. I first fell in love with the movie, and then I got to see it onstage, which was so special. Maureen is one of my dream roles, and it's a show that's really inspired me.

So I have definitely been manifesting this for years and years. The fact that I finally get to achieve this goal and make this dream come true means so much to me.

You're making your New York stage debut in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. What made this feel like the right project for your debut?

Laura: It's such a fun, comedic show. We live in a time that is so chaotic and filled with so much darkness. I am definitely being drawn to projects that have light, and comedies are some of my favorite things to do. The fact that the heart of this musical is its comedic beats was exciting for me. 

It all happened so fast. My team knew that I was dying to do theater, especially in the comedy and musical space. I found out I got the part on a Friday. I went to a bachelorette weekend in Temecula that weekend, flew to NYC on Tuesday, and rehearsals started that Wednesday.

Everyone is so talented and so supportive, and I'm beyond grateful. Autumn [Best], who previously played Logainne, was a beautiful guiding light during rehearsals. 

I'm pinching myself still. I'm like, how is this real? And I get to live in New York, which is amazing.

You've been spending a lot of time in New York for the show. What's something about city life you've fallen in love with?

Laura: My first month here was special because I stayed with family in the Bronx before moving closer to the city. I loved spending that time with them, and I visit them on my days off.

Whenever I'm walking to the theater, I just take everything in. It feels really special to be here right now. Being here when the Knicks won was so incredible — I went out that night with some members of the cast and crew, and actually ran into Josh Gad, who I adore. I was thinking, "This feels so New York."

I can't even explain the feeling of my heart bursting in that exact moment. 

Has anything surprised you about the physical or mental stamina that theater requires?

Laura: I'm definitely still finding it out. Last week, we had 11 shows in a row, and honestly, I wasn't sure I could do it. That's a lot for anyone. It was funny because everyone was saying, "We haven't even done 11 shows in a row," and for me and Fernell [Hogan], it was our very first week on the show. Being able to say I did that felt incredible.

One thing I've learned over the years — whether it was on Disney Channel or later when I went on my first tour — is that you have to treat your voice differently every single day. Sometimes your voice lets you push a little more, and other days you have to be gentler with it.

It's a muscle, and that really clicked for me when I went on my first tour. I've carried that mindset into this experience, and everyone has been so helpful. Our music director, Liz [Doran], has been wonderful.

There are definitely physical and mental demands, and I'm trying to balance both. I'm approaching it the same way an athlete approaches their sport.

Is there a scene or moment with Logainne that you look forward to every performance?

Laura: I'm always excited to do her song "Woe Is Me" because it's when the audience gets to know her better. Throughout the show, you can tell she's anxious, but during that song, you start to understand why she is the way she is. I love getting to share that side of her.

Then there's also her rant. I'm nervous to do it every show because I love making my life hard (laughs), and I've been changing the rants up pretty often. This is my second week, and I've already changed it three times. I did one specific for Pride. I'm doing one that's specific to the World Cup right now. 

The rant is really fun to write, but saying everything with Logainne's lisp has been a journey, and probably one of the biggest challenges.

I want to throw it back to Austin & Ally for a second. Ally's journey was all about overcoming stage fright and finding confidence. Is there anything you learned from playing Ally that prepared you for this stage of your career?

Laura: That's such a great question. From a character standpoint, I actually think Ally and Logainne exist in a very similar universe. I think Logainne has more confidence than Ally does, but they definitely share the same anxiety. Ally and Logainne are very similar in that they both have this ethical conduct and believe in standing up for others. I always played Ally with that intent. 

From a technical standpoint, I had to start learning how to take care of my voice when I was doing Austin & Ally. You're working on a television show, which is 10 to 12 hours a day. We were also doing recording sessions, press, and promo.

You really learn how to take care of your voice because you have to. That whole mentality has traveled with me, and it started on that show for sure.

Is there a particular Austin & Ally performance that you look back on most fondly?

Laura: It has to be "Don't Look Down." That was my first real recording session. Before that, I'd recorded demos of my own music, and I thought recording a song meant you sang it through twice and you were done. That's definitely not how it works.

I remember feeling so proud of the vocal I did on it. It was my first real performance on the show, and I had so much fun. It was great to do it with Ross [Lynch], too. He's such an amazing performer, and he was so giving. 

The song "Finally Me" also has a special place in my heart, especially since I co-wrote it — but "Don't Look Down" is definitely my favorite performance from Austin & Ally.

I would love to sing it again live. I think I could, but I'd have to warm up pretty well!

Now that you've made your New York stage debut, what has this experience taught you about yourself?

Laura: When I went on my first tour, I remember thinking, "I'm going to find out if I actually love performing." I'd always loved songwriting, and I enjoyed performing, but you don't really know until you're out there doing it every night. Then I finished that tour and realized, "Wait, I'm obsessed with this."

This experience has been very similar. I've been telling my team for years that I wanted to do a musical, but until you're actually doing it, you don't know if you're going to love it the way you imagined.

Of course, there's been a learning curve. There have been adjustments and challenges, but every night I step onstage and hear the audience, it confirms that this is something I genuinely love.

It's made me realize I want to do more musicals. I want to do more stage musicals. I want to do a movie musical.

Sign me up! I'm on the musical train. Get me going. I'm ready.

Catch Laura in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at New World Stages, until September 6.

Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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