Zack Colonna is currently in rehearsals for You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown at Olney Theatre Center where he is playing the title character. Recent credits include The Happy Elf at Adventure Theatre, The Brand New Kid at The Kennedy Center Theatre for Young Audiences, Junebug and The Reverend for Imagination Stage – and to spice it up a bit – Reefer Madness at The Studio Theatre’s 2nd Stage. In NYC you can see Zack performing with his improv troupe called The Boombox Kids.
What is your first memory of being on stage?
Zack Colonna
When I was in sixth grade my English teacher encouraged everyone to audition for the school musical- The Wizard of Oz. Coming from a family that has absolutely no experience with the theatre I was horribly unprepared for my audition and thank goodness they cast everyone that tried out! I was Munchkin #28 (made up number but it felt like there were at least 30 of us munchkins!). All I remember is seeing the older kids get up there to dance, sing, and make people laugh and I kept thinking I want to do that! This may have also been because, as a munchkin, I did a lot of hiding behind cardboard trees.
Having performed at Imagination Stage, Adventure Theatre, and The Kennedy Center for Young Audiences, what do enjoy the most about performing for young audiences?
Sam (Derek Manson) discovers he can throw a ball harder than he ever thought, as his friends Peter (Zack Colonna) and Charlie (Erika Rose) look on in awe in 'Looking for Roberto Clemente' at Imagination Stage. Photo by Scott Suchman.
When you get a school group in to see the show there is this pulsating energy from the kids, I’m guessing it’s because they couldn’t be more thrilled to be missing math class, but it is infectious. And nothing feels better than making an audience full of kids laugh! But even more so than the laughs it’s the kids who are truly moved by the performance. I tend to gravitate toward a lot of projects about underdogs, or overcoming some sort of adversary which I feel like are such important stories for young audiences to see. If I can make just one kid who sees my performance feel a little bit better about themselves, then I have accomplished my goal.
You are currently preparing for You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown at Olney Theatre Center. At some point in our lives we can identify with one of the Peanuts characters. Growing up – which one of the characters would you say you were most like?
I would definitely say Charlie Brown. Growing up I’ve always sort of felt like an underdog and I related a lot to his insecurities, but also his determination and hope for the future. He may not be the best at something, like baseball or jokes, but that never stops him from trying. He may fail here and there, but he gets right back up and goes after it again. Never giving up I could always relate to that sort of mentality. Still can!
You were in the Adventure Theatre and Montgomery College production Harry Connick Jr.’s musical The Happy Elf. What did you enjoy the most about that experience?
The cast of 'The Happy Elf.' Photo by Sanjay Suchak.
It was such a great experience all around it’s hard to pick just one thing that I enjoyed the most. From getting the chance to work with Tony Award-winning director John Rando and actor Michael Rupert, to Harry Connick Jr’s music, to playing a character that was completely opposite of myself.
I was playing a goth, punk teenager! Ha! But I think in the end the thing I took the most from the project was getting to work with the students from Montgomery College. The show had about eight professional actors and the current theatre students at the college filled out the ensemble and smaller roles, where we performed the show. Even most of the tech was done by students currently studying at the school. I was so impressed by how professional and mature these students were. I felt like I just graduated college and here I am performing alongside these students who are looking up to me and eagerly watching how we performed in rehearsals and shows. I felt like I needed to make sure I set a good example, and it made me grow up a little. Being looked up to not something I had really felt before.
After You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown what is next for you?
Zack Colonna as a Boombox Kid. Photo by Mihailo Milan Smiljanic.
Back up to New York City! I’m a part of a musical improv group, The Boombox Kids, that has shows bi-monthly, so I’ll be excited to get back into the swing of things with them. Other than that, auditioning for future projects and keeping mice out of my apartment. I have been back-and-forth between NYC and the DC area since graduating from George Washington University, so I think after Charlie Brown I will be setting up shop a little more in NYC. Trying to build some roots there, but I am sure I will back down to DC again. I just can’t resist the people and the theatres. There is not one other place I have been that is like the DC theatre community!
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Meet the cast of Olney Theatre Center’s You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown. And what a great cast it is!
Elliot Lanes has been a professional stage manager/sound designer/board op for over 20 years. Having recently relocated to Washington, DC from the New York City area after marrying his reviewing partner, Jennifer Perry, he has been so far privileged to work on productions at Theatre J, Synetic Family Theatre and Prince George's Community College. He also contributed designs for four shows in the 2011 Capital Fringe Festival, two of which garnered critical raves. Elliot continues to serve as resident stage manager for two NY-based theatre companies- the legendary Negro Ensemble Company and White Horse Theatre Company. He has been privileged to work with the likes of Liza Minnelli, Betty Buckley, Marilyn Maye, Charles Weldon, Seret Scott, Chuck Patterson, and Arthur French.
