[title subtitle=”WORDS Liesel Schmidt
IMAGES courtesy Chad Burris and Andy Henderson”][/title]
So often we hear stories of successful actors who unknowingly started their career not on the stage or screen, but in early childhood, their starring roles as the class clown the foreshadowing of the path they would eventually find themselves following. And the same is true for twenty-seven-year-old Fort Smith native Chad Burris, the disruption he posed in the classroom an indicator that his big personality was made for more. For Chad, “more” meant acting, and so his parents encouraged him to join the Young Actors Guild of Fort Smith when he was in the fourth grade. And while he might not have struck immediate success, his dedication and love of the craft led him to stay the course all throughout school and then into college, where he forged relationships with a professional theater in Little Rock.
“I’ve always been industrious,” says Chad, who is the only one of his siblings to have any interest in the performing arts. “Looking back, I can see that even the things that I was doing in Fort Smith have led me to where I am now, and it’s all part of my story of getting to where I am in my career. I didn’t let the fact that I was from a small town get in my way. I wrote to people and pursued things to get me where I wanted to go.”
And like most actors who walk the boards as the footlights shine up at them, he dreamed of making it to Broadway. Fortunately for the young thespian, his tireless pursuit of his dream led him to parts that eventually took him to his ultimate goal, though not without a great deal of rejection and challenges along the way. “I’ve had many callbacks for big opportunities that would have been life changing and exciting, had I landed the role, only to get a No,” Chad admits. “It’s challenging to remember that all the No’s are ultimately leading you to the perfect thing and to keep going and persevere. For every one Yes I’ve gotten, I probably get ten No’s; and trying to balance that and keep at it when it feels like you keep hitting a wall is difficult,” he goes on. “Still, I’ve been lucky to be part of a lot of really cool stuff. The hardest part is the industry in general. It’s over-saturated with people and trying to stand out and do what you need to do is difficult.”
Difficult though it may be, Chad is obviously doing something right, as over the course of his professional career, he has been in the cast of one national tour and six regional theater productions. His first big role was as Elder Cunningham in the national tour of The Book of Mormon, though he would consider being an original cast member of the theatrical adaptation of Cameron Crowe’s Almost Famous one of his proudest achievements. “I got to know Cameron Crowe really well because he also wrote the script to the musical and introducing him to my family and letting them into this world that’s kind of like so different from where we’re from is fun,” he says. “Hopefully that will help translate to other, bigger roles.” Not that he’s been twiddling his thumbs and uttering prayers to the theater gods under his breath while he waits for his ultimate, career-making role to come along. In fact, he’s landed himself smack where most actors dream of being: in the bright lights of Broadway. And he’s got a buddy along for the ride.
“I’m playing the role of Olaf in Disney’s Frozen, and I love playing him because of the combination of skills I have to use,” says Chad, who took the role in December 2019 and is currently contracted to be part of the open-ended production at St. James Theatre through mid-February. “Olaf is actually a puppet that’s connected to me, so that has definitely been a fun and challenging role to take on. Everyone loves it when he comes out, and he’s such a cultural icon at this point, so it’s been great to have that role,” he continues. “The puppet is attached to the front of me, and you can still see me, so it’s kind of like we’re doing the show together. It feels almost like you’re ‘assisting’ someone, like I’m helping him do the show, and we’re up there as a team. It’s something I’ve had to figure out as I go along.”
Something else he’s had to figure out as he goes along is where he fits best into the industry. “I love acting and being in plays, but love writing, as well. Long-term, I see myself writing and producing. I really want to create my own television series and do something that’s not been done, something that’s original and individual,” he says. And as far as his dream role for Broadway? Playing the character of Damian in Mean Girls the musical.
For now, though, he loves the uniqueness of playing Olaf, a role that, interestingly enough, links him to someone in the industry he greatly looks up to. “Josh Gad, who voiced the character of Olaf in the Disney film, is a big inspiration to me. He also played the original Elder Cunningham in The Book of Mormon, which I also played, so I have a very strong connection to him. Also, like him, I’m a big guy; and he was the first person that I saw who looked like me. He’s funny and talented, but he’s a bigger guy, and seeing someone who looks like something and being able to relate to them is important.”
Most important, however, is keeping sight of his dream and not letting the No’s he hears drown out the times he does hear a Yes. After all, every Yes is a step forward on a journey that has no straight, clear-cut path. Each role that he takes is a win for the little boy whose personality was too big to contain. And while he may face challenges throughout his career, the role of a determined dreamer will be the most important one he’ll ever play…And he’s clearly got that one down.
