Gerard Canonico – STUCK

By starrymag | July 9, 2019

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) What are the recent projects you are working on?

A) Currently Be More Chill on Broadway. I also play guitar and drums for various bands in Manhattan. Most notably The house band for Haswell Greens “imperial cities” and a touring Blink 182 tribute band called The Dude Ranch.

 

Q) Please tell us the premise for the film STUCK.

A) What happens when you have six individuals of different backgrounds, classes and ethnicities trapped in a dire situation (a stalled subway car). How do they react with each other? What happens when we let those prejudices and preconceived notions about each other go? What is it that we can discover about each other, but most importantly, how does it help us discover things inside ourselves that can help us grow? All of these questions and more can be answered in this film. It’s all done in the style of a musical. It actually feels more like a play with music though.

 

Q) How was your role originally described to you?

A) The breakdown for Caleb was a sort of creepy goth kid. A very questionable fellow. So, in my audition, I had black eyeliner, nail polish, long hair all in my face and all black clothing. Then, when I got to set, we ended up going in a way more wholesome route with his look, which made for a more interesting story in my opinion.

 

Q) Were you familiar with any of your costars before working with them on the movie?

A) Aside from their work professionally, no. I was very, very excited to be working alongside some legendary talent. I was also quite nervous. I needed to make a good impression and work my butt off. My director Michael Berry was an absolute dream come true in this situation. He guided me through every step with patience and grace. I couldn’t have been luckier to have him as my guide on set.

 

Q) What advice did director Michael Berry offer during filming that you took to heart? 

A) Wow, my last answer and this question sync up beautifully. [laughs] Michael offered me countless amounts of advice for any situation. But the main thing he taught me about being on camera as opposed to stage acting is that, if you’re thinking it, the camera is seeing it. On stage we need to project everything we do to the back of a house. Every emotion needs to be a bit larger than life (within moderation). On camera, you simply need to believe and THINK that what your saying is true and it will read as such. Something as small as an eyebrow raise will look enormous on a tight or medium shot on camera. Let me tell you, that is not as easy or simple as it sounds, especially when you work all day and maybe only shoot for two out of ten hours. It’s a lot to keep your brain focused so you’re ready for the task at hand whenever they request it.

 

Q) What kind of vocal/dance prep work went into shooting the movie?

A) I was actually a late addition to the cast. I was hired about a week before filming began. They had been rehearsing for about a month or something? I don’t actually know. My process was fast and furious. I auditioned on a Tuesday. Got called back on Wednesday. I was on set on Thursday. Started filming that following Monday or Tuesday I believe. So, I did as much prep as I could by myself even though we had some minimal blocking rehearsal leading up to day one of filming. Mostly for one of the sequences where we all have to be in the dark with smartphones navigating around each other. It truly wasn’t much prep at all. I suddenly had this amazing gig almost out of nowhere so I gave it my everything.

 

Q) What were some of your favorite performances in the film?

A) Amy Madigan makes me weep every time I watch her. Her whole story is tragic and beautifully told. I can’t help but feel for her the most!

 

Q) How did you shake off a long day of filming?

A) I tried to get as much sleep as possible. Sometimes I had to be on set from 7am or 8am until 10pm or 11pm at night.

 

Q) What were some memorable moments you had while filming?

A) I remember so many wonderful moments! A huge inspirational one for me though involved Giancarlo [Esposito]. One night after we had wrapped for the whole day (we had been there for probably 10+ hours), I saw Giancarlo giving essentially a master class of empowerment for young women. He spoke to them with such passion and even gave them a little tour of our set. After this man worked all day!!! That kind of commitment to this world and to people, that level of empathy, is what makes him such a good performer and such a good influencer.

 

Q) What do you hope viewers take away from watching STUCK?

A) I hope people walk away feeling empowered to have compassion for their “fellow man.” To be inspired to try and make connections. Say hi to the guy you pass on your way to work every day who’s out there hocking pretzels and hot dogs. Or the woman who gives you your coffee every morning. Maybe ask how she is once in a while instead of just shutting yourself out with air pods and sunglasses. A little bit goes a long way!

 

Q) You are currently on Broadway in the show Be More Chill. What does it mean for you to be performing on such an iconic platform?

A) It’s truly an honor. When we started this show back in 2015, we had no idea it was going to become this enormous thing. We certainly never thought Broadway (at that point at least). Now that it has taken its rightful place in musical theater history as this one of a kind show that beat the odds and made it to Broadway simply because the fans demanded it, it feels a bit overwhelming. None of us really asked for this type of responsibility or platform, but we are happy to represent the show and the themes within the show in our everyday lives to the best of our ability.

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

A) Social media and our fans are the very reason we are on Broadway with this show in the first place. It catapulted is to New York. It’s allowed us to actually have one on one interactions with the people who admire our work. I think it’s an incredible gift to have that kind of accessibility. Obviously, some people abuse it. We will always have to deal with trolls or people spewing uneducated nonsense about us because we are in the public eye. But that stuff is few and far between the actual fans we get to communicate with and experience through social media. The amount of fan art we get alone is truly astounding and SO impressive. The things that our fans can do with their talents truly blows me away. I’m honored they decide to share their talents with me in such a personal way!

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

A) THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. I do this work because I believe in telling stories. I believe in communicating messages through art and it’s because of my fans and supporters that I have an outlet to do that. So, thank you. I promise I will always serve whatever story I am telling and whatever message I am trying to get across with honesty, integrity and passion. I will never let you down.