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Sutton Fosterreceived her seventhTony Award nominationlast week — but this one was particularly special.
The actress, 47, who was honored for her star turn as librarian Marian Paroo oppositeHugh Jackmanin the Broadway revival ofThe Music Man, tells PEOPLE the nomination “was very meaningful to me.”
Though she’s already a two-time Tony Award winner (forThoroughly Modern Milliein 2002 and forAnything Goesin 2011), she says she was unsure of herself when it came toThe Music Man.
“It was a role that was a risk taking, and I honestly didn’t know if I’d be able to pull it off. I’m really proud of myself and proud of the company. It really means a lot,” she says.
Julieta Cervantes
After a long-awaited opening due totheater’s hiatusamid thecoronavirus pandemic, Foster says that the experience has been “a dream.”
“The best thing that’s happened out of this whole thing is that I’ve made a new friend, which you never anticipate,” she says, referring to her Tony-nominated costar Jackman, 53. “We always joke that after 40, you don’t really make new friends! He’s a dream and so kind and talented and is even more generous. He’s pretty fantastic. We’re having a really remarkable time — the whole company.”
She adds, “I think it’s a combination of coming back after two years, and you just don’t take one second for granted.”
Throughout the pandemic — during which Jackmanpreviously told PEOPLEhe rehearsed three to four times a week with choreographerWarren Carlyle— Foster “had faith that [theater] wouldn’t disappear forever,” she explains.
RELATED VIDEO: Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds & Anne Hathaway Support Hugh Jackman atThe Music ManOpening
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“I never in a million years thought that it would be non-existent. I just held on fast to my friends and my family [during COVID], but I also knew that theater is the backbone of New York City,” she says.
“What’s been amazing — especially right now with COVID — [is that] everyone has had to just rise to the occasion, and the company just celebrates every single person. We just take care of one another, and I think that’s what the last two years have taught us, too, is that we just take care of each other in a different way. Every single night… It’s been amazing.”
source: people.com
