Episode #3 Susannah Mars

Interviews

Oct 29

Welcome to Living A Vocal Life: A Podcast For Singers!

Welcome to the Living A Vocal Life Podcast, where I interview singers who have succeeded in creating a life in music. You’ll hear from vocalists of all genres, in different stages of their careers, including singers who’ve been on the Billboard charts and those who are teaching the next generation. What do they have in common? They're all performers with amazing stories to tell and experiences to share.

In our conversations, you’ll learn what inspired them to become a singer, the kinds of challenges they’ve encountered, and how they've overcome them. I'll also share what I've learned on my own journey as a singer and educator — practical tools and insights that will help you to live your best, most authentic vocal life.

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Musical theater singer-actress Susannah Mars performs onstage in a red dress.

My guest on this episode of the podcast is actress, singer, comedienne, Susannah Mars. She has appeared in over 100 productions and is the recipient of six Portland Drama Critics awards and two Portland Music Theatre Awards.

When I first saw Susannah perform in the mid 80s I was captivated by her ability to fully inhabit a role and her extraordinary voice. Years later she invited me to sing a duet in the holiday edition of her show “Mars On Life” at Artists Repertory Theater. Watching from the wings I was struck by how much love she has for audiences; she invites them into the space she’s created onstage and then makes them feel at home.

That same warmth and love extends to her offstage roles as a mother, podcast host for Artslandia, and Resident Artist and Music Events Specialist at Artists Rep. I always feel at home with her, and know you will too.

“What I hope for myself when I go into any audition, and what I hope for myself in my life, is I step into it and I can share love, and joy and be authentic in the moment.”

— Susannah Mars

Links:

You can find Susannah on her website, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The song from in episode is called People Watching and is from Call It Home; The Music of Richard Gray (used with permission.) To listen or download, go HERE.

Theme music for the Podcast was composed by John Smith. He edits all the podcast episodes too. (Thanks honey!)

Valerie: My guest on today's show is actress-singer comedian Susanna Mars. She has appeared in over 100 productions and is the recipient of six Portland drama critic Awards and two Portland music theater awards. When I first saw Susannah perform in the mid-80s, I was captivated by her ability to fully inhabit her role and her extraordinary voice. Years later, she invited me to sing a duet in the holiday edition of her show 'Mars On Life' at Artists Repertory Theatre. Watching from the wings, I was struck by how much love she has for audiences. She invites them into the space she's created on stage and then makes them feel at home. That same warmth and love extends to her offstage roles as a mother, podcast host for Artslandia, and resident artist and music events specialist at Artists Rep. I always feel at home with her and know you will too. Thank you, Susannah, for being on the podcast today.
Susannah: I'm so flattered. That's very kind what you said.
Valerie: Well, it's true. I really love your voice, and just the heartfelt way that you move through the world, I think, is lovely. So what's your first memory of singing?
Susannah: My first memory that pops right up is singing in kindergarten. I had a Japanese teacher, and there was a song called Haru Ga Kita. And I remember that I just — there was just a beauty about her the way she brought her culture into the classroom and we built little fishing villages, and we sang Haru Ga Kita.
Valerie: Beautiful. That is such a sweet memory.
Susannah: It is. Mrs. Anglin. It's funny how that name just comes out of nowhere.
Valerie: Well, when you're that age, there's a lot less in there to crowd it out for sure.
Your mom, Barbara, studied at Juilliard and sang opera, and your dad Kenneth Mars was an actor in Hollywood. And I read that his dad, your grandfather, was also a radio and television personality. So acting and music are both in your blood.
Susannah: Right. Well, his father was his stepfather. So while psychologically, it was in my universe, my grandfather Sonny — he wasn't my grandfather by blood, but my dad's mom was also a dancer. There were many show business bloodlines.
Valerie: Converging all in you. Was there a moment when you knew that you wanted to make music and theater your vocation?
Susannah: No, I don't think so. It was an interesting chain of events, and I'm still trying to unravel what really brought me to performing as a career. Because when I was a young person, my mom and dad had a fairly volatile relationship. And my mom and dad would split up, and they'd get back together and split up, and I really feel as an adult looking back that part of the reason I ended up in this work was so I could be closer physically to my father. Because if my mom moved out, I wanted to go to work with my dad. I remember from being very, very small, wanting just to go to work with my dad. And if that meant that I had to do what he did, I guess that's what I chose.
You know now looking back, of course, I think to myself, Wow what, you know all sorts of things lead you to feeling safe. And, you know as a parent, I know you understand also trying to create that safe space for your children so that they can really know that they can do anything they want that intrigues them. They don't have to do something in order that they feel safe. And I think that's highly likely why I ended up doing a performing career. But also, you know, it is a big part of my heart.
Valerie: Right. But when you were a little girl, it sounds like the priority was a little different. It was finding that safety through being with your dad. Is that right?
Susannah: Right. And then I knew if I were asking my dad for help working on a script or anything like that that I would have a way in to connect with him. And that was extremely important to me.
Valerie: Yeah. I get that. My dad was a doctor, so I just got sick all the time in order to connect with him. What about your mom? She studied at Juilliard. What happened with her career?
Susannah: Well, my mom and dad met on the road in the national tour of The Sound of Music with Florence Henderson. And I think my mother — also again getting kind of psychological — my mom didn't have a father, and my grandmother was very invested in my mother's career as a singer. My mom was an extremely talented young person. Was you know a child prodigy. Spoke a lot of languages. Every cell of her being is an artist. And I think she really wanted a family. And I can really relate to that as well.
Prior to meeting my father, she was singing with operas all over the country. She was, of course, living in New York and singing at various churches and synagogues, as many singers do to earn a living. And I think in that way she was finding joy in her music — although I probably should ask her about that. And when she found her way into the American musical theater world and then ended up on this national tour, I think... You know you get to a point in your young career, I guess maybe when you don't realize how hard this work is going to be. And I think she really wanted a family, and finding jobs and doing this work is very difficult. And I would say for her it probably was extremely difficult just to be constantly in a state of, What's happening? You know how it is — you don't know what jobs are doing.
And so I think my mom met my dad. He was absolutely delightful, wonderful, wonderful, funny man. But he takes up a lot of space in the room. And so I think when they met, I think they fell in love, and they got married on the road, and I think my mom thought you know I want to have a family and keep working. But the reality at that time, I think when I was born, was that was not very easy — especially if your husband is also very talented and driven to have a big career.
After they left the tour and got married, we lived in New York, and he got his first television series. And we moved out to California, and then my dad just started working. I mean, he did hundreds and hundreds of television shows. He was in The Producers with Mel Brooks. He was in Young Frankenstein. What's up, Doc. He was on Malcolm In The Middle, more recently. He's the voice of King Triton. He is the voice of Grandpa Dinosaur. He had a very successful career as a character actor.
Valerie: So for your mom especially, and in this time period where women were diminished in terms of their careers if the husband, the father, the provider, was doing as much as your dad was — the combination of that plus her own wanting to be grounded in family — she put her own music on hold?
Susannah: Yes, she did put a performance career on hold. Absolutely. But then also was teaching. I was in utero when my dad was going to be in Anything Goes on Broadway. I know music's been a part of my life since I was conceived. You know it was just 100 percent around me all the time. And so my mom was teaching lessons. I think a lot of the technique that I've used, and one of the reasons why I haven't been handicapped by that feeling of My head voice, my chest voice... all those technical things that I hear all the time singers talk about, is because I just heard healthy sounds coming from my mom.
Valerie: That's a wonderful thing. So how did your own career get started? I mean, it sounds like you started young enough where you almost don't remember except for this part about wanting to be close to your dad. But was there a moment when you kind of realized, Oh. This is the thing that I want to do. How did you move into making it your career?
Susannah: Well, I started working as an actor and in L.A. when I was 10. I did some commercials and stuff like that. And that was just fun. You know. Working in show business in California was great fun. Being on a set with other kid actors and... Also, you know the man who directed my first commercial was Howard Morris of Show of Shows fame. And so there is just a family of people that are just a blast to be around. And although I've seen show business change a lot, or I did when I lived in California, and even when my dad was still alive — things changed a lot, I think in terms of the familial sense of show business. But I worked as an actor from age 10 to about age 15. And then the competition got a little stiffer. You know, I did one line in Freaky Friday, the movie with Jodie Foster. And you know there was something like 14 callbacks. And you know, the pressure I was working with actors — kid actors who were becoming famous. And I feel that my dad was supportive — very supportive in that he was taking me to auditions and all this stuff. But emotionally, I felt as though I didn't know what I was doing, and I was fearful. So I quit.
And so then, after I quit, I finished high school, went to college, got a teaching credential, was a teacher in Los Angeles. And kind of simultaneously with being a teacher — you know, of course, I'm still involved show business. My father's having a huge career, and I see and do various things, and I always really am attracted to it. But one of his dear friends was a really wonderful musical theatre performer, and she told me about this class that was going on in L.A. called the American Center for Music Theater. And said there was an audition, and I thought, Well, that sounds like fun. And I never really... I'd sung in high school in the choir. But I'd never had a, you know, a solo. I sang in middle school also. But my last year a college in my sorority, they asked me if I would do a duet with this other woman in a talent show. And so I did. And I thought, Oh, I do. I really like to sing. And we did well — we won the talent show and all that. So then when I went back to L.A. and I was teaching, and then I took this musical theater class I thought, Gosh, you know I really — do like this. And also again, it just keeps coming back for me... I think about family that I've been similar to my mom, you know. Kind of looking for these connections to ground myself as you put it.
Valerie: Mm-hmm. That's an interesting trajectory. When I think of you — I mean the roles that you've played that I've heard you sing; Eva in Evita — and then you've done so many more: Golda in Fiddler On The Roof. Rose in Gypsy. Fanny in Funny Girl. Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd — I mean the list goes on and on and on I just... But it now makes sense to me why you really infuse those characters with not just the acting piece but the voice that they have. And I have kind of a question about that. When you have a role, and you're getting to know the character, every one of these characters that you've played has a different voice both literally and figuratively, and I'm really curious as to what your process is how you figure out what that voice is for each character.
Susannah: It's really interesting. Each character seems to come to me in a different way. I do a lot of back story research for myself. I look at the size of the character in comparison to other characters. What information they disseminate. What they don't tell. What they want, what they need. You know, very traditional acting attack. Then when I start to put music and voice to it, I often write all my lyrics down by hand. And I try to get a sense of the psychological... just the words themselves. Where the thought begins and ends. What they want from that.
And then I start to lay overtop the notes. You know the composer gives you a lot of information, where it is in the voice. How easy it is. How much sound you can make. In Next To Normal that was a great example for me of where I could place certain songs where people say there's a belt sound, you know it's a louder, bolder kind of voice — sometimes hooked up with anger or heightened emotions that you can feel almost like a roller coaster. Where the voice really is... where you're really putting it out there either dynamically, very strongly. And when it pulls back, and how that ebbs and flows. And then you know you can kind of connect the dots. You know well this song's — she is so ticked. This is almost yelling and screaming. And then she retreats, and she's in tears, and you know volume comes way down. Might be more or less of a potent sound and will come into a sound that's also maybe integrated with catching your breath, or tears, or trying to control tears.
Valerie: That is an incredible process that you go through. And I think you're right that the music does give you a lot of information, that the composer has left some breadcrumbs in terms of context and all of that. But there's also the character that you play. Do you change the quality of your voice — not just in that dynamic way that you were just talking about where the music is telling you whether you should be soft, or loud, or belt, or put a cry in it or all those different kinds of things — but actually find a timbre, a sound, that works for that particular character that is kind of overlays is the foundation for all the choices that you're making?
Susannah: I don't think so. I think that that underpinning is just my personal sound. Because I mean, with Sweeney Todd with Mrs. Lovitt, you know, that cockney accent — certain things impact the voice. So I guess the way that question is posed — I do the research for the voice, and there's sometimes a dialect. And also, where it is in my voice, it impacts my sound. But I don't think about that first. I kind of start to learn the music and get that emotional content. And I bet that my voice does change. And even when I listen to myself sometimes, you know, I can hear a different... You know I just did a big series of concerts all music of the 60s and 70s, and that's a real folk sound and all of a sudden I think, Wow, I really sound like Mary Travers. But it's like the content you know. It just makes your voice sound that way.
Valerie: Right. You're in the context of that era, and you have an audio snapshot in your mind of what that is, and it comes out. Is that kind of how it works for you?
Susannah: I think you're right. And I have a really good ear, and I think maybe sometimes some things happen without my even making it my business to make them happen.
Valerie: Right unconscious because yeah, you're just calling on what you've heard — what's in there. Overall, these years of doing what you've done.
So I want to kind of get back to your story in how you came to Portland actually. So when did you decide that it was time to leave L.A.?
Susannah: I met a man named Gary Johnson, who I started to date, and he lived in Portland. I had had other friends in Portland. I had made some trips up here. And Gary and I started dating long distance, and we fell in love... And you know at that point I had just started going back to singing and... I mean, I think I was on the very precipice of thinking, Oh, how could I get back to performing?
And so as Gary and my relationship started to deepen, I thought, Well, I could do theater in Portland. You know not realizing what it would mean to have a career in singing. I mean, that's just another whole world.
Valerie: Above and beyond what you were thinking. You just wanted to sing. Is that right?
Susannah: I thought, Well, I wonder if I can do something different, you know. And I guess maybe it feels even as I speak about it, it feels as though I had some idea about a regional theater kind of community. Not necessarily theater but living in another region where you could do shows. But I had no idea you know what that would be like because I'd always live places where people were making life a livelihood in show business.
Valerie: Right. The bigger cities. Well, when did you move here?
Susannah: 1988.
Valerie: Yeah. So that was a very different Portland than the one that people know today. That was pre-Portlandia. That was pre — you know the New York Times writer that moved here and started writing about Portland and everybody started moving here. It was a very — very different era.
Susannah: So you got married and then moved to Portland and then started doing shows.
Susannah: Yep. I the first show I did in Portland was at Sylvia's dinner theater.
Valerie: I remember Sylvia's!
Susannah: And it was Side by Side by Sondheim. Yep. And that was really fun, and I thought, Oh, this is cool. And needless to say when I moved here, after I was at Sylvia's, funny enough — Jimmy Leyden, who was the brother of Norman Leyden, who conducted for the Oregon Symphony — saw me in that show and recommended that Norman call me to audition for this group called the Leyden Singers.
Valerie: I remember the Leyden Singers, yes.
Susannah: And I was in the Leyden Singers for a while, and then Norman started to ask me to do some solos. So that was great. And then, I had an opportunity to do some solo gigs with the symphony.
So I was just getting these really great opportunities and then... Oh, that's right. And after Side by Side by Sondheim, I was asked to audition for a play at Rock Creek, and I met a director named Alana. Her name then was Alana Bethlip, but now it's Alana Byington. And I think because I had grown up in show business, I seemed very knowledgeable. It seemed as though probably I went to school in drama and had a voice education. But I didn't really have any of that. I just was, you know, street smart right.
Valerie: And you had absorbed so much from just being around it and your parents.
Susannah: Right. And then having some experience being a kid actor and kind of knowing a lot of stuff just by being around it as you said. And so then I did the Heidi Chronicles I played several roles in that play and later on Alana, and I are good friends. She said, You know, it might have been helpful if you'd told me you'd never done a play before. Why would you ever tell someone at an audition, Oh by the way — never done a play.
Valerie: No, probably wouldn't bring that up. Oh, my goodness.
Well, I think the listeners on the show are also wondering you know not only what your story is and how you got from point A to Point B, which is never linear is what I've discovered when I'm interviewing singers. Never linear. But I think it's also helpful. I mean, I know when I listen to shows, I want some practical advice too. So maybe this is a good point when we're talking about this beginning musical theater stagecraft that you were like going, Oh, I don't know what I'm doing — but I do. But I...
Exactly.
Auditioning. I think it's one of the most difficult things. And in fact, my sister is also an actress, and there's so much rejection. So I'm curious how you prepare, and then how do you handle rejection and is auditioning a skill that you can learn?
Susannah: I definitely think auditioning is a skill that you can learn. I think there are many aspects to the audition process that you can give yourself a parameter. You know, when you like to arrive. When you like to warm up. If you kind of sequester yourself before an audition. If you talk to people in the waiting room. There are a lot of things that are controllable.
The rejection piece that also is... You know you can certainly work on it. Sometimes it hurts more than other times. And I really feel that as a performing artist, it's so important that you find your own personal footing in your psychological life because I think a lot of rejection has other pieces.
There are things about rejection that are unique to you. And you need to find out — why do you want that job? I mean, it kind of goes back way back to why I even chose to do this. Oh, I wanted to be close to my father. Well, what if you're past that point in your life and you think, Well I don't need that anymore to be close to my father I'm a grown woman. My father's passed away. Gosh, do I want to keep performing?
You're just constantly asking yourself, Why am I doing this? Do I love this? And how to keep loving it. Because I know there have been auditions where I just thought, Wow, that was so much fun. You walk in. You connect. You sing something that comes... You are expressing yourself. You're communicating. They receive it. You feel that energy, and it's great. There are other times when I'm not feeling so hot, and my voice isn't doing exactly what I want it to do. It's a constant navigation I think of the mental game and the physical game of your voice and body as your instrument.
Valerie: The psychological piece, I think, is huge. It's huge. And it's never really ending either.
Susannah: Nope. Yeah. You know you think, Oh right when I get here I'll be able to go to an audition and not care. Quote unquote. Nope. It doesn't happen. I mean, I guess not care... What I hope for myself when I go into any audition, and what I hope for myself in my life, is I step into it, and I can share love, and joy and be authentic in the moment. And I think that's really good for young people to keep remembering. You know you don't have to blow the walls out at your first audition or at a general. You have to be yourself and show them who you are through your music and your body.
Valerie: So the more that you know about yourself, the more you're able to do that?
Susannah: I think that's true. I think it's true — the more you are good with yourself — here I am. You know — this is me. And it's kind of out of your hands after that. When you can just accept, there are all sorts of reasons why people hire or don't hire — many of which have zero to do with how well you expressed yourself in that moment, you know.
Valerie: Right. Yeah. That is so true. There are so many things that you can't control about the way they're seeing you, and what they're looking for, and the way they see the character, and how you fit that or don't fit that and... And all kinds of things. All you can do it seems like is just be there and do the best that you can and use the experience for yourself.
Susannah: A piece of the puzzle that I don't know if many people think about but, when you walk into that room, you're really showing them how you behave in a rehearsal room. And you're polite to the pianist, and you are kind, and there's an aura of openness. I think that you're giving them a taste of what it would be like to be in the room with you.
Valerie: Exactly. And that is a huge part of it is... I think a bigger piece than people realize is that you know you're going to be spending... All of this work is difficult and takes a lot of time, and there's long hours, and you're gonna be doing some stressful things with people. And if they get from you that you are easy to work with and fun to be around — that is like a big percentage, I think.
Susannah: Well, it's kind of interesting as a woman. While I always want to be open-hearted, and you have to be so vulnerable, be able to share parts of yourself that are scary to share. It's a fine line, I think, for women because being nice can be hard on you. You know it's that fine line of being real.
Valerie: I'm reading a book by Tara More M O H R right now called Playing Big. The book's about women playing small and why that happens. And then she has some really wonderful ways for you to figure out why you do what you do. And then she provides some antidotes. For instance, the inner critic — which is in a whole other conversation I'm sure we could talk about — that sabotages and knows just what to say at what moment to... to really impede whatever it is you're trying to do. And then she talks about the inner mentor who is yourself — your Wisest Self — maybe 20 years in the future who you could go to and talk to and say, What can I do in this situation?
But one of the things she talks about that I found really interesting was that dynamic that we were just speaking of where you want to be likable because, as humans, when we meet someone, we want to know if they're safe or if we need to fear them. Or if they're an ally or they're, you know, it could be a friend or a foe. And we make that decision pretty quickly depending on how... On their aspect on how they inhabit themselves and are in a room. But then the other piece is competence. And if you are a competent woman, that's important too. But in our culture, the balance between being approachable and nice and warm and that competence has to be sometimes just right. Because people are threatened by it. Which is so too bad. And I think that's changing. I think slowly, but surely that's changing. But I don't know. Does that make sense to you?
Susannah: Yes. Because often we're directed by men. And it's how you are in the room sharing ideas. Being open to other's ideas. Being strong about your own ideas. You know it's like we're you know... Men are coming from — not all men — I mean, there are just so many personalities. And the reasons why we hang on to our ideas or can't listen for some reason and being open enough to hear makes space. A lot of it, I think, has to do with the speed of things, slowing things down a little bit so that you can really take them in.
Valerie: Nice. Yeah. Yeah, that's good. And yeah, it's not just men either. Sometimes women are really also afraid of women who appear to them as being overconfident. And wow. Yes. The psychological piece is huge.
And there's another psychological moment that happens in the life of a singer and actress, which is stage fright. And I know that's something that people struggle with. I've struggled with it immensely. I think I have PTSD from my piano recital when I was about ten years old, and I completely choked. I couldn't remember any of the notes you know, and I cried. Oh, my God.
And anyway, so have you ever struggled with stage fright, and if you have what do you do to combat it?
Susannah: Well, again, it's similar. Getting into a practice for yourself when you're not scared — whether it's yoga, meditation, your vocalese — whatever it is you do to kind of give yourself that groundwork. So you think, Yeah, I know how to do this. Look I did this, this, this, I'm ready for this. It's really tough on I think performing artists because so much of what we do is on our own time and that's really difficult. Keeping a calendar in front of me really helps. Where I think, OK, that concerts two months out. So, where do I have to be off-book for that music? And you know, to try to keep those kinds of brass tacks items in some semblance of control always makes me feel safer.
Valerie: Me too. That's a huge part. If I feel like I'm well-prepared way in advance, then I can play around with the nuance of whatever the performance is about.
Susannah: Yeah, you really... I feel... Preparation is key for me. But sometimes even when I'm really prepared, I feel as though I get — I'm almost about to go on stage, and I think, I'm not prepared. Even if I'm the most prepared, you know? Even if I've done a roll before it's just — it's just scary.
Valerie: It is. And preparation doesn't guarantee that you won't feel that feeling in fact... So, sometimes I've been like, Oh, I'm good. I got this. And I step out on stage, and it's like, Oh... No, I don't. But usually, it's in the wings that it's the worst. And then when you get out there, and you just can start — that is helpful. Has your relationship to stage fright changed over your career?
Susannah: Oh, gosh has it... Well, there are so many things at one's fingertips to work on it, you know, including... There's anti-anxiety medicine. There's all sorts of things. There's tranquility teas there... You know, there are so many things to try. I'd say I'm always in a dance with varying degrees of fear. You know, which sometimes translates into stage fright. When I try to break things down into moment by moment, and when I get the most fearful sometimes, I'll just open a door somewhere where I can look outside at the world and see how little anyone really cares about what I'm doing.
Valerie: Nice. I get that. It's like...Oh yeah. Okay.
Susannah: You know people in the audience are probably thinking, What am I going to have after the show, and did my daughter call me?
Valerie: Yeah. I should have answered that e-mail and, Oh, I forgot to get milk on the way home from work. But also I think that audiences are — for the most part — on your side. They want you to succeed. That's what I try to remember too is that except for that two percent out there of people who are never satisfied with anything and no matter what you do, there's gonna be something wrong with it. We'll never change those people, but the people who are out there — the other 98 percent, are really wanting you to succeed.
And what I love about you're performing is that when you walk on stage, you exude... It's the perfect combination for me of that warmth, plus I know that you know what you're doing. And so I can relax. I can relax and not try to be doing it for you. And that's, that's a gift! I love that.
Susannah: Thank you. Yeah. It's a moment by moment thing. I think the more I can just peel away any moment other than the right now — the more I can just be right there. Oh — I'm scared right now. But the downbeat is gonna happen, and you are going to step out on it. I mean, you might not step out on that stage, but chances are you're gonna. And so just be where you are, when you are. But it's... it's a dance. It roller coasters — varying degrees for varying reasons. Again, same thing — when you're in continual touch with yourself about why you're doing things and those types of psychological issues, you can kind of keep in that authentic process of being with yourself.
Valerie: Mm-hmm. Like there's... Knowing why you're doing something helps you set intention, I think.
Susannah: Yeah, I mean, it feels like you know if there's a job, and I think I don't really care that much about it. I think, well,, maybe you should just do something else for a little while until you really want to do this again. You know. Who knows?
Valerie: Yeah. Well, wow. That's some great stuff about auditioning, and stage fright, and the inner game.
I'd like to switch channels here a little bit and talk about the other roles that you play in life because you have two daughters. And I think for a lot of people having a family and having a career are difficult to navigate. How have you been able to do that?
Susannah: Well, I have this husband who is so fantastic. I mean, it's not a perfect marriage, of course — there's no such thing. But same thing with marriages and your career, you're like, What? OK. Am I? What's happening? Are we happy? What's happening?
But one thing that he's always said that stuck with me is I want you to have a happy life. And that is unusual, I think when a person is interested and invested in my happiness and my success. And I remember even when I started working, and we didn't have kids for about five years into our marriage. And at that point, those five years were really dense for me with work, and all of a sudden, I was having a career. This was what I was going to do. And when I got pregnant, I remember thinking, Wow, how's this all going to pan out? But I was doing pops concerts with Norman Leyden. I did concerts up until I was seven months pregnant. We had the baby, and then I did a play immediately after I remember with my breast pump at the theater, and I kept saying to Gary, And how are we going to do this? He said, Well, we'll figure it out. We'll figure it out. And it was never like, We'll do it like this. Again, you're just stepping into this new reality, and luckily, I had a partner who was right there with me.
Valerie: Wow, that's really important. Incredibly important. Sounds like he's a good dad.
Susannah: He is a really good dad. He is... He's a great dad. The girls are wonderful women. Kate, my oldest, who I was breastfeeding during rehearsal during dialect coachings, she's 25. She lives in Oregon. She works for the Oregon Sport Authority. And she's just a wonderful person. We just love being together as a family — individually. We have our ups and downs, you know, as parents there are good times and not as good.
Then my younger daughter is at Boise State, and she is an incredible athlete. She's on a scholarship running for Boise State. And she just inspires me — very similar kind of career paths of performance. While one's athletic and one's artistic, they're very, very similar. In fact, we compare notes a lot about the mental game.
My dad... I remember my dad knew he was dying. He said, Having you girls was the best thing I ever did. And I would say the same with my girls and my marriage in that having this kind of family has enabled me to explore what it is to be human. And there's nothing more for you to know as an artist than to be able to know and share what it is to be human.
Valerie: I think that's what artists do. It's like we're the shamans of our time in a way where we go to these places that other people live, but they don't know really the depths maybe of it, or they're... they're not able to look at it in the same way that sometimes we're able to because that's our journey. That's what we love to do. And then we can bring back what we find and share it with audiences. This incredible human experience. And having family is a big part of that human experience. The stories that we tell about that are universal.
Susannah: And about connection and love. Which I think are pretty much it.
Valerie: Pretty much it. Say that's exactly true. Oh, Susanna, This is just lovely. I could talk with you all day.
Being an artist of any kind isn't easy, and I think that most of the singers listening to the show want to know how do you make ends meet? If you don't mind talking about the financial piece and how that works for you, I think it might be helpful for people to know.
Susannah: When I first started, I'm in the union. So I was doing plays when I was in the acting union. You know you do plays, and you have a certain contract which is a little more pay than what I have heard people get if they're you know not a member of the Union. But on the other hand, if you're a member of the Union, you can't do a job where you're not being paid a union wage and that sometimes limits you.
When I first came to town I was doing, you know commercials and voice-overs all the various things, and in Portland, at that time there was quite a lot of work. But, I mean, that's kind of all past. I guess I'll start now from today. You know what it's like. I do a lot of different things. A lot of actors I know teach that supplements their income. Most actors that I know have another job to supplement their income.
Now because my husband is a successful chiropractor, I would say there are very few years I would have made a living wage this whole time that I've been acting. You know these 30 years of being in theater. I've been a pivotal part of our income. But if I had had to take care of myself and my family, I would have absolutely had to have had another job. And when I first moved here, I was substitute teaching, and I could have probably continued to do that. But the problem was that I had to use my voice so much during the day that at night I was just tired, and that's just a sure-fire way to injure your voice. So now I do my podcast for art's land. I do concerts. I do shows. I do all sorts of performing related jobs to make a partial living. But I don't think I can honestly say that I'm making a living. I would be living a lot differently than I am.
Valerie: Right. I think people feel like if they're not able to make a living doing the art that they love that they're somehow failing? And what I want people to know is that that's not really true.
Susannah: If they say I'm going to make a living as a singer in Portland. Well, they are setting themselves up for failure — maybe. I know some singers in town who are doing six nights a week of gigs. And that's a different contract you know then I'm doing when I'm doing a play are varying different places where I work, you know, are different pay scales. So sometimes there been years when I have made a living quote-unquote. But you kind of want to make sure that you're setting a goal for yourself that's achievable, so you're not constantly feeling that you're not succeeding.
Valerie: Right. And so, I don't know I always talk to my students about how there's a couple of different measurement systems that are important to know about. There's the inner one, where you are an artist, and you are striving to just become better at your craft and deepen it. And then there's the outside world that, depending on where you live and what kind of work you want to do, you kind of have to know what the landscape is. And...
Susannah: Right. What's reality?
Valerie: What's the reality out there, and does it fit with actually how you want to live your life? Because you could be Amanda Palmer and couch surf for you know however long she did, and then you know, live completely by asking people for money on Patreon or whatever. You know Kickstarter or whatever. But if you... if you want a different kind of life than that, how is that going to look, and how is it going to work.
And I don't know my son sometimes says, Mom, you're... you're a dream crusher. I'm like, No, no! I want you to pursue your dreams. And I think it's important that whatever it is that makes you feel passionate about getting up in the morning that you do it, you know. That you continue to do it. But I think there's also this part of you that has to kind of protect that artist's side and be smart about what it is that you want to do and whether it's achievable so that you know that you're not... That success can look different depending on who you are and the time period you're in. And where you're at in your career.
Susannah: Yeah. And it's all flexible. It's all this kind of ongoing continued examination of where you are. Okay, so... I need to make this much to make my rent. I need this. I need that. I'm taking voice lessons. I'm taking acting classes. How do I balance it out? And am I living in an area in which I can really make the kind of money I need to make to make ends meet?
Valerie: Right. Which is another way that Portland's really changed, right? When we were starting out in the late 70s early 80s, rent was super cheap, and that made it possible to have a part-time day job cleaning houses or serving coffee or whatever. And it's a different story now for sure.
So last question. If you could go back in time and speak to a younger version of yourself. What would you say to her?
Susannah: What I say to her... Well, I'd put her on my lap, and I'd put my arms around her and say you're ENOUGH.
Valerie: Love that.
Susannah: That's it.
Valerie: That's it.
Susannah: That's it.
Valerie: That's it right there. Now I'm all verklempt. That's the great thing about not doing video podcasting is that you can't see the mascara like... it's all messed up.
Susannah: It's so funny how life is just full of complex things, and then you realize how simple it is.
Valerie: Yes, I agree. OK. So actually I lied. There's two more quick questions. What's next for you?
Susannah: I'm helping Hotel Deluxe develop a supper club. And Meredith Kay Clark and I did a New Year's show there, and we're going to continue to do that this year. I'm doing some touring with Lee Lebsack from L.A. and Johnny Rogers with a concert called In Perfect Harmony.
There's also a potential that I'm gonna do some singing with the State Department this year that just kind of came up as a potential but that's out there —who knows? And I'm also... I've been working on a show about life with my parents, and I'm going to continue to work on that. Artists Rep has given me a lot of support on it. I got a Regional Arts and Culture Council grant a while back for that as well. And Jonathan Walters at Hand-to-Mouth has been working with me, and we'll see where that leads.
Valerie: Oh, those are all great things. You've got a full plate, honey!
Susannah: I know it's funny because I just came off about five and a half months of work work work and I thought I have a break. I'm so excited to have a break. And just kind of as I said earlier just do some of that examination what do I really want to do now?
Valerie: Mm-hmm. Is there anything that you haven't done that is still out there that you kind of want to head towards at some point. I mean, it sounds like the play about your parents would be one of those kinds of things.
Susannah: For me, I really enjoy interviewing people. I love the podcast. I don't know how that could grow or who I would be doing that for or with. But I really enjoy talking about making art because the process that we go through, I think, is so healing and beneficial for all people.
Valerie: I agree. You're only my second interview, but I am so hooked.
Susannah: Yeah, you're gonna love it. It's really wonderful talking to you. Thank you so much.
Valerie: So where can people find you online?
Susannah: SusannahMars.com. Artists Repertory Theatre too.
Valerie: Thank you so much, Susannah, for your time today and for all your thoughtful words. I really am looking forward to seeing you again in another production soon and maybe for a cup of coffee someday.
Susannah: I would love that! Let's do it.