Few people can truly be called a musical theatre legend. But with an illustrious career over 40 years as an actress and director adorned with Tony and Olivier Awards, Maria Friedman certainly falls into this category.
Hot on the heels of her celebrated run as director of Merrily We Roll Along on Broadway, Friedman is putting her acting shoes back on, this time on the London stage.
She's playing Kimberly in Kimberly Akimbo at Hampstead Theatre, a musical which she describes as "really complex, beautiful show with a wonderful message".
For those unfamiliar with the show, Kimberly Levaco is an ordinary teenage girl, except for one thing: she's got a degenerative illness that causes her to age four to five times as quickly as the average person.
Kimberly Akimbo follows her life in New Jersey developing crushes, fighting with her family and getting up to mischief, all with the looming knowledge that her time is limited. It's thought-provoking, it's hilarious, it's raw and, above all, it's life-affirming.
Speaking exclusively to Radio Times, Maria Friedman described her reaction upon being offered the part of Kimberly Levaco: "I literally just said yes the second I heard I was offered it.
"There aren't many great parts for people of my age- vocally challenging, physically challenging emotionally challenging. I'm always looking to grow and I'm not ready to give up on developing as a performer."
Of course, playing a character 50 years younger than you is a unique task, one which Friedman tackled with inspiration from her fellow cast members: "Some of (the cast) are 40 years younger than me. So, I'm surrounded by these sprite-like spirits and they are just wonderful, positive, open souls. I was definitely infected by all my cast.
"I've always kept in touch with that part of myself being an actor and a director. You very much need to be in touch with the child in you at all times. So, it wasn't a struggle."
Another part of what made this process so seamless was Kimberly Levaco herself. Maria quickly fell in love with the compelling and hilarious character of Kim, describing her as "funny and she's fierce, and she's naughty and she's playful".
"She's got wisdom, and she's got insight, but she's still just a little girl. But she's had to deal with more in her 16 years than most people do in 90."
Friedman also sees a lot of herself in the character of Kimberly. "I think she's burdened with a lot of responsibility, and I certainly had a lot of responsibility when I was growing up. But also, she has a life force and a determination about living in the present. And it's something that all my family have always said that I am guilty of is being very present and not necessarily looking at cause and consequence."
"As I'm a lot older now, I'm very aware that time is precious and you do have to live now. And that's the bit that really connected me with Kim is the, the sense of not sweating the small stuff; getting up, just getting on and living."
The compelling character of Kimberly is testament to the strength of writing in Kimberly Akimbo, which won five Tony awards, including best musical, best book of a musical and best original score, in 2023.
The London cast of Kimberly Akimbo worked closely with book and lyrics writer David Lindsay-Abaire and composer Jeanine Tesori, with Friedman saying: "We had Jeanine and David in the rehearsal room with us and I think they've done some work since then. So, it feels fresh and new and I think great writers leave room for invention.
"Not in terms of reinvention, just reinterpretation- like Sondheim or Shakespeare. They're done and done and done and done by different people who have a new slant on it, and it's a testament of great writing that allows room for a director and the cast to breathe in their spirits and their response to the story."
And Friedman would know. The theatre veteran is widely regarded as one of the world's leading interpreters of Sondheim, and is just off the back of a very successful run directing Merrily We Roll Along; a musical that she describes as having a similar message to Kimberly Akimbo: "Musicals, when they are as important as Merrily in terms of offering a wonderful little bit of a life lesson (and the same with Kimberly), will move the dial. They shift the dial a little bit and make us feel less alone. And anything that does that has to be good."
It's clear that throughout her distinguished career, Friedman has never lost sight of the magic of the world of theatre: "It gave me a lot – it gave me my life. My entire life. I have children because of the people I met in that world. It's just given me everything. Being allowed to work on stories, in stories, with stories. I'm the luckiest person – I really am the luckiest person ever- to have spent my life doing that!"
Another thing that has remained constant throughout Friedman's career is her tenacious optimism and proactive mindset. She says, "Don't keep worrying about what if, what if. Get on with now and make sure that those moments matter. Relationships matter. The things you want to do in life matter and go and do them. Go and live them. Be with the people you want to be with."
It's easy to see the similarities between Maria Friedman and Kimberly Levaco's approaches to life. When describing Kim, Friedman says: "Kim goes through everybody and teaches them something. Teaches them, just shines a little mirror up at them in order for them to accept themselves. Not to judge themselves or to be angry with themselves or angry with somebody else.
"Life's tough. So you find the good bits. Find the good bits. Find those little cracks in what sometimes is difficult and swim in them and spread joy, not pain."
Kimberly Akimbo is running at Hampstead Theatre until 7 November.
Buy Kimberly Akimbo tickets at London Theatre Direct
Check out our review of Kimberly Akimbo.
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