She is playing, arguably, the most beloved character in television history, but Thea Brooks was not on intimate terms with Lucy Ricardo when she was cast in I Love Lucy Live on Stage. In fact, growing up in rural Vermont with hippie-esque parents, television was considered intellectual cotton candy. "I've been watching more television over the past few years, and it's hard," she said, "because I still have this voice in my head saying this is going to rot your brain."
But when Brooks did get cast in I Love Lucy Live on Stage, arriving at the Curran Theatre on Nov. 11 as part of a national tour, the producers sent her a gift package of 190 episodes that make up the entire six-season run. "I'm still working my way through them," she admitted in a phone call from Vermont during a break in the tour. But as for the two episodes that provide the core of the Lucy Live experience, she said, "I've watched them over and over ad nauseam, probably at least a hundred times if not more."
Brooks, whose varied resume ranges from series TV to experimental theater to musical comedy to a dark alt-rock album, was able to develop her own system of learning Lucy-isms that generations of fans know so well. "One of my favorite things to do was to place my iPad against a mirror facing me so I could watch the episode and then simulate it in the mirror," she said. "Once we got it up on its feet, there were things that the director wanted me to do, and in my naturally rebellious nature, I'd say I have to find what I find humorous or it will never translate. But Rick Sparks is just one of those warm and wonderful people, and he actually gave me a ton of leeway."
The concept behind the production is to treat the theater audience as if it were a television studio audience in 1953 watching as the I Love Lucy episodes were filmed. A host explains how the process will evolve, and there are breaks for scene and costume changes, pickup shots, bloopers, and advertising jingles. Live musicians replicate the Ricky Ricardo Orchestra at the fictional Tropicana nightclub, where some of the scenes take place, although most of the action unfolds in a meticulous recreation of the Ricardos' iconic apartment.
The two episodes being used in the production are The Benefit and Lucy Has Her Eyes Examined, both of which focus on Lucy's persistently unsuccessful efforts to join her husband in show business. Lucy Live was born in 2011, and following extended runs in Los Angeles and Chicago, began a national tour last year. After a summer hiatus, a mostly new cast took over in September, with Brooks as Lucy, Euriamis Losada as Ricky, Lori Hammel as Ethel Mertz, and tour holdover Kevin Remington as Fred Mertz �" the roles created by Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley.
Learning about Lucy Ricardo, for Brooks, also meant learning about Lucille Ball. "I do feel a deep connection with her in terms of her comedy, and I love broad slapstick stylings," she said. "I think the real-life relationship between Lucy and Desi is fascinating, but I'm really not supposed to go into that very much."
While the producers of Lucy Live have rights to the series' scripts and their characters, the rights to the personae of the actors who played them are not part of the package, and their names are never mentioned in the stage production. "But there are certain moments that we built in when they're not playing scenes," Brooks said. "Like there is a moment when I see Desi talking with one of the other girls on the set. They're tiny moments that nobody's supposed to know about, but you might catch them if you look hard."
Landing the role of Lucy Ricardo was both a long shot and a long haul for Brooks. "I happened to be in-between representation because I had an agent who was sent to jail for stealing money from his top clients," she said. "Luckily or unluckily, I never made him any money he could steal." So Brooks showed up cold at open auditions with a hundred or so other aspirants. "After six callbacks, and three or four months, I landed the part."
While Brooks will be touring the country into next year in Lucy Live, she's conflicted about what may come next. "I'm about to turn 30, and I still don't know where I fit in this industry," she said. "This is an age when a lot of people drop out. But Lucille Ball didn't find her groove until I Love Lucy, when she was already 40. I find that very reassuring."
I Love Lucy Live on Stage will run Nov. 11-23 at the Curran Theatre. Tickets are $45-$135. Call (888) 746-1799 or go to shnsf.com.