What Are They Reading: ‘The King and I’ Cast Gives Us the Inside Scoop
Lincoln Center Theater’s production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s THE KING AND I is the winner of four 2015 Tony Awards, including Best Musical Revival. First performed in 1951, this story is about Anna Leonowens, a British schoolteacher in Siam teaching the royal children, and the powerful connection she forges with the imperious King. It is inspired by the book Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon, based on the late 19th century memoirs of the real Anna Leonowens, making the story nearly 150 years old.
We caught up with a few of the cast members who shared what books they (or their characters) are most excited about.
1) Conrad Ricamora
“It’s a great experiment. Say yes to everything for a year and see where it takes you.”
You might recognize him from How to Get Away with Murder but Conrad Ricamora’s been playing the role of Lun Tha on Broadway since LCT’s production opened a year ago. The Burmese scholar and envoy’s secret romance with Tuptim forms a compelling secondary plot line. He is loving Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes.
2) Ann Sanders
“I received The Velveteen Rabbit (or How Toys Become Real) as a gift and now I try to share it with everyone I know… it is a children’s book written by Margery Williams. It chronicles the story of a stuffed rabbit and his desire to become real, through the love of his owner.”
Ann Sanders has played Belle on Broadway and appeared on television in The Sherlock Holmes adaptation Elementary. In The King and I, she is a part of the ensemble as one of the King of Siam’s wives. She recommends the classic children’s story The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams.
3) Ashley Park
“Tuptim’s favorite book is obviously Uncle Tom’s Cabin ;)”
In another Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Cinderella, Ashley Park played a stepsister. In The King and I she plays Tuptim, a young Burmese woman brought to Siam as a “gift” for the King — but she’s secretly in love with Lun Tha. She chose the classic anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe, which inspires the second act ballet, “The Small House of Uncle Thomas.”
4) Ali Ewoldt
“I love so many books that it’s too hard to choose a favorite, but I recently read this one (Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson) and it had a huge impact on me. Stevenson has spent his career saving wrongly convicted people from death row and writes about it with intelligence, honesty, humility and grace and I am incredibly inspired by him.”
Another member of the fabulous ensemble, Ali Ewoldt has also played Cosette in Les Miserables. She recommends Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative.
5) Ruthie Ann Miles
“I love the book Anna and the King of Siam; I have read it half a dozen times. I have a copy on my bedside table, at my station at work, and even the audiobook — so it is, literally, almost always by my side.
It evokes for me pictures of the kingdom in old Siam and helps me connect the relational dots between the people/characters in the play.”
Ruthie Ann Miles was the winner of the 2015 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her portrayal of Lady Thiang in The King and I. Lady Thiang is the King’s dedicated chief wife. She recommends (fittingly enough!) Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon.
