I chatted with actor Christopher Kamm about his career and his love of “The Golden Girls”
Background:
I’m originally from Jackson, Michigan. But I grew up a lot in Georgia. I went to school for theater, worked on a cruise ship, I’m a baker..have my hand in a lot of things.
What was your first acting experience?
I started as a dancer when I was three. Specifically tap dance. There was some acting in it. I auditioned for a few films; one being “The Little Rascals” movie. I’ve always had the bug.
You said you’re a baker. What is your favorite thing to bake?
You think it would be cheesecake ::laughs:: but they can be too time consuming. I love baking bread, croissants, a death by chocolate cookie that I get a lot of requests for.
Do you actually LIKE cheesecake?
I do! Bea Arthur famously did NOT.
You mentioned a cruise ship. How the heck was that job?
I LOVED that job. You would wake up in a different country everyday. At the time, our crew represented forty different countries and I got to experience people from all over the world.
Did you grow up on “Golden Girls?”
I did. I grew up in an Italian household and my grandmother and mother watched it by default. I’ve been to GoldenCon, a whole shelf full of memorabilia. So this was a dream job. I remember watching it through the years on Lifetime and in syndication elsewhere.
My favorite character has to be Sophia.
She is a blast to play because she can get away with anything.
I’m half Italian so I get it ALL.
Same here. I always joke I’m up there playing my grandmother because she had Sophia in her as well. She sometimes just didn’t know when to not say something. But others, she was so profound.
What is it like playing Sophia?
I have always loved her. I found a picture of about ten years ago when I dressed up as her for Halloween. Estelle Getty as an actress, I find really incredible. It means a lot to continue her legacy. The funny, witty, snarky things she gets to say…
I feel like the Sophia, but really the show, was way before it’s time. It dealt with gay marriage, sexism, racism, immigration, Trump. There’s a line in one episode where Sophia tells Dreyfuss the dog to “go find a competent Democratic nominee for President!”
::both laugh::
What’s great about our show is we have the ability to change a line or two on the fly. If anything happens during the day, we can make a nod to it that night.
There’s a clip going around on IG where Dorothy is speaking about The Middle East and then Rita Moreno’s character says something about Greenland. It’s so prophetic.
See! They knew!
They knew.
How long does it take for you to get into full Sophia?
The makeup takes about an hour and fifteen.
So it’s funny, I talked to Vince and he says you take the full two hours
OKAY, here’s the thing ::laughs:: I take the full two hours because I’m Italian and I LOVE to talk. We’ll have music going as well so it’s like a little party before hand.
What has been the response since the tour began?
It keeps growing. It’s been beautiful. We’ve gone to some smaller towns in the Bible belt and we were welcomed with open arms. People come and give us little gifts at our meet and greets.
We did a place in Ohio and they had four silk feather trimmed robes, just for fun. We’ve been fortunate to work at theaters that have been very generous to us.
Are you excited about the tour stops in Baltimore?
So here’s a sneak peek for you. The original Sophia played Baltimore but I joined right after that. I was there once on the cruise ship…I remember opening my curtains and singing “Good Morning, Baltimore!”
“The Golden Girls: The Laughs Continue” headlines The Hippodrome this Saturday!