(Sonya and) Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812: In conversation with Camille Eanga-Selenge

Camille Eanga-Selenge enjoys the kind of career that actors dream of. 

Since graduating from Sheridan College’s Musical Theatre program in 2012, the multidisciplinary artist has performed in classic musicals like Hairspray, Oklahoma, Grease, Ghost: the Musical and Caroline, Or Change, as well as in several productions at the Stratford Festival. 

She’s been featured in US and Regional National Tours of Disney’s The Lion King, The Book of Mormon and the world premiere of Paradise Square – AND she’s been part of the Broadway casts of The Book of Mormon and Paradise Square, as well. 

Television audiences will also recognize her from shows like Amazon/Sony Pictures TV’s runaway hit The Boys. 

In a way, all of these diverse, challenging performances can be seen as the prelude to her luminous portrayal as Sonya Rostova in the Musical Stage Company and Crow’s Theatre’s smash-hit Canadian premiere of Dave Molloy’s electro-pop musical Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. 

Directed by Chris Abraham, choreographed by Ray Hogg, and with musical direction by Ryan deSouza, the production features luminaries of Canadian musical theatre, including Divine Brown, Evan Buliung, Rita Dottor, Donna Garner, Hailey Gillis, George Krissa, Lawrence Libor, Marcus Nance, Heeyun Park 박희윤, Andrew Penner, Louise Pitre, and Brendan Wall. And the transcendent production features immersive, elaborate staging that seats the audience within the action among the performers, and a unique, genre-spanning score that blends classical, Russian folk, and contemporary musical styles. 

Rave critical reviews and fevered audience word-of-mouth have made show tickets as prized as tickets for a post-pandemic concert by a rock star. As a result, the run at Crow’s Theatre has been extended multiple times – the latest extension runs until March 8. 

This multi-award-winning work recounts (and puts to earworm-y music) some 70 pages of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace (1867). The story is set in Moscow during Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. It focuses on vivacious Russian countess Natasha Rostova (Gillis), and wealthy but discontented aristocrat Pierre Bezukhov (Buliung). Natasha is visiting Moscow while her fiancé Andrey (Nance), is away fighting in the war. In Moscow, she falls under the influence of the seductive Anatole Kuragin (Krissa), who is secretly married but plans to elope with her. The story explores Natasha’s emotional turmoil as she navigates this complex affair and grapples with the consequences of her actions. 

Eanga-Selenge’s Sonya is Natasha’s devoted cousin and confidante. Though the two were raised together, they find themselves at odds when Sonya learns that Natasha is risking ruin by eloping with Anatole. Sonya is willing to sacrifice her own happiness for the well-being of those she loves, and her reason and caution provide a compelling contrast with Natasha’s impulsive nature. After seeing Eanga-Selenge in the role, it is difficult to imagine anyone else in it. Her rendition of the haunting ballad “Sonya Alone” transcends the 19^th-century Russian setting, making her a timeless, admirable avatar of a loyal and selfless friend. 

Of course, just talent and ambition alone could not have garnered the kind of success that she has achieved. 

A conversation with Eanga-Selenge makes it abundantly clear that her success stems not just from her evident talent, but from a drive and determination – which fuel an insatiable curiosity and an enviable work ethic – and a winning warmth, humility and grace. Eanga-Selenge spoke with SesayArts Magazine about her unexpected journey into the performing arts, how her experience on Broadway compares with her work on Canadian stages, the deep intimacy she feels with the audiences for Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 at Crow’s Theatre . . . and why her laptop is her constant companion behind the scenes.

1. What would you like readers to know about you? What inspired you to pursue a life in the arts? 

In my graduating year of high school, I had been accepted to the Psychology as a Science program at Ottawa U. I was and very much still am, a big nerd! Math and sciences were my absolute favourite subjects. I had watched a lot of Criminal Minds and was very determined to become a behavioural analyst for CSIS. 

I started in the arts pretty late; I had been taking Afro-Caribbean dance class since I was six but started singing in choir and a youth group around 14 and taking ballet and jazz at 16. I had a very encouraging arts teacher who cast me as Rizzo in Grease in my final year, and that is what changed my path. I had an incredible time and it felt like I could combine my love of dance with music and storytelling. Performing really meant something to me and to the people in the show, and impacted the people who came to see it. I had never considered that I was able to do this for a living, or that I was good enough. I ended my final high school year making the decision to audition for Sheridan College’s Musical Theatre program. I completed my first year of Psychology because I didn’t want to waste a year of education and my scholarship, but I got accepted into Sheridan for the following year, and everything sailed off from there. 

2. Tell us a little about your character, Sonya.  

Sonya is the orphaned cousin of Natasha, whose family took her in and raised the girls side by side. She is a bright young woman, well-behaved and mannered, loyal, generous, reliable, and good. Although she and Natasha, the closest of friends, are only one year apart, Sonya feels a responsibility to care for Natasha and keep her safe and protected. However . . . Sonya’s battle between what is moral/ethical and what keeps her as a “good” friend is what gets her into trouble in Great Comet. 

3. Are you and Sonya similar or different?

I think that I am similar to Sonya in some ways. I was raised in the east end of Ottawa, a very beautiful, quiet suburb in a government town, and have been in Catholic school since I was in kindergarten. I was taught a lot about what is right and wrong in a very black and white way, so I felt I had a general sense of what an acceptable or successful life looked like. Once I left home, however, my eyes were opened by seeing so many different types of people, relationships, and success. I can see how Sonya fears for her friend, how she sees Natasha’s decisions impacting not only her own life, but the lives of her family. Sonya believes she has a greater understanding of duty and morality, but struggles with her decisions all the same, understanding that doing the right thing may feel horrible.

4. If you met in real life, would you and Sonya be friends?

I think Sonya and I might be different because of where she was raised and when. Then, women didn’t really make choices in who they loved or married, and Russia has a very different culture to what I was raised with. But I still think if we met in real life, Sonya and I could absolutely be friends. We see eye to eye on our loyalty, and care for the people we love. And those are important features in the friends I have today. 

5. I know that you’re an accomplished and experienced musical-theatre performer. I’m wondering if you’d like to speak about the musical aspect of “NATASHA, PIERRE & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812”?

I MUST start by saying that I have fallen deeply in love with this show. I came into it thinking this would be a wonderful way to come home,and  be a part of a really cool, innovative “rock opera”, and an incredible cast produced by two major, major theatre companies. I did not expect to be rocking out to the music, heartbroken, feeling full in spirit, and excited to see what new discoveries I make each day. 

6. Which moments you are most excited for the audience to experience?

This is what I am most excited for people to experience: that feeling of something incredibly unexpected. I expect that most audience members coming to the show may have looked it up in some form, or even have read War and Peace, but you just cannot plan for what’s to come without being in the room. I cannot wait for audiences to experience this musical that shows you the possibilities of what musical theatre can be. 

7. You’ve experienced the vibrancy of Broadway and are now back in Toronto. How does performing in a Canadian production compare to your Broadway experiences, and what unique qualities do you think Canadian theatre brings to the table, especially in a show like this? 

I had the opportunity to see Natasha, Pierre and The Great Comet of 1812 on Broadway, when it opened. A Book of Mormon (BOM) alumni, Denée Benton played Natasha, and so her BOM family wanted to come out and support her. The show was a wild ride! There was so much going on, so much to experience. The set was stunning and intricate, and this form of theatre was new to me. What is incredibly unique about performing this show in a smaller Canadian theatre (Broadway houses usually start around 1100 seats) is the deep intimacy you experience as an audience member AND cast member. Performing in the Crow’s Theatre space, I feel the urge to connect with everyone . . . and I have the ability to do so. For this show in particular, I think this intimacy is necessary to keep audiences on the edge of their seat, to aid in their feeling invested and involved in the story. It doesn’t feel like I am performing for a group of people, but rather with them, and it is such an incredible feeling when you look in the audiences’ eyes and they want to participate in that exchange. 

8. You’ve already played roles in long-standing audience favourites including The Lion King; Caroline, or Change; Billy Elliot: the Musical; and Book of Mormon. What is your favourite musical – either to perform in or watch? 

This is maybe the toughest question yet! I rave about singing the Caroline, or Change score as Radio 2, and being in Little Shop of Horrors because I live for trio harmonies. And I never, ever got tired of stepping on stage for The Book of Mormon, even after six years, because it was so much fun to do. And walking down the aisle, during “Circle of Life” in The Lion King – seeing hundreds of faces, both kids and adults, beaming up at you with tears of joy – there is absolutely nothing in the world like that.

I will say that one of the most unique experiences I have had in storytelling (apart from Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812) is being in Paradise Square. I was absolutely blessed to perform on stage with incredible, hardworking, dedicated people. Whether we were laughing or having one of the most difficult days of the week, we lifted each other up. We danced our hearts out. We gave every part of ourselves to that show every single night. And this show changed me as an artist. It showed me what I was capable of, especially as a dancer, and it pushed me to seek out more musical theatre shows where the stories I told changed and challenged audience members. This is why I am so thankful to be a part of this production, right now! 

9. Given your choice, what role would you like to play that you haven’t (yet)?

I would love to play Angelica or Peggy in Hamilton (still sending love to Eliza) – or, if they’d do it, Burr! I’ve loved Hamilton since the cast recording was released. I would also LOVE to dance In the Heights, because I already do, all the time, at home. 

10. Tell us something about you that isn’t on your resumé. Anything that might surprise us? 

Something that might surprise you (and has surprised my fellow cast members when they see me sitting with my laptop during every break) is that I am currently in school, and pretty much have been since I returned to Canada after leaving The Book of Mormon in Australia. The program at Sheridan College was originally an advanced diploma that allowed students also to receive a university degree if they took a year of university courses, or completed an expedited master’s program in Scotland. In 2018, while performing in Grease, The Ross Petty Panto, and most of my 2019 season at Stratford, I completed the year’s worth of credits and received my Musical Theatre Degree. 

Then the pandemic hit, and I had so much free time . . . but I didn’t want to start studying immediately, in case theatre came back quickly. Instead, I waited until the return of the arts, and, beginning in 2021, while performing Freedom Cabaret, Paradise Square in Chicago and on Broadway, The Lion King tour, and throughout this entire process with Great Comet, I have been completing my Psychology degree at York University. I have just over a year left, since working while in school has required me to take things very slowly. But I believe I’ll continue on to my Master’s at some point. Wish me luck! 

© Arpita Ghosal, SesayArts Magazine, 2024