January 3, 2016 by The Sumter Item

TELEVISION

THE SUMTER ITEM

SUNDAY, JANUARY 3, 2016

‘Galavant’ Road Trip Filled with Surprises

Sunday, January 3 - 9, 2016

www.theitem.com The dashing knight Galavant (Joshua Sasse) is on a mission on “Galavant,” returning for its second season on ABC, Sunday at 8 p.m.

By Candace Havens FYI Television After their disappointment with the evil Madalena (Mallory Jansen), Galavant (Joshua Sasse) and King Richard (Timothy Omundson) have formed an unlikely bromance on the fairytale-themed ABC series “Galavant,” returning Sunday at 8 p.m. for a five-week run. The two are on a road trip to get Richard back to his castle, but with this twisted musical comedy, nothing is as it seems. “Richard and Galavant have a very complicated but beautiful bromance this season,” says Omundson. “Galavant is, very much against his wishes, stuck with Richard. But they end up going on a completely amazing journey together and, along the way, end up being very important figures in each other’s lives. It was a joy to play. Season 2 is massive for Richard. His world is completely turned upside-down, and he loses all sense of self. His theme is love and redemption. Over the course of this season, we get to see him find the love of his life and rebuild himself into the man he always hoped he would be. He even has a duet with his 12-year-old self where he has to tell him about the wreckage his life will become. It’s actually pretty heart-breaking.” There are loads of guest-stars on the show, including Sasse’s girlfriend, Australian actress and singer Kylie Minogue, as well as “Downton Abbey” lead Hugh Bonneville, who returns as pirate king Peter the Pillager. Karen David (Isabella), Vinnie Jones (Gareth), Darren Evans (Chef) and Luke Youngblood (Sid) are also back. The actors must sing and dance on the comedy, which means more time rehearsing than they would for most other television series. “I have never worked harder in my life,” Omundson says. “I don’t think there is a person on this set – actor, producer or director – who would say

differently. It is like nothing I’ve ever experienced. In all honestly, I hadn’t done a proper musical since high school, and even then I was awful at learning choreography, so there was a massive learning curve for me. I had to sing for the first audition, but it was a song that I chose and had worked on for weeks. For the second audition, I was told I would have to sing again, but this time, I would have to sing Richard’s big solo from the pilot, ‘She’ll Be Mine.” I had two days to learn it. I was not a trained singer before I started this show, and I still have miles and miles to crawl before I could say I am trained, so this was way out of my comfort zone. After freaking out for a few hours, I said to myself, ‘You want to do a big-boy musical? Then shut up and learn the song because this is how it’s going to be if you get the job.’ “Sometimes we have weeks to learn the songs, sometimes days. We are, however, in incredibly skilled and gentle hands when it comes to the music. Our music director, Michael Kosarin, takes amazingly good care of us and always gets the best out of us. The choreography, however, still terrifies me. I’ve never been good at learning dance steps. I’m a bit dyslexic, and I’m sure that doesn’t help. It also doesn’t help that sometimes we only get a few hours and sometimes only a few minutes to learn a number. I am truly in awe of performers who can watch a dance once and have it in the heads. It boggles my mind.” Creating the character of Richard was a combination of executive producer Dan Fogelman’s vision and Omundson’s interpretation. “From the moment I first read the audition pages, I knew what I wanted to do with Richard,” the actor says. “If I was going to play him, I had to make big and bold choices and swing for the fences. I think it all started with his voice – high and nasally and melodic

and then dropping down to a growl. He was everything I love to play. Big comedic dichotomies: He can be harsh and vengeful and then in a flash be full of childlike joy and then switch again and be a hurt, petulant child. All in the space of a few lines and it’s lightning fast. It’s so very exciting and fun to play. He is such a full, complex character to me. “I couldn’t really say how much is on the page and how much is me,” Omundson continues. “You’ll have to ask our producers. The writers give me these incredibly funny things to say and situations to play and then it’s my job to flesh it all out. Our producers have been very gracious and collaborative. It’s the sort of thing where, once we get what’s on the page, if we have something else I’d like to try, I can go for it. It’s one of the freest, happiest environments I’ve worked in.” The job may be tough, but Omundson believes it is some of his best work. “This has been a job full of favorite moments and career highs, both on and off set,” the actor says. “If I had to pick one moment from last season, it would be from the pilot. The scene toward the beginning where Richard comes to Madalena on their wedding day and reminds her that they are in fact going to consummate the marriage that evening. It was already a ridiculously funny scene. Dan Fogelman, the genius behind the whole show, was on set and started throwing out alternate lines, and I would rapid fire them back and throw in some of my own. It’s one of my favorite ways to work. It’s without a net; it’s like jazz – it’s exhilarating, and it’s very rare in television. The next morning, Dan, myself and our executive producer/director Chris Koch were talking about that scene from the day before. Chris said it was like we had all been working together for years – that was a very good day.

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