On and Off the Stage - Kent...

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I’m a sensitive, delicate bird,” actor Gabriel Ebert admits with disarming candor and wit. Not one for self-congratulations, Gabriel

neglects to share that he, like a bird, is also soaring through life. Raised with the empowering teachings of the Science of Mind and Spirit, this twenty-six-

year-old “New Thought Kid” recently won the coveted Tony Award, which salutes excellence in Broadway Theater, for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical” for his role as Mr. Harry Wormwood in the smash new Broadway musical Matilda. These days, it’s quite a ride and view; for

On and Off the Stage:Actor Gabriel Ebert Imagines an Amazing Life into Form

KENT RAuTENSTRAuS

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Gabriel Ebert, the secret to both soaring and staying grounded is to travel light, figuratively and metaphorically, and to use the divine gift of imagination to call in a richly rewarding life on and off the stage.

“I believe in this teaching even though I don’t consciously seek it out,” Gabriel shares, adding that he has picked up many of the Religious Science principles by osmosis. His dad, Rev. Barry Ebert, is a writer who pens the monthly “Spiritual Good Sense” column in Science of Mind magazine; a singer/songwriter; and a minister at Mile Hi Church in Denver, Colorado. His mom, Stephanie Quinn Ebert, owns and operates an endermologie practice and is a certified occupational therapy assistant. She serves as a Religious Science practitioner and is “a champion of her boys,” says Gabriel. Brother Jesse, two years older, is an employee for Vail and Associates, working both the winter ski-lift lines and summer children’s program.

The extended Mile Hi Church family, numbering thousands, has significantly imprinted Gabriel as well. With open hearts, Mile Hi’ers reach out with genuine interest to one another. Barry taught his sons to take time to talk to congregants and to care and be polite, skills

that continue to serve Gabe through life. “Growing up with this background has informed the way I treat people and educated my experience of God,” he shares with gratitude.

First Stage Experience at Church“I can’t think of a moment when I wasn’t on the stage or wanting to be on the stage!” Gabriel recalls. When he was young, his dad Barry was a columnist for the Columbine Courier, a weekly community newspaper, and Barry took the family along to many theater productions that he reviewed. Gabriel now sees this as being “Spirit-guided” for his path as an actor. “I saw a play every week for eight or nine years—good plays, bad plays, all enlightening.” Seeing live theater activated the imagination within young Gabriel. He loved what he saw on stage, and he wanted to be a part of the scene.

When he was in kindergarten and possessed a mop of curly hair, Gabriel was cast as the Angel Gabriel in Mile Hi Church’s Christmas Nativity Pageant. At eight, he debuted in a speaking role as Wynthrop Paroo, a shy kid who lisped, in the church’s mini-musical version of Meredith Willson’s The Music Man. He was adorable. I played piano for the service

that night when he stole hearts by sing-lisping

If you’’d like to have a logical explanation

How I happened on this elegant syncopation,

I will say without a moment of hesitation

There is just one place that can light my face

Gary, Indiana, …my home sweet home!—lyrics from “Gary, Indiana” (Willson)

Gabriel and his brother also portrayed Revolutionary Patriots in “Spirit of Independence” church pageants, and Gabriel often sang with his dad on the Mile Hi stage. But church wasn’t the only creative outlet for this gifted kid. He also developed a great passion for performing by singing in the prestigious Colorado Children’s Chorale, which teaches children aged seven to fourteen precision, vocal techniques, stage presentation, and the value of hard work. Gabe enjoyed many seasons with the Children’s Chorale until his voice changed.

“Loved Being in His Orbit” Gabriel yearned for still more theatrical opportunities, and Spirit provided. For two Christmas seasons, when he was thirteen and fourteen, he played

the lead role of a disabled boy in Gian Carlo Menotti’s one-act opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. Gabriel had a mouth full of braces and preferred showing up to rehearsals in bright orange pants, his mom recalls, laughing. “He brought joy—the clown and playfulness—but he was never distracting,” Stephanie remembers. “With all the opera rehearsals, school work, and the Children’s Chorale, he never once said he was tired or that he wished he was doing something else. I loved being in his orbit.”

“Magic and Amazing Energy”By a vigorous audition process, Gabriel was accepted into the Denver School of the Arts (DSA) in eighth grade. While at DSA, he focused on acting while also learning the standard educational requirements for

Gabriel as Wynthrop in The Music Man


You make everybody stronger; You don’’t have to be the star.

—lyrics “Still My Angel/Gabriel’s Song” (Barry Ebert)

“When I’m ill-prepared,” Gabriel shares, “I can invent something new and cheeky! I thrive on using my personal wits,” adding that he does have a special ace up his sleeve. “I affirm good things.”

Moments of GloryGood things continued to make their way to Gabriel. By his senior year, Gabriel had come to the attention of many college-theater directors including Tom McNally, artistic director of the nationally recognized Little Theater of the Rockies, and a professor of Theatre Arts at the university of Northern Colorado (uNC), Greeley. After an informal audition, McNally immediately offered Gabriel a full four-year scholarship, telling Gabriel’s parents, “When your son came in, I put my pencil down just to be in that moment.” Barry asked the respected director where he would recommend that Gabe attend for the finest theater instruction if not uNC. Jokingly, McNally said, “If Juilliard doesn’t want him, we want him!” The Juilliard School, located in the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in

New York City, is acknowledged as one of the top acting schools in the world.

The Ebert family listened to this guidance offered partly in jest and immediately planned a New York City trip to visit colleges with acclaimed theater programs. In a divinely ordered set of circumstances, Gabriel and his parents walked into Juilliard without an appointment and found out that he had two weeks to quickly prepare an official audition. Touring Juilliard and seeing famous alumni pictured on a wall, Gabriel thought, “I can see myself being here.” A follow-up trip to New York City in snow and twelve hours of auditioning yielded the amazing news. Gabriel Ebert was one of eighteen out of 1,200 auditions accepted for Group 38, the 38th Class of Juilliard.

Generations of fathers and sonsWe’re bound by our blood and our

storiesNow your journey has just begunHere’’s to your moments of glory.—lyrics from “Moments of Glory” (Barry Ebert)

Unusual Required Reading and Life Gabriel was surprised to learn upon arrival at Juilliard that required reading included The Bhagavad Gita, the famous seven,

grades eight through twelve.In ninth grade, he played a mentally handicapped boy in Jim Leonard Jr.’s The Diviners. Recalls his teacher and mentor Shawn Hann, “Gabe’s innocence and purity drove the soul of that character, and you could feel the magic and amazing energy every time he was onstage.”

But what was equally as noticeable as Gabriel’s natural acting skills was his ability to think on his feet, tapping into a wellspring of imagination from within. At the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland, the DSA acting troupe presented How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Gabriel played Bud Frump, the nephew of the boss, “with unbelievable comedic timing,” adds Hann, when his friend who played the male lead (Finch) got sick right before the

four-show run and couldn’t sing a note.

“What happened next we will never forget,” Hann recalls. “Gabe figured out how to excuse his character a little bit early and run backstage to a microphone, and he would look at Finch onstage and become his voice. Yes, Finch was lip-syncing, but it worked. Everyone in that company learned about dedication, perseverance, passion, and success from Gabe’s willingness to do anything to help tell a story, to do anything to make sure that the show went on.”

You’’re the healer, when someone needs a hand

With the key to the door of their heart

The great scene stealer, just by playing who you are

Oona Laurence (one of the four girls who share the title role) and Gabriel Ebert (Mr. Wormwood) in Matilda The Musical. Photo © Joan Marcus 2013.


significant impact on and off the stage. Passing through Denver, he learned of the helplessness some ninth and tenth graders were feeling at Denver School of the Arts. “I had more suicidal students than I had in many years past,” his high-school teacher Shawn Hann shares. “Gabe felt that the message that his play spoke to was so important that not only did he stop by, he also spoke to our students for a full class period. He even performed a monologue from the show. Then he opened a real and honest dialogue about suicide and depression, and our students heard that there is light in this world and a way out. He changed minds that day to believe that anything is possible with a positive outlook on life—that it is within one’s own power to see the world positively or not.”

For his part, Gabe had wondered why he was drawn to such a dark play, but by sharing with the DSA students, he found the answer. “He needed to open the door to communicate to young people in an honest way. The play, that character, was his way in,” says Hann.

National Acclaim and Paying It ForwardAnother acclaimed production followed, 4000 Miles, which garnered Gabriel an OBIE (Off Broadway Theater) Award and TIME magazine’s 2012 Pick as Best Play of the Season. And then the news that actors dream to receive—being cast in a new Broadway production that critics called “the standout musical of the decade,” Matilda, based on the classic children’s book by Roald Dahl. As Mr.

hundred-verse Hindu scripture that Mahatma Gandhi referred to as his “spiritual dictionary.” Gabriel quickly learned that there was an important take-away from this classic work as an actor and as a human being. “It’s about choosing your battles and what you’re going to stand for,” Gabriel says. Another required reading was don Miguel Ruiz’s The Four Agreements. “Actors are inherently narcissistic and auditions break us down. You sometimes feel like cattle, and auditioning is a battle to prove you’re worthy, and twenty others feel the same!” Gabriel shares. “The Four Agreements teaches us not to take anything personally.”

A great people-watcher, Gabriel observes that some are addicted to negativity in order to be happy. But by activating imagination and occasionally breaking out his ukulele, Gabriel transforms the situation. “If there is negativity, I can create a sense of community. Juilliard taught me this.” The world-renowned arts school also taught Gabriel that structure is a gift. “I thrived on thirteen-hour days at Juilliard! Somehow, I took piano instruction, joined a gym, and did regular-people things in addition to school.”

Success at Every TurnAnd thrive he did. By the end of his freshman year, Gabriel received a first-ever scholarship in the name of a beloved Juilliard drama teacher who had recently died. By the end of his sophomore year, he received from the Juilliard faculty a full-ride two-year scholarship for his junior and senior years funded by a world-famous Juilliard alumnus—comedian/actor Robin Williams (Group 6). When he met Williams a few years later, Gabriel thanked him for the scholarship. Williams’s response was simple: “When you make some money, scholarship a kid.”

upon his senior graduation, Gabriel and one other classmate received the prestigious John Houseman Award, named after one of the finest classical actors of modern time and the founding director of the Drama School at Juilliard.

Roles and Mentoring FollowCoveted acting roles followed after Juilliard, including debuting on Broadway as an understudy in Red, a two-man play with The Da Vinci Code’’s Alfred Molina. He also appeared in Noël Coward’s Brief Encounter, Off-Broadway. While acting in the production Suicide Incorporated, he made a

Gabriel Ebert (Mr. Wormwood) and Lesli Margherita (Mrs. Wormwood) in Matilda The Musical. Photo © Joan Marcus 2013.

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Wormwood, Gabriel torments his daughter Matilda, who has “serious magic abilities,” says Gabe. “It’s a cool show,” he adds in typical understatement, “and I get to play a villain!” While it’s based on a children’s book, there is relevance for everyone, he emphasizes.

Veteran theater critics and audiences alike are in love with this production and Gabriel’s performance, as evidenced by his Tony Award. Since opening night in April, one hundred to two hundred young kids await Gabriel at the stage door after every performance to get an autograph or photograph with him. He cordially obliges them, not because he authentically likes the attention, but because he remembers he was once that kid who imagined himself on the stage. “These are the young people who could become actors,” he shares, “and I want to help them imagine their futures!”

Keys to Staying Grounded and Filling the Little SpacesWith all this attention, what

are Gabriel’s tools for staying grounded? “Minimalism is a huge part of my life. I live alone on 42nd Street like a hermit! I play a lot of music, and I also play outfield on

the Matilda softball team, The Maggots. I don’t have Internet or television,” he says happily, adding, “I try to move on after an audition and take things lightly. I look people in the eye, say ‘thanks,’ and let it go. In theater, every play closes. This fact has helped me with the impermanence of life.” Most of all, Gabriel stays focused. “I want to work on a large scale,” he proclaims.

This pronouncement is Spirit-directed; audiences would agree. Says one adoring fan in summary, “It’s a grace when he goes on. He fills the little spaces.”

And you won’’t know your final destination,

but choose a direction with heart. Sometimes the only solution is to

get up and start. As immortal right now as you will

ever be, under this blanket of stars, always

remember what a beautiful child you are.—lyrics from “Beautiful Child” (Barry Ebert)

If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them. —HENRY DAVID THOREAu

W ell-meaning adults often encourage adolescents to shed foolish dreams in order to secure the future. But

that might be exactly the wrong thing to do. What we must hope for our children is that they will discover something within that will fuel the fire and determination that they will need to succeed in life. It may be a sport, theater, music, art, singing, poetry, or some other passion that seems to have no real possibility of providing a “real career.” But if it causes them to put forth effort and learn more about themselves, encourage it.

As a teenager, one of our sons could easily sleep until early afternoon on a beautiful Saturday. That is, unless he had plans to go snowboarding. On those days, he would rise by 6:00 AM, grab his gear, and cheerfully be on his way. It was his thing. As an adult, he’s still not sure where his journey will take him, but his passion for the mountains is what drives him. Our other son discovered very early that he enjoyed being on stage. His teenage years were filled with plays and musical performances of every nonpractical sort. And, now, he’s found a way to make a living at it.

Most of us could never have predicted that the many strange jobs, hobbies, and synchronicities that we stumbled upon would somehow lead us to the perfect place. But when we follow the heart, that is exactly what happens. Our intuition is a foolproof guidance system that connects us with the Divine Intelligence that is always available to us. If our children can learn and be encouraged to trust this inner voice as soon as possible, they will find their way.

It’s a dangerous illusion to think that we know what’s best for someone else, even if that person happens to be our child. Our job is to support them in their strengths and give them the opportunity to build the foundations under those dreams that are so dear to them. Isn’t that the way that Spirit treats all of us?

Spiritual Good SenseA Sane Simplicity

BARRY EBERT

REV. BARRY EBERT is an associate minister and the youth director at Mile Hi Church in Lakewood, Colorado.

Tony Award winner Gabriel Ebert

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