From: http://local.lancasteronline.com/4/202224

Broadway star Jonathan Groff and Ed Fernandez, artistic director of the Ephrata Performing Arts Center, perform at Tuesday\'s benefit concert.

(Andrew P. Blackburn, New Era)

A star comes home

CV grad turned Broadway star performs again on the Ephrata stage to offer a heartfelt thanks.

By Jane Holahan, Staff Writer

Lancaster New Era

Published: Mar 28, 2007 2:26 PM EST

LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa - When Ed Fernandez called Jonathan Groff and asked him if he could do a benefit concert for the Ephrata Performing Arts Center, Groff had plenty of reasons to say no.

After all, he's doing eight shows a week in the Broadway hit "Spring Awakening."

He's been appearing on shows like "Late Show With David Letterman" and "The View" and being asked to do numerous interviews and model in cutting-edge fashion shows.

And a few weeks ago, he started working on the soap "One Life to Live," in which he is playing Henry, "a shy high school boy with Columbine tendencies." (His storyline begins April 18.)

But Groff, who turned 22 on Monday, was thrilled to say yes.

"I'm honored to be able to help the theater I love so much," he told a sold-out audience filled with fans, friends, colleagues and family near the end of his triumphant concert Tuesday night.

The feelings were mutual.

"If ever there was a guy who deserved to catch his break, it's Jonathan Groff," said Sean Young, a frequent performer on the EPAC stage and a member of its board. "He could have told us to go pack sand."

"Jonathan has been great," said Fernandez, the artistic director of EPAC, who first cast Groff as a Lost Boy in a Fulton production of "Peter Pan" when he was 14.

"I thought it was going to be a rough day since we really only had this one day to put the whole show together," Fernandez said. "I thought there would be plenty of gnashing of teeth and tempers flaring, but it was wonderful and lots of fun. Jonathan came totally prepared, but then he always was totally prepared."

"He always made us look bad," joked Abby Martin, who performed a funny song with Groff about Sunday brunch. She had appeared with him in the two shows Groff starred in at EPAC, "Honk" and "Batboy."

"We all had to work harder to keep up with him."

Martin remembers trying to get the always-positive Groff to grumble about things.

"We'd try to get him to complain about things like the rest of us did, but he never would. He was always so nice, so positive," she remembered.

"He's a total pro," added Trish Corcoran, who played Groff's mother in both "Honk" and "Batboy," and sang a song from "Honk" with him on Tuesday night.

"I remember we were waiting to go on one night and we were by the wall where they have the pictures of all the stars who performed at Ephrata. I told him he'd be on that wall one day and he said, 'no I won't' and I said 'yes, you will' and he kept saying no."

During the concert, called "Jonathan Groff: A Theatrical Journey," the young actor made it clear why he's on his way to becoming a star.

His rapport with the audience was amazing as he seamlessly moved from humor to poignancy to thoughtfulness and back to humor again.

He talked about being a waiter, about his ties to the "Sound of Music" and what life is like for him in New York. And he talked about what the Ephrata Playhouse meant to him.

"This place gave me confidence to believe I could do this," he told the crowd, whose members had paid $35 per ticket for the memories.

Granted, the audience has strong emotional ties to Groff, a 2003 graduate of Conestoga Valley High School, but he blew the roof off the place, especially in "Left Behind," a song from "Spring Awakening," about the suicide of a friend.

The passion Groff brought to the show came despite a crazy schedule and a cold he was getting over.

A white limo arrived in New York after Monday's show to pick up Groff and his roommate, Cody Smith, a fellow Lancastrian, dancer and choreographer who also worked at EPAC.

"We got to Lancaster about 2:30 in the morning," Groff said during a pre-show interview. "I wasn't expecting a limo."

"I could get used to that," Smith said with a laugh.

Rehearsals began at 11 and went straight through the day.

Sarah Repkoe led the five-piece band, which sounded great. And in addition to Martin, Corcoran and Young, the show featured Carl Bomberger, Kristen Comyns, David "BD" Frey and a special dance performance by Smith.

"It totally feels like home," Groff said before the show began. "It feels like I never left."

Groff says he's having a great time with "Spring Awakening," and is learning a lot about TV acting during his time on "One Life to Live."

Despite the crazy schedule — Tueday is his day off — Groff said he was thrilled to be involved in the fundraiser.

"I believe in this theater and the people who work here," he said. "It really is an honor for me to do this."

It was clearly a honor for everyone involved. And a lot of fun, too.

At one point in the show, Fernandez came out to pat Groff's sweaty face with a towel.

"We'll be selling this on eBay," he joked to the crowd.

Near the end of the show, the two sang "The Best of Times," with its recurring chorus, "The best of times is now," and Fernandez reminded the audience of how essential community theater is to someone like Groff.

"Without community theater, there is no place for people like Jonathan to learn," Fernandez said. "The challenge, the abyss, always seems to be in front of you in community theater, and you ask yourself, is it worth it? And then someone like Jonathan Groff comes along and makes it all worthwhile."

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And a few weeks ago, he started working on the soap "One Life to Live," in which he is playing Henry, "a shy high school boy with Columbine tendencies." (His storyline begins April 18.)

Great... so either a school shooting, stalker hostage (crazy over Starr, Langston, or Brittany and takes them hostage,) or he's the arsonist (or connected to them.) I do think the school shooting could be interested if Starr, Marcie, and Langston are involved. They could pull off some impressive scenes full of emotion and angst... and the aftermath for them and those connected to them would be a great storyline. More bonding for Starr and Marcie especially, before the Tommy reveal would add another dimension to the characters.