This interview was conducted prior to the start of the SAG-AFTRA strike.
When Maude Apatow logs on to Zoom, wearing an insouciantly slouchy sweatshirt and not a scrap of make-up, she looks exactly like Lexi Howard, the gentle and soft-spoken high schooler and playwright she embodies in Sam Levinson’s HBO juggernaut Euphoria. Except, that is, for her bright emerald green nails, which glitter as she gestures at the camera—the only visual clue to the project that’s currently keeping her in London: an exuberant revival of Cabaret that has taken the West End by storm, in which she plays the flighty and tempestuous flapper Sally Bowles. (Fans of Bob Fosse’s 1972 big-screen adaptation of the original musical will recall Liza Minnelli in the same part, flashing her own jade-colored manicure at her love interest while purring, “Divine decadence, darling.”)
“Ever since I’ve been doing the show, my voice has been completely broken, and my brain, too,” jokes Apatow. It’s been worth it, though—the epic production, which transformed the Playhouse Theatre into the debauched Kit Kat Club in December 2021, has been dazzling audiences ever since with a slew of starry new leads (Jessie Buckley and Eddie Redmayne, who were succeeded by the likes of Amy Lennox and Fra Fee, Madeline Brewer and Callum Scott Howells, and Aimee Lou Wood and John McCrea), and has won a record-breaking seven Olivier Awards, the most for any musical revival. When Apatow inherited the role from her predecessors back in May—alongside her virtuosic co-star Mason Alexander Park (The Sandman), who plays the latest iteration of the mischievous Emcee—she knew it provided a unique opportunity: to belt out goosebump-inducing hits like “Mein Herr” and “Maybe This Time,” but also to dance through the aisles and jump onto tables, immersing attendees completely in the raucous world of Jazz Age Berlin.
Seeing Apatow command the stage as the rebellious cabaret singer navigating romance and politics as the Nazis slowly rise to power, it’s difficult to believe that this is only the actor’s second professional onstage part, following a turn as the sugary sweet Audrey in an off-Broadway production of Little Shop of Horrors in New York earlier this year. Then again, the 25-year-old LA native has been acting almost since birth—she made her screen debut aged just nine in Knocked Up, alongside her mother, Leslie Mann, under the direction of her father, Judd Apatow. Roles in Girls, Assassination Nation, Hollywood, and The King of Staten Island followed, though it was Euphoria that sent Apatow stratospheric.
As her run in Cabaret continues, and excitement builds for the forthcoming third season of the revolutionary high school drama, Apatow opens up about dealing with stage fright, her post-show ritual of binge-watching reality TV, and what Euphoria’s long-rumored time jump could mean for Lexi.
Vogue: I heard that you first did Cabaret in high school?
Maude Apatow: I did it in my senior year of high school. It was actually my last musical before I left! Maybe like a year before that, I’d seen Emma Stone do Cabaret in New York and it was the greatest thing ever. I was like, One day, I hope I can do that. I saw what make-up she’d used in the production and I bought all of the same things for my high school production [laughs]. It’s always been one of my favorite musicals, so doing this now—it’s truly a dream. I’ve even seen this production a few times before I started doing it.
It’s had such incredible casts across its run. Who did you get to see perform?
I saw Fra Fee and Amy Lennox, then Callum Scott Howells and Madeline Brewer’s version, and then Aimee Lou Wood and John McCrea, right before I went on. They were all so great and it’s so cool because I felt like each cast brought something totally different to the production. It keeps it fresh and exciting.
So, have you known for a while that you’d be doing it?
So, there was an audition process which involved recording different songs and performing some scenes, but then it was a timing thing with work, because this obviously requires a big chunk of time. I didn’t know if I was going to be able to do it. There was a chance I was going to do it in December, and then that ended up not working out, but then it finally lined up perfectly. Mason [Alexander Park, who plays the Emcee in the current production] and I actually went to the same show—when I saw Amy Lennox do Cabaret, Mason was sitting in front of me. We just didn’t know each other at the time. We think it’s fate [laughs].
Did seeing all these other brilliant actors play Sally before you add to the pressure, though?
It helped that I’d seen a few different people in this production, so it didn’t feel like there was this one version of the character that I had to do. I was trying not to put too much pressure on myself [laughs]. Just before I joined the show, I’d seen Amy, and she’s such a brilliant comedic actress. She brought so much to the part, and there were so many lines that I wouldn’t have even thought of as funny, but the way she delivered them was genius. So, I did have moments like, Gosh, I wish I could have done it like that. But in the end, you just have to bring a bit of yourself to the character. What I love about this take on the show is that I think Sally seems very human, in a way that I haven’t seen in other productions. It feels very grounded and raw and impactful.
Did you have long to rehearse before the show opened?
I actually finished Little Shop of Horrors in New York on a Sunday night, went to the Met Gala, and then flew out the night after to start rehearsals. I was nervous about not having time off between shows, but it was good in a way because I was in such a rhythm and it got my stamina up. I’d never done professional theater before Little Shop and I’ve never done a run this long, so that really helped prepare me. The rehearsal period was very intense but that meant there was no time to overthink things or let the neuroses creep in. It was stressful, but also so fun.
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Apart from that, what were the biggest challenges that came up? I know you’ve spoken about dealing with stage fright before, for instance.
I think I’m still working on it. At first, I was really nervous about being so close to the audience—walking through the aisles and singing into people’s faces. I’d never done anything like that before, so I was really intimidated during the first couple of performances. As the show’s gone on, though, I’ve found my power in doing that and it’s become quite entertaining. When you go right up to the tables and point at people, it’s fun to watch their reactions. Some people seem really excited and others are really pissed off [laughs].
Does that ever put you off?
People usually smile or laugh, but the other night, I went right up to this woman and she just looked disgusted [laughs]. It did throw me a little bit, but I just kept going. Ultimately, the show is edgy and I think a lot of people come into it without realizing what it’s going to be like. They maybe don’t know the subject matter and think it’s going to be just this light-hearted, fun cabaret, and then they’re very surprised.
It’s funny that you say that because I was surprised by the number of people I spoke to about the show who hadn’t seen the film and assumed it was just about having a jolly time at the cabaret.
There was a [bachelorette] party in the other night and you could tell they’d been drinking all day [laughs]. We saw them in line and thought, Oh no, this is terrible. They’re going to have the worst night. They were all woo-ing at first and then we saw them like come down as the show went on. I felt so bad, but in the end I think they liked it?
That’s so funny. I also need to ask you about your cut-glass British accent. Was that difficult to nail?
We have a great accent coach who I’ve been working with, but honestly, the accent is probably the number one thing that’s stressful, especially because I’m doing an English accent to audiences in the West End! I try not to think about it too much, prepare as much as I possibly can, and just pray that people don’t hate it.
Are there any pre- or post-show rituals that you’ve developed over the past few weeks?
I’m still figuring that out—I’m always asking other actors on the show what they do, because you get such an adrenaline rush and then you have to go home and sleep. I feel so wide awake, so I try to have some tea, and I know you’re probably not supposed to watch TV, but I definitely watch reality TV to decompress. And pre-show, someone told me that I shouldn’t be thinking about the show all day and running it in my head. There’s no point and then your time off doesn’t even feel like time off. I’ve found that really helpful.
What reality TV are you watching at the moment?
I just finished The Ultimatum: Queer Love. I’d never seen The Undateables before but I’ve been watching that because it’s on Netflix now. It’s such a sweet show. Also Come Dine With Me and First Dates—those are my favorites. It was great when I arrived in the UK because I was like, Wow, I’ve got so many new options now that I’d never even heard of before.
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I love it. I’d also love to hear about the make-up and costumes in the show, because they’re amazing.
Tom Scutt is our costume and set designer and he’s unbelievable. The costumes are one of my favorite things about the show—the colors, the textures, the glitter, and they still manage to make them look kind of grungy at the same time. They’re so intricate too—I notice new details in them every day. My absolute favorite is this dress that I wear at the end of Act One which is pink and sparkly, almost metallic, but I wear my big furry coat over it, so you can’t really see it. It never really gets its moment, but it’s so beautiful! And in terms of make-up, we do our own make-up for the show. We got a couple of lessons before and I’ve definitely gotten better at doing it, but some of the other cast members are amazing. If you look too closely at mine, I’m sure it’s not impressive, but from far away, it looks great.
And how has it felt to be in London for this extended period of time? Where do you hang out when you’re not working?
I love London. I’m mostly resting during the day and I stay close to the theater, but every morning, you’ll find me at my coffee shop, the Espresso Room in Covent Garden. It’s so good. And I also love Selfridges—we don’t have anything quite on that level in the US.
After Cabaret you’ll, of course, be returning to the set of Euphoria. Is filming still due to resume later this year?
I have no clue. I guess we’ll see what happens with the strike, but I’d assumed it would be in the next couple of months.
I know details are being kept under wraps, but what are your hopes for Lexi as you go into this next season?
So, with this time jump… and I’m not even sure how much time that’s going to be—I actually read that online [laughs]. That’s how I found out about it too. But, I think that’s a really smart idea, obviously, because we’re all really old now to be playing high schoolers so it makes sense to cut to a few years in the future. But yeah, if I look at myself and compare myself to Lexi, I definitely had a lot of anxiety and was really shy in high school, and I guess, by the end of the last season, she’s finding her voice. I don’t know if I would say that happened to me in high school, but for Lexi, I hope that whatever she’s doing now, she’s a little bit more confident in herself and her abilities and doesn’t let that anxiety get in the way of her being able to succeed or do what she wants to in life. I’m not sure what she wants to do, because Sam hasn’t written it, but I have some ideas.
What are your ideas?
Well, I’d say she’s a writer. I don’t know in what capacity, but she loves writing. Maybe she’s a playwright, or maybe she’s just a young struggling writer trying to figure things out.
I guess we don’t know yet if her story will overlap with Cassie’s or Fez’s, but what would you like to see in terms of her relationships with them?
I mean, I don’t know if Fez goes to prison? So, maybe they’ve stayed in touch since he’s been in prison? I hope they can keep their relationship going, but I don’t really know what that looks like. And then with Cassie, it’s a tricky thing with sisters because you have these massive fights, but then you can sort of pull it all back and go on as if nothing happened the next week, so hopefully they’re okay. But, it was tough by the end of last season, and I hope for Cassie that she sort of calms down, but also that Lexi apologizes to her. She really did her dirty, so Cassie’s reaction was understandable. I go back and forth on it—I sometimes think maybe Cassie deserved it, but also maybe no one deserves that [laughs].
And will you have time to do more theater before going back to that world?
This was definitely my dream part, but my next dream part is probably Mama Rose in the musical Gypsy, but that can’t be for many years now. Until then, I’d love to do a play.
Maude Apatow is currently starring in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club at London’s Playhouse Theatre.
