Central Floridian Jasmine Forsberg is living like a queen: Queen Jane Seymour, that is, in the hit musical “Six,” opening Oct. 4. at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.
Forsberg is one of the stars of the touring Broadway show — and she’s thrilled to be returning to her roots.
“I thank my lucky stars that my hometown was on this tour,” says the graduate of Timber Creek High in Orlando.
Central Florida theatergoers have been watching Forsberg since she was in grade school. I described her as “cute as a button” when as a preteen she appeared in Orlando Repertory Theatre’s 2010 production of “The House at Pooh Corner.”
By the following year she was winning raves for her performance as a precocious child star in “Ruthless! The Musical” at Winter Park Playhouse.
“Strong-voiced Forsberg switches comically and convincingly from a Shirley Temple-wannabe to ‘The Bad Seed,'” I wrote at the time. “When her eyes narrow and her voice deepens, beware that murderous moppet.”
“I have vivid memories of that show,” says Forsberg, now 23. “It’s not every day a 12-year-old gets to swear on stage. I’ve never done anything like that since.”
In “Six,” a pop concert-style production about the wives of England’s King Henry VIII, Forsberg is not murderous — and, perhaps surprisingly knowing Henry’s proclivities, neither is she murdered. Unlike several of the king’s other wives, she did not die by beheading, instead succumbing to postnatal complications after giving birth to the future King Edward VI.
“She is historically known as the obedient, demure one,” Forsberg says. “Other characters are more edgy and sassy, but Jane is definitely not.”
Forsberg was surprised to be cast in the role because she went for an edgy vibe in her audition.
“I was quite confused, I did not see myself as her whatsoever,” Forsberg says. “Now it’s so clear to me that the creative team was able to see [in me] her joy and sense of family and kindliness — and those are qualities I do possess. They were able to see that even before I did.”
In “Six,” the royal wives tell their side of the story through song.
“They are reclaiming their roles as powerful women,” Forsberg says. “The show encourages you to celebrate what you bring to the table. It’s like a big love fest of who you are, and we just cheer each other on. Women supporting women is at the core of it.”
Forsberg has felt supported throughout her life.
As a 5-year-old she started with music but then tried theater — “that’s what really stuck,” she says. Growing up in east Orlando, she performed with Avalon School of Music and Magic Curtain Productions, where she remembers appearing in “101 Dalmatians.”
“I was some added puppy named Penny,” she recalls with a laugh. “That was my first show!”
She also worked at Cocoa Village Playhouse, and at age 12 appeared as young Cosette in a high school production of “Les Miserables.”
But it was at Orlando Repertory Theatre, where she appeared in numerous shows, and Winter Park Playhouse where she really shone.
“Those two places I would call my second homes,” she says. “The people there would take care of me. Not only was my family at home supportive of my dreams, but they were too. They were my family, too.”
She credits director Steve MacKinnon as a particularly strong mentor, but a who’s who list of Orlando theater creators rolls off her tongue in thanks: Jeff Revels, Kim Ball, Gary Cadwallader, Roy Alan.
Her last performance in Central Florida came in 2017 when she sang at the Dr. Phillips Center’s Applause Awards. She graduated from Pennsylvania State University’s musical-theater program and immediately landed the “Six” gig.
Friends and family will gather in Orlando this week to watch her in “Six” — though some already have seen her at previous tour stops. She laughs, describing how after seeing the show one of her two proud brothers “kept telling everybody who walked by, ‘This is my sister. She’s a celebrity.'”
As a Filipino American, Forsberg is particularly gratified by the diverse representation in the “Six” cast.
“Any woman could play these roles,” she says. “But to be a woman of color alongside five other women of color every night … Wow! I am forever grateful to the people who came before me and opened those doors.”
And she’s grateful to have found a role that speaks to her — and cheering audiences — so deeply.
“I’m very fortunate to be part of something that is so loved,” she says. “My heart is full of joy, and we’re ready for Orlando to hear it.”
‘Six’
Where: Walt Disney Theater at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, 445 S. Magnolia Ave. in Orlando
When: Oct. 4-9
Cost:$49.75 and up
Info: drphillipscenter.org
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