Chase Wolfe was looking for his next gig when someone reached out and asked him to audition for “Pretty Woman.”
He admitted he didn’t know much about the show, but decided to take a leap of faith. His first step in securing the part was watching the movie.
“Pretty Woman,” a 1980s film-to-stage adaptation, follows Vivian, a Hollywood Boulevard hooker hired by Edward, a businessman who needed an escort for the week to join him on professional functions. Soon enough, the two fall for one another, but before they can find their way back together, they need to find themselves.
Wolfe said he fell in love with Richard Gere’s portrayal of Edward.
(MurphyMade/Matthew Murphy)
“He says very little, but tells you a lot, at least with his face. When he speaks, it matters,” Wolfe said.
Wolfe now gets the chance to portray Edward himself. He’s the leading man in the national tour of “Pretty Woman.”
“I feel like Richard Gere’s character, he’s just like constantly saying, ‘I love you,’ without using words, which is really really fun. It’s been a challenge to take that to the stage, because people aren’t up close and personal. The people in the mezzanine can’t even see my eyes probably,” Wolfe said. “To be able to translate that across literally physical distance is a little bit challenging and everything has to be amped up a little more, but I really enjoy it.”
He credited leading lady Ellie Baker, who plays Vivian, with helping him develop Edward as a character. He evolves from a businessman who would walk all over anyone to man who would do anything for the woman he loves.
“Ellie and I, we have so much fun on stage together, and she’s a brilliant actress,” he said. “My favorite part of the show is every time I step into a scene with Ellie. She’s just an incredible performer. It doesn’t feel like I’m performing anymore; it just feels like two people having a good time on stage.”
But his favorite scene to perform is the opera scene. He’s singing as the opera singer is giving her performance, creating a unique sort of duet on stage.
During that part of the show, Edward gives Vivian a necklace. Wolfe said Baker is genuinely smiling and laughing throughout the whole bit.
“It’s never fake,” he said.
(MurphyMade/Matthew Murphy)
That pure joy is exactly what Wolfe wants people to feel when they watch “Pretty Woman.”
“It’s such a fun show. It’s such a nostalgic show for those who know the movie,” Wolfe said. “I hope they take away joy. I hope they take away — you know we speak a lot about never giving up on a dream; we speak a lot about how strong and independent Vivian is.”
While it’s a love story, it’s also a story about empowering women. Wolfe said that’s one of the best parts of the show.
“Also, I’m just a sucker for a woman empowerment story,” Wolfe said. “We’re at an age where that is becoming a norm and should be a norm. To look past gender, past everything — to just treat everyone around you with equity and equality is important.”
(MurphyMade/Matthew Murphy)
Wolfe and Baker are bringing this empowering romance to countless tour stops across the country from 2023 to 2024, including a stop in Akron, Ohio (Oct. 17 to 18, Playhouse Square), Findlay, Ohio (Oct. 19, Marathon Center for the Performing Arts), Lexington, Ky. (Oct. 20 to 22, Lexington Opera House) and Appleton, Wis. (Oct. 24 to 29, Fox Cities Performing Arts Center).
