Mamma Mia, here he goes again.
Oak Parker and OPRF alum Grant Reynolds, 25, will be rocking the stage in his Broadway debut at the James M. Nederlander Theatre in Chicago as Sky Rymand in the hit Broadway musical “Mamma Mia!”
Getting his start in BRAVO, an “extracurricular, award-winning, nationally recognized” performing arts program at Brooks Middle School, Reynolds said the D97 program helped propel him forward in his acting.
“We are so blessed to have such a strong community theater foundation here,” Reynolds said, adding he began participating in BRAVO “religiously.”
“That has sustained me until today honestly,” he said.
At Oak Park and River Forest High School, Reynolds kept that momentum going through various musical ensembles and a few shows.
Reynolds is a “true triple threat,” said Performing Arts Department Chair and Director of Theatre Michelle Bayer, who directed him in three productions at OPRF: “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Anything Goes,” and “Little Shop of Horrors.”
Bayer recalled her “highlight” moment with Reynolds, “Little Shop of Horrors,” which they performed at the Illinois High School Theatre Festival at Illinois State University. Reynolds portrayed “Audrey II” [ the plant] and was “amazing,” Bayer said.
“It is very difficult to play this sort of role because you don’t have your body to communicate, everything is done with your voice,” she said. “Grant created the detailed character of the plant so well that he was approached at Festival to audition for the All-State production the next year.”
That audition landed him the titular role in the Illinois Theatre Association’s All State Production of “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” which he said solidified that acting was his dream.
“When I got it, I was honestly very surprised and very shocked. I didn’t think that was something that could be realistic for me,” Reynolds said. “As I was doing the show, it could not have been more clear that that was where I wanted my life to go.”
The transition from doing community theater to a bigger stage gave Reynolds a hint of what the future held for him.
“It was one of the biggest preparations for what I am doing right now,” Reynolds said.
After his high school graduation in 2017, Reynolds attended Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, graduating in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts and drama.
Reynolds said he loved that it was a small program, calling it “musical theater heaven.”
“That school, it felt like we were all superheroes coming from these different areas trying to train and hone in on our talent,” Reynolds said.
Before his big move to New York City, Reynolds was cast as Otis in “Anything is Possible,” a Gen-Z coming-of-age story directed by Billy Porter and written by Ximena Garcia Lecuona.
In the Big Apple, Reynolds began auditioning while supporting himself as a nanny, which gave him the opportunity to work with kids again.
“I love teaching kids. I think kids are easier to manage than adults,” Reynolds said.
Before “Mamma Mia!” Reynolds also performed at The Muny, the oldest and largest outdoor amphitheater in St. Louis, performing in “Sweeney Todd” and “The Color Purple.”
In March 2023, Reynolds auditioned for the role of Sky Rymand in “Mamma Mia!”
“I heard of ‘Mamma Mia!’ of course, but I had never seen it, I had never seen the movie,” Reynolds said.
But Reynolds familiarized himself with the show, and despite what he called a “terrible” audition, he got a call back. He then gave what he called was the “best audition he ever had” and was booked.
“I was in shock honestly,” he said. “It all happened at once … I was just so nervous. I have never been in a principal-lead contract, on a Broadway tour let alone … It was my biggest dream come true,” he said.
When the show comes to Chicago, he plans to soak it up, and has already scheduled time with family and friends. He’s also making sure he hits up all the good food spots — he wants his Portillos, he said.
Despite the twinges of homesickness — he misses his mom sometimes — his future could not be clearer, he said. He is an actor.
“I am so lucky to get to do a show that is so full of joy and something where we are actively injecting joy into the audience,” Reynolds said. “I wake up for work and I am happy every single day.”
“Mamma Mia!” opens in Chicago’s James M. Nederlander Theatre April 30 and runs through May 19.
