It's a Wonderful Life, on stage and off: a conversation with Harmon Swartz, who plays George Bailey in Don Bluth Theatre's production of this classic story

Isaac Greenland, Erica Parrish,  Petra Danek, Harmon Swartz, Jaeda Pasha, De’Layla Wilcox
photo by Lee Cooley

by Haddi Meyer

Harmon Swartz is an accomplished local actor with two arZoni Award nominations under his belt. His latest acting venture? Reprising his role of George Bailey in It’s A Wonderful Life at Don Bluth Front Row Theatre, a role which netted him a Zoni nomination for Lead Actor in a Play last season.

After its success last year, Swartz is gracing the stage once again with his portrayal of the beloved iconic role which was immortalized on screen by Jimmy Stewart. He is appearing alongside his co-star Erica Parrish who is also returning to the part of Mary and who also got a Zoni nod last season for her performance.

There are plenty of challenges that come along with playing an iconic role in an iconic show, and with the Holiday season already beginning, and as tech week for It’s A Wonderful Life was in full swing, Swartz found some time to discuss his role and this show.

How did you decide to audition for George Bailey last season?

“Actually I was called and asked to audition last year. It was kind of one of those roles that I had never really thought about but it’s one of those iconic roles and I thought it would be fun to play.”

What made you decide to return to the role again?

“It was really all about the money. I’m just kidding, just kidding! It wasn’t about the money. I really liked playing the role the first time and Erica who played Mary and I had a really good chemistry with the show and with Cheryl Schaar as director we really had a great time putting the show together. She asked us to see if we wanted to come back and do it and we agreed and it’s really been a chance for me to develop the character more.”

It’s A Wonderful Life is a classic movie, and although it didn’t do well in its box office release it blew up and became a holiday classic that so many people watch every year. Why do you think it is such a beloved classic?

“Well, that’s funny you ask because the first year I played the role I spent a lot of time trying to get used to the blocking and movement throughout the show, you know you learn your lines, and you learn your interactions with other characters. Then you start to work on character development. Now that this is my second year doing it, it’s given me the opportunity to look at the show and the story itself. The first year that I played [this role], what kind of rang true to me is this is a story about someone who runs out of all hope and is put in a position where the alternative is to end his life, and he thinks it would make things better. There’s this whole concept of suicide as the solution to all your problems, and while they don’t address it directly, it is, in my opinion, one of the biggest themes in the show: someone putting value on their life, despite what they're up against and realizing that their value goes far beyond just themself. It really expresses the impact that a human being has on the people around them and it shows that your worth is more than your bank account.”

Harmon Swartz and Katherine Martin in
It Happened One Night
Photo Courtesy Don Bluth Front Row Theatre

Where did your portrayal of George Bailey come from, and how is this year's Bailey different from last years?

“I have been in a couple of shows at the theatre now and I have played a couple of different characters in various shows and ironically those characters all have aspects of my personal life. They mirror a lot of the things that I have done, or they mirror something in my world. It’s always challenging to play an iconic character played by an iconic actor. I played Peter Warren in It Happened One Night who was played by Clark Gable. These are challenging roles and shoes to fill. For me, I kind of took the George Bailey role as ‘this is stuff I have already encountered as a person throughout my life.' Feelings of inadequacy or that you’re a failure or not doing what you’re supposed to. That you’re not following the dreams you want to follow, but you feel like you’re obligated to do certain things, and the resentment that comes with that. But at the same time realizing your value, and the gratitude you have for the world that is actually around you and the impact that you do have on it.”

What do you think is the most impactful part of the show?

“We’ve enhanced the chase scene with Mary. Last year it was pretty limited, and we’ve kind of intensified that. We’ve added in [George] punching Bert. I think that scene, that’s really where the apex of George’s mania and insanity in that world kind of comes to a head. I think that scene, the chase scene and getting into Pottersville, because this year you get to see Violet getting arrested as a prostitute, and you see Ernie has lost his wife and kid, living alone in Pottersville. All the people who don’t know George and seeing the impact that George had on everyone, just by being alive. I think the Mary Chase scene is pretty powerful. It’s going to be a good one.”

You mentioned that there are differences between last year’s show and this year's show, but how different is the stage version from the film?

“Obviously there are always challenges when you are dealing with a stage production, such as if there are vehicles involved you don’t have vehicles so you’re not going to see him crashing his car into the tree, which then is the first introduction you get into Pottersville. We have actual angels that you see, not just clarence. Some of the cinematography, some of the dissolves into other scenes are challenging, but we’ve done some things to overlap a few scenes to create that feeling of movie dissolves, and I think we’ve done that pretty well. Honestly there is not a whole lot of difference between the movie and the stage show. I think we do an excellent job of interpreting what happens in that movie.

What did it feel like last September when you learned that the production of this show last season won the Zoni for best overall production?

“It was interesting because Erica and I were both nominated for best actor and actress in a play for It’s A Wonderful Life so we were all sitting together in the Zonis when it happened, and it was like, ‘wait a minute, what?’. We thought the show was a great show but it was a bit of a surprise, like ‘did we really just win that?’. It was kind of cool. Cheryl went up and accepted the award and it was just kind of this moment of disbelief, like we couldn’t believe it, it was incredible. It creates this instantaneous expectation in yourself that you have to raise the bar. Having conversations about wanting to reprise this role were solidified in that sense when you think about how [we won] and just had to do it again.”

CLICK HERE for more information on It's a Wonderful Life at Don Bluth Front Row Theatre, which runs through December 29th