by Ben Togut
When Cady Huffman was asked to direct Empire, the new Off-Broadway musical that focuses on the courageous workers who built the Empire State Building, the decision was a no-brainer. Huffman, who first participated in a workshop of the musical in 2011 as a performer and felt connected to the show’s message, jumped at the opportunity.
However, when Huffman got the call in December 2023, she never thought the show would be up and running at New World Stages by July, where it is currently playing.
“It was so fast and furious,” Huffman said. “The set was designed in a week and built in a week. It makes it super exciting to do it that way. And you have to make decisions real fast. I learned a lot, I learned a lot about myself, about what I can do.”
One of the most exciting parts of Huffman’s process of working on Empire as a director was helping writers Caroline Sherman and Robert Hull from a dramaturgical standpoint. Empire goes back and forth in time between New York of the late 20s and early 30s, and the city in 1976, where a woman named Sylvie reflects on her father who died during building the Empire State Building. In addition to the character of Sylvie, since Huffman first worked on the show, the writers added Rudy, a Mohawk woman who disguises herself as a man to be an ironworker during the building of the iconic New York monument.. For Huffman, showcasing Rudy and other Mohawk characters was critical, allowing her and the writers to shine light on an often overlooked piece of history.
“That’s the most thrilling thing for me,” Huffman said. “The legendary Mohawk ironworkers, I can’t believe how few people know that story. So that’s what I got really excited about developing. We did a lot of dramaturgy. And a lot of trying to combine these two worlds, because it was previously a much more traditional musical than it is now.”
When it comes to her work on Empire, Huffman’s directorial ethos comes not only from her experience as an actor but from the great directors she had the privilege to work with as a performer.
“I auditioned for Bob Fosse at an open call with 1,000 people on stage,” Huffman told Broadway’s Best Shows. “When he broke us out into groups, he walked up to every single person and thanked us for coming in. Every single person got that bit of respect from him. So every person who walks into my audition room, I walk up and I shake their hand and introduce myself.”
Having been on the other side of the table, Huffman understands the unique pressures and anxieties that come with being an actor. Following in the footsteps of the directors who came before her, Huffman understands that leading from a place of friendliness and empathy is what encourages performers to be the best they can be.
In Empire, what stands out most about the production is the palpable level of camaraderie and among the cast. The kinsmanship among the members of the company emerges in part because Empire is a show about community, about people from different cultures coming together and persevering despite the obstacles in their way. However, it is also a testament to Huffman’s ability to nurture talent and to forge strong working relationships in the rehearsal room.
An experience that has shaped Huffman’s approach to directing came early in her career. In 1991, Huffman took on her first major role on Broadway as Ziegfield’s Favorite in The Will Rogers Follies. She recalls standing in front of Tommy Tune, 25 and terrified, uncertain of how to approach her big scene during rehearsal.
“Tommy Tune comes up to me and gives me the best direction I’ve ever gotten,” Huffman said. “He says, ‘Well, Cady, do something.’ I threw everything into that speech …kicks, cartwheels, splits, turns, everything, my ears were on fire. And I just put much too much into it, and he goes, ‘Great, now we can start.’ Come in with ideas. Because it’s much easier for me, as a director, to say ‘do less’ than it is to try to pull energy out of somebody.”
As a director, Huffman values this spirit of play and improvisation because it allows the rehearsal room to be a space of collaboration. While she can show performers how she would approach certain beats as an actor, Huffman is far more interested in what performers come up with organically.
“When I have allowed talented young people to do something, they always do something better than I would do and more creative than I would do,” Huffman explained. “My experiences have always been to allow people to do what they do well, and then I can always give notes and I can always say no. But mostly people are going to surprise me with their vision.”
Expanding on her ethos as a director, Huffman borrows from an unlikely source: John Wooden, the former head coach of the UCLA Bruins.
“John Wooden has this great book about not creating great basketball players, but creating great scholars and gentlemen,” Huffman said. “And I would much rather approach life like that. I can teach you how to sing, dance, act, I can tell you all the technical stuff. But really, I want to enjoy being in the room with you. I want to help you understand the joy of rehearsals, the joy of finding it.”