When Emerson “Emmy” Mae Chan was 7 years old, she sent a tape of herself to the national touring company of “Les Misérables.” She never heard back.
But if there’s one thing the Naperville native has internalized in her early acting career, it’s resilience. There are going to be no’s. And sometimes, a no is just a “not right now.” Timing, as it turns out, is everything.
Over the summer, Emmy, now 9, was cast as little Cosette and young Eponine in the traveling Broadway production of “Les Misérables.” And over the next three weeks, she’ll be performing for local audiences as the tour stops at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre from Dec. 17 to Jan. 5. She’s excited, to say the least.
“Yes!” she said, when asked if she’s looking forward to performing at home. “For Christmas too!”
Emmy, alongside her mother Lindsay, spoke during a break in between tour stops earlier this month. She had just come off a two-week stint in Minnesota — where Emmy fondly recalled visiting the Mall of America — and was set to perform in Detroit next. Before heading off to Michigan, though, Emmy and her mom broke away to spend a couple of days in Naperville.
With Detroit only a few hours away, they planned to drive to meet up with the rest of the company for their next leg, said Lindsay Chan, sitting inside a Starbucks in Naperville. Emmy sat beside her, sipping on a pink-colored iced drink. She wore a pink sweater with pink butterfly earrings to match. Her long brown hair was pulled neatly back in a braided ponytail, making it easy to see her eyes light up at questions. A performer, through and through.
“I’ve always liked singing,” Emmy said. “You know, I was a very loud baby.”
“She did,” her mom laughed. “We have lots of videos of (her) singing to karaoke machines as a 2-year-old.”
“Les Misérables” is Emmy’s second national Broadway tour. Before stepping into the world of rebellious 19th century France, Emmy starred as Natalie Hillard in the national tour of “Mrs. Doubtfire.”
Emmy auditioned for “Les Misérables” — the second time — earlier this year while still on tour for “Mrs. Doubtfire.”
“When I (auditioned when) I was younger … I clearly was not ready,” she said. “(But this time), I was like, oh, I might be ready now.”
Emmy again sent in a self-tape for her second try at “Les Misérables.” She stood on a suitcase in the middle of her tour hotel room to film it.
This time around, she received an in-person callback. Taking a personal day from “Mrs. Doubtfire,” she flew to New York for the second audition. She didn’t find out she’d been chosen until the first week of August, when Emmy was in her last city for “Mrs. Doubtfire.”
Her agent called while she was backstage for a performance, she said. And it was a yes.
“I was like, oh, my gosh,” Emmy said. “We waited, (and) it’s the right time. Oh, my gosh, it’s been two years. I was freaking out.”
Emmy had about a month of rest at home in Naperville between tours. She was even able to go back to school in person for a little while (on tour, Emmy works with a tutor who travels alongside the company to help teach any school-age cast members). If Emmy wasn’t traveling, she’d be a fourth-grader at Spring Brook Elementary School.
She started rehearsing for “Les Misérables” in September. She had about two weeks to learn her roles and then went straight into shows, she said.
Because “Les Misérables” is on its third consecutive year touring, fitting Emmy into the show felt like acclimating to a “well-oiled machine,” Lindsay said. Emmy was stepping into roles filled by different young actors before her. For rehearsals, she shadowed and worked with her predecessors. Then, by early October, it was showtime.
Emmy’s opening city was Louisville, Kentucky.
She loves the roles that she performs eight times a week, she said. Every other show, she switches off playing little Cosette and young Eponine with another actress.
Getting to perform in “Les Misérables” every night “means a lot” to her, Emmy said. “It’s a hard thing,” she said. “You have to work really hard to get to do this, and I really love doing it. It’s something I’ll probably remember forever. I think it’s really special to me.”
“‘Les Misérables’ is so iconic, and we’re honored to be a part of it,” her mom added. “It’s just one of those things where it’s kind of like a kid’s dream role. … So now that she’s embodying that role, it’s really fun for us as parents to see her doing that and see her love doing it.”
Loving the arts is a family affair, Lindsay said.
Emmy’s grandfather was a performer, she said. While he didn’t do it professionally, he was a theater kid through high school and now sings in the Naperville Men’s Glee Club, Lindsay said. Emmy’s dad plays the guitar for their church.
“It’s definitely just kind of been a part of our family since she was young,” Lindsay said.
Though quick to explain that she’s not a performer herself, she loves and appreciates the arts “as a consumer,” she said. Lindsay, who like Emmy was born and raised in Naperville, recalled going to New York City when she was 16 and seeing her first Broadway shows, “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” and “Avenue Q.”
Emmy’s first Broadway experience was “& Juliet,” a jukebox musical that retells Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” by asking what would happen if Juliet didn’t die. One day, Emmy wants to play Juliet. Or even just appear in the ensemble, she said.
For now, though, she’s enjoying her time in “Les Misérables.” She’s set to stay on the tour through next March.
“I like just hanging out with everybody,” Emmy said, “and I love doing the show.”
