Sydney James Harcourt, a name synonymous with dynamic Broadway performances and Grammy-winning talent, is currently immersed in what he describes as his pre-show ritual: rest. It’s a discipline born from necessity and a commitment to his craft. “I can’t go out,” he laughs, suggesting it’s a choice he embraces. “One, because I can’t be up that late. I’ve got to get up at dawn and go to the gym. And two, every bar is a super-spreader event, and I can’t be sick. You can’t stay healthy without sleep. For me, it’s common sense.”
Harcourt firmly believes that discipline is not about deprivation but rather about enhancement. “I don’t feel that it’s an imposition in any way,” he states. “It’s kept me youthful. It keeps my body the way I want it. The discipline has only made everything in my life better. It serves my voice.” This voice, a remarkable instrument capable of fluid transitions from classical soprano to contemporary pop, earned him a Grammy as a featured artist on the groundbreaking production of Hamilton. It has also cemented his status as one of Broadway’s most compelling performers. Now, the Detroit-born actor, singer, and dancer is taking on one of musical theatre’s most celebrated and reimagined roles: Rum Tum Tugger in CATS: The Jellicle Ball. This ambitious production, produced by Michael Harrison, Mike Bosner, Cynthia Erivo, Billy Porter, LaChanze, Jeremy Pope, and Lena Waithe, officially opens on April 7, with previews commencing March 18.
A New Era for a Classic Tale
This is not the Cats you might remember from childhood. CATS: The Jellicle Ball transposes Andrew Lloyd Webber’s iconic musical into the vibrant and expressive world of ballroom culture. The production masterfully weaves voguing and house traditions into the fabric of the beloved score. For Harcourt, a Grammy winner, dedicated LGBTQ+ advocate, and proud member of the House of Oricci, this conceptual shift resonates deeply on a personal level.
“The hook for me initially was that they were setting it in the ballroom community,” Harcourt explains. “I always wanted theatre to be current. And what I saw in this revival, adding ballroom and voguing to the mix, I thought, I have to be part of this.”
From Detroit to Discipline: A Journey of Discovery
Harcourt’s path to Broadway began far from the bright lights of Times Square. Raised in Detroit by an English teacher mother and a piano prodigy father, he was immersed in music from a young age. “My mom put me in piano lessons. My dad was a piano prodigy. They thought I was going to have the same gift,” he recalls. “I really liked it. I played classical piano. But singing felt like magic.”
During his teenage years, his talent led him to audition for the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy in Northern Michigan, where he secured a full scholarship in classical voice. Instead of opting for traditional physical education, he enrolled in general dance classes.
“I auditioned for The Nutcracker to be a party parent,” he says with a wide grin. “But one of the larger guys tore his rotator cuff, and they asked if I’d be willing to learn the partnering for the Arabian pas de deux. Of course, I said yes. Adventure is kind of my thing.” This pivotal moment marked the beginning of his deep connection with dance.
“I grew up overweight in school. I never went to a school dance. So, to suddenly be on stage, dancing on such a large scale, it was intoxicating.” This passion led Harcourt to become Interlochen’s first-ever double major in voice and dance. His days were structured with mornings dedicated to academics, afternoons to intensive voice lessons, and evenings filled with dance rehearsals, six days a week.
“That’s where the discipline began,” he reflects. “Being around dancers who constantly have to stretch, who aren’t allowed to go skiing because if you get hurt, you’re out of the show. That level of commitment shaped me.”
A Ballroom Calling and a Taste of the Real
Upon graduating, Harcourt sold his car and moved to New York as a teenager, driven by the ambition of gracing a Broadway stage. However, his time in the city also became a period of profound self-discovery.
“I’m this gay kid who’s never experienced gay culture,” he admits. “The first thing I started doing when I didn’t have a job was exploring club life. That’s where I got my first taste of voguing.” The ballroom scene was non-existent in Michigan, but in New York, he witnessed dancers command club floors with “death-defying and awe-inspiring” moves.
“There was nowhere to learn this except the clubs,” he explains. “I wasn’t involved in the houses at first. I had just moved here by myself. I didn’t have community. So, the club was where I could go and dance and learn.”
Therefore, when his agents presented the opportunity for Cats, with the crucial detail that it was being reimagined through a ballroom lens, he seized it without hesitation. “They were like, ‘I’ve got an audition for you. It’s for Cats. But I think you’re going to like it because they’re doing it ballroom,’” he recounts. “I was on the next flight to New York in my cuntiest outfit,” he says, laughing. “Arturo looked at me and said, ‘You look like you’re going to the Beyoncé Renaissance tour. You got a ticket? Can I go with you?’”
For the first time in an audition room, Harcourt felt completely seen and embraced. “In other rooms, I felt like I had to hide parts of who I really am. In this room, they wanted to see all of me.”
A New Rum Tum Tugger Emerges
Buzz surrounding a potential Tony Award nomination has already begun to circulate for Harcourt, following his critically acclaimed performance as Rum Tum Tugger in the off-Broadway production of CATS: The Jellicle Ball at the Perelman Performing Arts Center in 2024.
Traditionally, Rum Tum Tugger is portrayed as a swaggering showboat, exuding overt confidence and physicality. Harcourt’s interpretation, however, delves into ballroom’s sophisticated “pretty boy realness” category. “There’s a sensuality and a confidence,” he explains. “But it’s more subtle. It’s, ‘No, no, no. You come to me. I don’t need to come to you.’”
He draws inspiration from archetypes like Prince, George Michael, and Usher, envisioning them as the potential parents of a new pop icon. “For me, they embody what’s hot about male pop, what drives everybody wild.” The production team actively encouraged Harcourt to infuse his authentic self into the role. “One of the best notes I got was, ‘Put more of who you are into it. You don’t have to try to do anything.’ That was scary. On Broadway, you feel like you have to be doing something or they’ll be bored. But sometimes when you do less and let them come to you, that’s the most magnetizing thing.”
Even Hollywood heavyweight Melissa McCarthy was captivated. After attending an early performance, she sought him out backstage. “She said, ‘I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. I was taking notes the entire time, how subtle what you were doing was.’ For me, that’s what it’s about. Draw everyone in, keep it subtle, keep it sexy, still keep it Rum Tum Tugger.”
Beyond Hamilton: A Bold Prediction
Harcourt, who was an original member of the Hamilton Broadway company and later stepped into the pivotal role of Aaron Burr in a career-defining triumph, is not hesitant to make bold predictions for The Jellicle Ball. “I can’t say I feel the same Hamilton vibe,” he states carefully. “I feel this is going to be so much bigger. I don’t say that lightly.”
His conviction stems from the production’s groundbreaking nature. “It’s breaking so many ceilings. It’s so firmly rooted in what’s happening in the world, in civil rights, in personal freedoms. The talent, diversity, and love for one another in this cast and creative team are unparalleled. And it’s already a property people love worldwide. To take something that’s been a staple and give it a battle cry, give it a new meaning, an anthem for resistance, for self-empowerment, I think it will resonate in a way Hamilton couldn’t.”
The significance of portraying the first Black Rum Tum Tugger on Broadway is not lost on him. “Sometimes it’s bigger than I can really take in,” he admits.
World Domination (Naturally) and Future Endeavours
Amidst the demanding schedule of eight shows a week, Harcourt is already setting his sights on future ambitions. “In the words of Madonna, world domination,” he declares with a smile. He has completed an entire album and plans to release new music soon. Simultaneously, he is pursuing intensive acting studies, aiming to transition into film and television roles, building upon his previous appearances in shows like Blue Bloods, Law & Order, Elementary, and Doc.
On the Netflix series Castlevania: Nocturne, he lends his voice to Edouard, a mixed-race countertenor who performs Monteverdi and Purcell arias while navigating supernatural challenges, a poignant callback to his classical roots. “I try to pick things that speak to who I am and the path I’ve come through,” he notes.
He is also actively developing a film project centered on the life of Burt Williams, a pioneering Black American entertainer who rose to mega-stardom and was possibly the nation’s first Black millionaire, despite the complex legacy of his use of blackface. “His story is poignant,” Harcourt says. “It just speaks to me.”
Underpinning all these aspirations is a profound sense of gratitude, particularly towards his mother. “She sacrificed everything so I could try to live my dream,” he shares. “I told her I was dropping out of school and moving to New York, and she supported me. She never wavered. So I’m determined to push this as far as it will go.”
For now, that determined push is directed towards The Jellicle Ball, and he extends an invitation to experience it. “You’re going to have to dress up,” he teases about attending the show. “You’d better turn a look.”
In Harcourt’s world, discipline translates to devotion, vulnerability becomes power, and the ball is truly just beginning.
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