Not Harvey. Not Travolta. Just Edna.
Sean Miller-Jones talks playing Edna Turnblad in Cincinnati Landmark Production's "Hairspray"
When Sean Miller-Jones takes the stage as Edna Turnblad in Cincinnati Landmark Productions' upcoming production of Hairspray, audiences at the Warsaw Federal Incline Theatre might not immediately recognize the versatile performer who has graced stages across Cincinnati for years. That's precisely the point.
As I told him as we were reminiscing about his career, "It's easy for me to forget that you're in stuff, because you transform into these characters so deeply." His upcoming turn as Baltimore's most beloved laundress-turned-dance-sensation promises to be no exception when the show opens August 20th for a run through September 14th.
Finding Freedom Through Edna
For Miller-Jones, who describes himself as "truly an introvert" and "very anxious," the role of Edna Turnblad offers a unique opportunity to explore transformation through commonality rather than contrast.
"I don't even really think about transformation," Miller-Jones explains. "I try to think about what I have in common with [a character] and then, how can I make that more fun for me, selfishly.” He laughed. “It's almost like free therapy for me—how can I explore this facet of my personality?"
What he shares with Edna is more profound than it might initially appear. "What's most interesting to me about her is that fear of the outside world," he reflects. "I myself am very introverted—I will stay home if I can stay home. But she has to stay home.”
He further explains, “In her mind, she does not have the freedom to leave the house until she is literally forced from it."
Under the direction of Dee Anne Bryll, Miller-Jones is exploring how Edna's journey becomes one of rediscovering joy through movement and community. Bryll has emphasized the importance of dance as a communal experience—those moments at weddings or celebrations where people from all corners of your life converge on the dance floor.
"It's been years since someone asked me to dance," Edna says in "Welcome to the '60s," a line that resonates deeply with Miller-Jones's interpretation. "Finding the dance in her life to let herself love herself again—that's what's fun to me."
A Queer Sensibility in a Complex Time
This marks Miller-Jones's second time in “Hairspray,” having previously performed the role of Corny Collins under the direction of Ryan Heinrich, who serves as music director for this production. In an era where conversations about gender expression and drag performance have become increasingly politicized, Miller-Jones approaches the role with thoughtful nuance.
"It's a very interesting thing that this role is still being done this way, when it was [originally] just because of the relationship that Divine had with John Waters," he acknowledges. "But I think it's important that it keeps a little bit of a queer sensibility to the show, which it would not have otherwise. And that's something that's important to me in all theatre."
When asked about his take on the character, he said, "It's not like I'm playing at being a woman or playing it like a cross-dresser. I am just playing it the way I would play any other character—trying to find the things that I share in common with her and how I would use that in my life."
A Journey Through Theater
Sean has been honing his craft for many years. After initially pursuing music education on flute at Ohio State, Sean returned home to find himself—and started performing at Kings Island, where he worked from 2006 through various roles including the memorable Marty's Party one-man comedy show and as “Poindexter” in Tinker’s Toy Factory during the first year of this incarnation of Winterfest. He got his BFA at Wright State University, which is where I first saw him shows like “Hot Mikado.”
His theatrical journey has taken him from children's theater tours in Minnesota—where he would spend weeks in different towns mounting productions of Beauty and the Beast for young audiences—to five years in New York City (September 2015 to August 2020) with his husband, Ben Miller-Jones.
The couple, who met while performing in Rent at Dayton Playhouse South (Sean as Mark, Ben as Benny), made the decision to return to Cincinnati during the pandemic. "To go from our tiny apartment on the Upper West Side to a full house with a backyard was unbelievable," Miller-Jones recalls.
While he admits to missing New York—"I miss just having access to everything there"—he's found Cincinnati's theater scene to be remarkably robust. "The culture here is so great for a Midwestern town," he notes. "If I have to be anywhere other than New York, I am happy to be here."
We’re happy he’s here, too. He’s delighted audiences in a wide range of character driven roles like “Eddie” and “Dr. Scott” in The Carnegie’s “Rocky Horror Show” as well as “George” in “Sunday in the Park with George” at Middletown Lyric Theatre.
An Ensemble to Remember
Miller-Jones is effusive about his cast mates in this production of “Hairpsray.” Of Carly J. Shepherd, who plays his daughter Tracy, he says simply: "She was born to play Tracy. She can sing and dance her face off. She's funny and charming, and I find it impossible not to like her—and that's what a Tracy has to be."
The Turnblad family unit, completed by Douglas Berlon as Wilbur, creates what Miller-Jones calls a wonderfully proportioned stage family: "Everyone else feels very tall, and then there's me, Doug, and Carly."
He's equally enthusiastic about Jenny Herndon's take on Velma Von Tussle ("making me laugh out loud at rehearsals"), Tommy Sanders and Caroline Rakestraw as Link and Amber ("fun house mirror versions" of their previous roles together as “Brad” and “Janet” in “The Carnegie’s “Rocky Horror Show” last fall. Sean then praised the entire ensemble that brings 1960s Baltimore to vibrant life. “The whole cast is just really great.”
Looking Forward
As opening night approaches, Miller-Jones is clear about his goals: "I don't want people to see the Edna that they expect, but I don't want it to be a huge surprise either. I'm not doing anything incredibly different, but it's definitely not a recreation of anybody else's."
“I’m not Harvey [Fierstein]. I’m definitely not John Travolta. I’m playing my version of Edna.”
Following Hairspray, Miller-Jones will appear in two upcoming musicals, one where the director specifically looked for strong character actors to fill out the cast. That’s Miller-Jones’s speciality–disappearing into roles with nuance and subtlety while consistently giving killer performances.
For now, though, his focus is on bringing Edna Turnblad to life in a way that's uniquely his own—finding freedom through a character who must learn to leave her house, discovering community through dance, and maintaining what he values most: that essential "queer sensibility" that makes theater transformative.
Hairspray runs August 20 through September 14 at the Warsaw Federal Incline Theatre, presented by Cincinnati Landmark Productions. For tickets and information about Hairspray, go to here.
For more information about Sean, check out his website: SeanMillerJones.com.
