Gabriel Rush is a 13-year-old actor who many avid fans of the Broadway and West End hit show, Billy Elliot the Musical, fondly remember from his days of playing Billy’s best friend, Michael, on the stages of Chicago’s Oriental Theatre and Broadway’s Imperial Theatre. Most recently, Gabe’s work has been seen on TV and in films and now he is set to play one of the main roles in Jonathan Bucari’s new full-length feature film called Max’s Fantastic Adventures.  For more background on that film, please see “An Interview With Filmmaker Jonathan Bucari“.

As part of our on-going chronicling of the making of this new film, Theskykid.com caught up with Gabe recently for an interview…

Note: For this interview, the questions posed by theskykid.com will be represented by an “SK” and “GR” will indicate Gabe’s answers. To view captions on any of the pictures in this article, just run your cursor over the picture.

SK: Hello, Gabe, and welcome to theskykid.com.  Thank you for doing the interview.

SK: For those of our readers who may not be familiar with you and your busy career in show business, could you tell us a little about yourself?  How old you were when you first got involved in the entertainment field and what led you to get involved in acting?

GR:  I started dancing when I was four. It was just for fun, but I really liked it. When I was nine my school, Seven Star School of Performing Arts, gave me a special scholarship in tap and I decided to take the plunge and audition for their competitive dance company.  At the very first competition, I was spotted by John Shea, Director of the NY Office of Frontier Booking International (FBI), and we have been working together ever since. That’s when I really started to do more singing and acting along with the dance.

SK: Though you seem to be working most recently in the film and TV areas of the entertainment business, you got your start in live theater and many of your fans know you from that aspect of your career.  Was your 2008 involvement with the White Plains (NY) Performing Art Center’s production of Oliver! your first venture into acting in theater?  How did that come about and what was your experience like?

GR:  Yes, Oliver! was my first job in musical theater and it was a terrific experience, especially working with all the great boys that played the orphans and pickpockets. I auditioned for it in NYC and that is where we also rehearsed until we started tech week.

SK: Of course many of your fans know you from Billy Elliot the Musical (BETM) where you played the role of Billy’s friend Michael.  What was the audition process like for you for that show?

GR:  I was only nine when I first auditioned. It took almost two years and a total of eight auditions and callbacks before I landed the role. I was on the tour with 101 Dalmatians when the call came in to go to NYC on the day off in Dallas to have one final callback, this time for the Chicago production. It was a crazy day and very intensive, but it was worth it!

SK: You ended up being in two different productions of BETM.  What was your experience like in Chicago and then the couple of stints you did in the show on Broadway?

GR:  Chicago was awesome! We had many weeks to prepare and the show was really solid. I had the pleasure of working with all of the original creative team. We lived very close to the theater and could walk there. Broadway was even better. I had been away from home for a whole year and it was so wonderful to be back home and still doing such a great show. The Broadway cast was very supportive and welcoming.

SK: As was mentioned earlier, you’ve done some TV work.  What shows have you worked on and what roles did you play?

GR:  I played a character called ‘Harry’ in  Law and Order SVU, in an episode called “Mask” – a boy who witnesses a terrible crime through his rear window. That aired in January of this year.  I also played a boy looking for an adoptive home in a comedy pilot called “Good Intentions”.  That was filmed in February.  (Editor’s Note: Whether that might be picked up as a mid-season replacement is not known at this time).

SK:  The earliest movie work listed on your IMDb page is a short film called Borrowed Dog.  What was your role in that film and what was that first acting in a movie experience like?

GR:  I played Thomas Wilson, the son of an accountant and a housewife trying desperately to keep the appearance of a “perfect family”. Acting in a movie was so different and it felt like the environment was more relaxed. Everything is so chopped up and filmed in pieces. I learned to bring books or games to have things to do while waiting for the next set up. It was really fun!

SK:  What was the transition like for you working first in live theater and then motion pictures?

GR: It’s very different and similar at the same time. On Broadway, you have to bring everything like as if it was your first time. It’s really demanding and you have to bring the same energy everyday. However on film, it’s sometimes quite the same when the director asks you to do the scene again and again.

SK: You worked with Writer/Director Jonathan Bucari in the made-for-TV-movie The Sacrificial Lamb a few months ago. That movie is now in post-production and is expected to be aired this winter. Why did you choose to work with Jonathan and for what part were you cast in that film?

GR: Jonathan is a very good and fun director. I can really see him going far. He is also an amazing writer and chooses really well the people he works with. I had a lot a fun working with him. I was cast for the part of the older brother and first son of a Senator.  In the story there is a threat against the Senator and his family and the FBI comes to protect them. After that it all erupts…

SK: And now you’re set to be in Jonathan Bucari’s first full-length feature film Max’s Fantastic Adventures.  What drew you into working with Jonathan again? 

GR: I was with Jonathan the first time he mentioned Max’s Fantastic Adventures. Like every story he writes, I was completely into it. You really have to be with him to see and share his vision. The script is really funny and the dialogues really well written. In the movie, I will play Steven, a very good friend and comedic sidekick of Max.

I chose to work again with Jonathan because I was one of the first persons to discover the synopsis and I wanted so badly to be part of it. Jonathan wrote this story for us (me and some acting friends of mine) because we worked at Billy Elliot and he liked our work in that show. I feel so connected with my character; it could have been me in the story. I could definitely see myself in the film. And the idea to work again with Jonathan is really exciting. Each one of his stories is an extraordinary journey and I feel really privileged to be part of it.

SK: Other than “Max” and the other projects you’ve already told us about, what else have you been working on recently or hope to in the future that you can talk about?

GR:  This past summer I spent two months in Rhode Island filming a principal part in Wes Anderson’s new movie Moonrise Kingdom. (Editor’s Note: That movie will also star Bruce Willis and Bill Murray among others, and is currently in post-production with a projected release date in 2012).  Other than that I am auditioning every week and I just finished a workshop of Pan, a new rock musical based on Peter Pan. And I am really hoping to be part of Anthony Giunta’s movie,  The Prize Guys, when it films next summer.

SK: Is there anything you’d like to tell our readers that we haven’t asked about?

GR:  I’m a huge animal lover. We have horses, dogs and cats at home, and I am working on being a better horseback rider.

Once again, thanks to a very busy Gabriel Rush for spending some time talking about his blossoming career and especially his involvement with Max’s Fantastic Adventures.  He’s a young man who’s star is rising and we’ll be bringing our readers more about Gabe (and about the other main actors in the film) as we continue our coverage of the making of the film.