Four Inane Questions with actress Stasha Case

Freaky Friday rehearsal with Maddy Terril as Ellie and Stasha Case as Katherine. // Courtesy TIP

Brace yourself, Kansas City—actress Stasha Case is poised to get her freak on starting this weekend.  

Uh, so to speak. 

Theatre in the Park Outdoor’s season opener, the musical Freaky Friday debuted on Friday, June 2 for its seven-performance run. Based on the Disney hit movie, Freaky Friday has mother and daughter trading places when comedic hell breaks loose.

Among a talented and diverse cast of local performers, you’ll find Case starring as mom Katherine who swaps bodies with daughter Ellie. For Case, it was the perfect chance to relive her teen (and teen angst) years. 

The show marks Case’s 24th TIP show. In addition, the stalwart actress has also been in ensemble performances at Barn Players, Chestnut Fine Arts, Late Night Theatre, and New Theatre, just to name a few. 

We caught up with the thespian as she was headed on stage for one of her last dress rehearsals. We quickly reminded her that Jamie Lee Curtis once played the same role—and is now an Academy Award winner. Bless.

The Pitch: What’s the longest you’ve ever waited on hold on the phone—and what was the scenario?

Stasha Case. // Courtesy photo

Stasha Case: I’m sure it was when I was on hold with the IRS trying to resolve a personal tax dispute, and I was on hold for over two hours if I recall. I finally gave up and had to write a letter like the pioneers did back in the day.

What’s a song where you butcher nearly all the lyrics because you don’t know what they are?

I butcher a lot of lyrics, but the worst butchering is when I tell my husband I know all the words to “Jai Ho!” (That’s the theme song for the movie Slumdog Millionaire and the lyrics are in a combination of Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi.)

It was my favorite song for a while, and I would do my best to make it “sound” the same, but anyone who speaks those languages would probably not understand what I was singing.

What’s been your biggest/most memorable stage mishap?

There have been so very many—and in those instances, you just keep going. 

As Peter Pan (2009) at The White Theatre, I was sword fighting with Captain Hook, and my sword blade just plain fell off the handle. I awkwardly scrambled to get it, but then I just “flew” out of the way.

In Daddy’s Dying, Who’s Got the Will (2012) at The Chestnut Fine Arts Center, I was wearing a trashy cow print halter top with an open back just held on by some laces. It broke during a scene. 

For the rest of the scene, I had to keep my arms at my sides just to hold my top on. I couldn’t raise my arms to gesture except below the elbow, so I looked like a robot for the rest of the scene. I kept it on, though!

What’s one of your favorite bits of choreography/dance scene that lives rent-free in your head?

I still know the dance to the chorus of “Dancing Queen” from Mamma Mia! (2021) at Theatre in the Park. That’s mostly because I absolutely will get up and do it at bars and parties when that song is played. Every. Time.

Bonus 5th Question: If you were a meme, what kind of meme would you be?

It would either be “I could be a morning person—if morning happened around noon…”

Or “I dusted once. It came back. I’m not falling for that again.”