Next month Amy Lehpamer hits the stage in Dusty The Musical – In Concert exclusively to Brisbane at the Concert Hall, QPAC. As one of Australia’s most celebrated musical theatre performers, Amy will bring the iconic 60s soul singer Dusty Springfield back to life. This comes after her Helpmann Award nominated performance in the role for The Production Company in 2016. The Scoop had the chance to sit down with Amy ahead of the season. Amy talks all things Dusty, including how playing this role has helped her as an artist and what audiences can expect this time around. Read the full interview below.
The world has changed a lot since you first played Dusty. What’s been easier about revisiting this musical and what are some of the new challenges?
Oh, goodness. I have some comfort knowing that I have done it before because it’s a marathon of a role. So I feel that brings some comfort, but it also brings some fear, because I’m nine years older than I was, and I didn’t have time to think about it last time. I just went headlong into it and was really enthusiastic.
Now I have a bit more knowledge of just how huge the journey the character goes on. So I’m slightly intimidated to be re-entering it again. But I’m excited, because singing the songs ahead of rehearsals starting, it’s been amazing how my body has re-metabolized them with the same kinds of feelings and emotions. So she’s still in me, and I’m really excited to live with her again.
How has playing someone like Dusty helped you in your own artistry? Have there been any professional breakthroughs or moments of wisdom about surviving the industry as a singer and a woman?
I distinctly remember at the end of the last Dusty run thinking, ‘Oh, I am a singer.’ Which I know sounds very odd. I’ve always loved to sing, but for me, musical theatre is sort of the whole package. The singing and the acting are intertwined. And I hadn’t necessarily thought of myself much as just a singer, that my voice might be interesting or compelling.
When you watch a lot of documentaries, Dusty felt the same way about herself. She had the compulsion to sing and wanted it to be as good as it could be, but it was the audience that decided their opinion on it. That’s the kind of journey the artist makes.
I was profoundly shocked at the response I had from the audience the first time I performed Dusty’s songs. There’s something about this music that gels with me really wonderfully. I have never felt more in my power as an artist vocally than I have with this role. So she definitely gave me that.
While I’m borrowing from her and stylistically being true to the 60s style that she had, it’s not an impersonation. It’s an honesty and expression, and I really respond to it. I think that was the gift of Dusty last time.
I’ve been singing these songs consistently in the intervening years. They kind of haven’t left me, because I really think that they’re the best match for me vocally more than anything I’ve ever done. It’s such a huge thrill to be able to revisit the role, but it was something I definitely never expected. I feel incredibly lucky to get this opportunity again.
Do you have any vocal health tips or go-to rituals while you’re in rehearsal or on tour or doing a role like this?
The thing with Dusty that I have to come back to is that to achieve the sound and the style of her time, she’s a recording artist, so she’s singing into a microphone. She’s not necessarily projecting to the back of the concert hall. Amplification and reverb and all those things are tools of her artistry.
And so as the artist, I have to embrace those things, which means, just pulling back a little bit more to create more colours, and really leaning into the contrast. And it just means taking care that there are delicate moments which also have the effect of being gentler on the voice. It’s not foot to the floor the whole time.
So those contrasts that she used so beautifully are actually the best thing I can employ to get myself through the show. To have those peaks and troughs and to actively rest where I can throughout the show.
I was listening to her music yesterday, and there’s almost a dream-like quality to it.
Yes, her music had the full orchestras, the big, fat orchestral sounds. She’d envelop herself in the sound of that track and then sing her songs. She existed as a small part of the whole. And that dream-like quality, even just the way that they recorded back then, on those amazing ribbon mics, gives this kind of texture to the sound that is really different to how things are recorded now in the digital age.
And I think, the more you listen to it, the more your ear longs for it because there’s just so much depth and texture and life in that recorded sound. It’s a hard thing to emulate, but it is a beautiful world to enter into.
What are you most excited for audiences to experience with Dusty The Musical – In Concert?
This show is really beautiful because it combines a songbook that even if you don’t think you know a Dusty song, you know a Dusty song. So it’s this amazing, familiar songbook full of fantastic songs that have stood the test of time. And we’ve got this story of a woman who was ahead of her time in so many ways, but who was also incredibly human and incredibly flawed. She really tried to find her voice, figuratively and literally. She actually found her voice early. But discovering who she was and being able to express herself as her full self was a difficult journey for her.
From my experience last time, the audience really goes on that journey with Dusty. They see her highs and lows, her bad behaviours, her best behaviours. You get the gamut of a person’s life, and she really did live it.
So it’s wonderful to see that writ large on stage, and it really does take you on an amazing journey. It’s emotional, it’s heartwarming. There’s a lot of depth to it. Her big ballads are so full of life and emotion, and her own story really mirrors that.
You’ve had some pretty cool stage roles, from Maria in The Sound of Music to Janet in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and the list goes on. Is there anything left on your bucket list that you’d like to play?
Absolutely! I would love to do a Sondheim musical, which is definitely, you know, a music theatre person’s kind of..
Shakespeare.
Shakespeare, exactly. I’d love to do Company or Into the Woods. I would also love to be involved in a new show, to create a character and work with a wonderful writer, and create something from the ground up. That would be amazing.
I’ve been really fortunate to play so many roles, and I just love meeting new roles. When a role comes along, just auditioning for it, it’s exciting. It’s kind of like dating. I’m very happily married. (She laughs) But there is just something about it where you get to meet this person and find their sound, find their rhythms; it’s kind of intoxicating.
And the opportunity to be in their shoes for a little while, to deliver a message that you’ve never delivered before. It’s really thrilling. I know I’ve been doing this for a little while now, but that excitement still hasn’t left me. So I just hope there’s more, that’s all I could ever say. I just hope that there’s more to come.
What advice would you give to anyone who wants to get into this industry?
My advice is, only do it if you love it, because it’s hard. It takes nurturing, it takes love and care. The enthusiasm you have for it is something that will continue to show up for an audience. And it’s part of the X factor of a performer I think. They genuinely want to be on stage and delivering at eight shows a week.
And eight shows a week is not simple, it’s not glamorous. It’s a job. It becomes a job. And that’s not necessarily for everyone. Even if people have the skills, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll have that same enthusiasm and love for it. The two don’t necessarily combine.
I think it’s important to always check in with yourself and be honest about the feeling you have about the work. Because it is work. If you love it, you’ll never want to be anywhere else. But if you don’t, there are plenty of ways to express that love other than an eight-show week.
Just as an aside, I was really thrilled the other night to watch a performance of Carrie by the Griffith Musical Theatre Academy. And I felt that it was just palpable. Everyone on stage just loved it, they wanted to be there. They were doing such a fantastic job of a tricky show. And I loved it. I was totally invested in their performance, and I think that’s a huge testament to them. I think they’ve got great futures ahead of them, just having that palpable investment in what they were doing. It was so awesome to see.
Amy Lehpamer plays Dusty in Dusty The Musical – In Concert running for six shows only from 5 – 8 June 2025 at the Concert Hall, QPAC.
Tickets: https://www.qpac.com.au/whats-on/2025/dusty-the-musical-in-concert
Website: https://prosperoarts.com.au/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/prosperoarts/
Hero image: Amy Lehpamer appearing as Dusty Springfield for The Production Company, 2016. Photo by Jeff Busby
