Erin Haggerty, a sixth grader at Munsey Park Elementary School in Manhasset, has dreams of Broadway spotlights someday shining upon her.
And those spotlights may not be so far away, as Haggerty is performing in the Off-Broadway production of “A Little Princess” at the Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre at The Pershing Square Signature Center in Manhattan, which began on June 4 and runs through June 15.
“I like going on stage and playing different characters, that you can be someone else,” said Haggerty, whose father is Village of Munsey Park Deputy Mayor Sean Haggerty.
The production is the show’s Off-Broadway debut, an extended run of its stint last month at the Hudson Guild Theater.
The show is based on the 1905 children’s novel of the same name by Frances Hodgson Burnett, which follows a young girl who must use her imagination to cope with the abrupt loss of her father and overcome indentured servitude at her boarding school.
In the production, Erin plays Ruth, a character that helps console the show’s lead through her tough times.
Haggerty auditioned for the part in mid March and was called back a few weeks later to run lines and sing.
A few days after that, she learned she got the part, which includes her participation in three of the show’s songs.
“In the play, the girl Sarah [Crewe, the main character] has a lot of girls who are mean to her and a lot of girls who are nice,” Erin said. “I like that I get to be nice.”
Haggerty began acting at age 7 at the Roslyn Theater Company and has since moved on to productions at Cultural Arts Playhouse – better known as CAP – locations in Roslyn and Plainview.
She played the lead in the Roslyn CAP’s productions of “Annie” and “Grease” and was “Young Cosette” in Plainview CAP’s production of “Les Miserables.”
Haggerty takes acting classes at the Actor’s Garage in Manhasset and trains for musical theater at the Broadway Workshop in Manhattan. She also takes tap and jazz dancing lessons.
“They really teach me how to be better at acting and how to improve the way I say something and how to say something in different ways,” she said.
Though she said she wants to primarily stick to plays and musicals as she progresses through her acting career, Haggerty has appeared in a commercial for Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal and on the Travel Channel series Ghost Adventures as part of a historical reenactment scene.
She also had a bit role in a December 2013 Saturday Night Live sketch with actor Paul Rudd and musical guest One Direction, playing one of the boy band’s crazed fans.
“’Saturday Night Live’ was really fun,” she said. “Paul Rudd was really funny and nice. He talked to us.”
Haggerty said she is also looking forward to joining the Manhasset Middle School’s theater program in the fall and eventually learning from its director, Robb Fessler.
“I don’t really get nervous anymore because I know I’ll do well because I’ve been practicing. I think it’s because I’ve been in so many plays and I’ve been practicing for a long time,” she said. “I know that if someone waves to you from the crowd, you can’t wave back. If you miss a line, sometimes you just have to keep going.”
Tickets for “A Little Princess” are available at TicketCentral.com, by calling 212-279-4200 or at the theater, located at 416 W. 42nd Street.
