Say ‘hellooo’ to a touring production of ‘Mrs. Doubtfire,’ the musical

Craig Allen Smith is not beloved character actor Robin Williams. 

The actor, who stars in Williams’ role in the national touring cast of the musical adaptation of “Mrs. Doubtfire,” knows that — and he’s not trying to be.

But when Williams played the divorced dad Daniel Hillard and his fictional Scottish nanny persona, Euphegenia Doubtfire, he didn’t have to breakdance.

Smith does. As Hillard-in-disguise, he must leap, tap dance, do ensemble dance numbers and, yes, breakdance to hype up a crowd, all in heels. (He’ll also be volunteering in Eugene before the Nov. 21 show, part of a charity-themed push behind the musical’s stop at the Hult Center that also includes a food drive this weekend.)

For Smith, who first watched the 1993 movie “Mrs. Doubtfire” as a 13-year-old boy who quickly started mimicking Williams, the role is a kind of return to form.

“There are just not many reasons to be called upon to do a Scottish nanny’s voice,” he said. “Pulling that back out felt like just jumping on a bike again.”

The following conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Lookout Eugene-Springfield: You’re playing a character so closely tied to a specific performance from a specific, beloved actor. How much are you evoking Robin Williams’ performance, and how much are you performing a character outside of that movie?

Smith: I was such a fan of the movie when it came out. I saw it a lot in the movie theater, and subsequently after that, I was walking around screaming “hellooo” all the time, every time I would come into a room. It became embedded into my young life. So I am such a huge Robin Williams fan to begin with. There’s a lot of nostalgia in regards to the role, and a lot of nice incidental throwbacks to Robin’s performance.

But at the same time, aside from Mrs. Doubtfire, Daniel has a lot of personal similarities to what my life has been. It was interesting and almost therapeutic, in a way, because I’m a divorced dad with two kids. … It’s not me trying to do Robin Williams, it’s more like Robin Williams comes out sometimes through what’s happening, if that makes sense.

As a young kid, I just loved Robin Williams movies; “Hook,” “Dead Poets Society.” I just loved him as an actor. Anything he was in, I would always go see in the movie theaters. And then I was a very big imitator as I was growing up, just anything that I found funny, I would try and imitate. It kind of stuck with me.

How old are you now? What age would you have been when you were absorbing the Mrs. Doubtfire impression?

I’m 45 now, and I was 13 when the movie came out. So I was very impressionable at that age. 

What do you think it was about the movie and about Robin Williams’ presence that was a draw for you?

For me, being a father now, it’s the humanity that he actually brought to the role, just the fact that he loved his kids so much he would do anything to be with them. That included dressing up like a Scottish nanny. I can relate to that.

What, did you also have a stint as a Scottish nanny?

[Laughs] No, just doing anything for your kids.

Are there any particular moments in the stage show where that similarity between you and Daniel helped your performance in particular?

There’s a couple of courtroom scenes where he’s on the verge of losing custody with his kids. I never actually went through that kind of situation, because me and my ex-wife settled it on our own, but just the thought of losing your children really helps drive home the emotion of those scenes.

Between watching it a lot when you were 13 and then now being cast in “Mrs. Doubtfire” as the lead, were you finding yourself going back to the movie?

I didn’t want to go back. When I met with Steve Edlund, the director, I didn’t even watch the previous Broadway production, I didn’t even watch clips, because I just wanted to be a clean slate for him, in terms of how we were going to present the character. 

But your memory serves you well. Moments with the pie in the face and screaming “hello” and dancing with the vacuum, those moments just resurface from your past childhood memories of the movie.

I was always doing the voice as a kid, and it had been at least 20 years since I even dabbled with doing the Mrs. Doubtfire voice as an actor. There are just not many reasons to be called upon to do a Scottish nanny’s voice. Pulling that back out felt like just jumping on a bike again. I can see why Robin loved it so much, because it’s so freeing to be in these kinds of character roles. You can literally say anything, and get away with it as a Scottish nanny.

With the difference between being Daniel Hillard and being in costume as a Scottish nanny, how does that impact your approach to a scene?

The physicality comes into play. I have a body suit on. I have a costume. I have high heels, nylon stockings and then the mask, and I have a wig on top of all that. So it really informs how the character is going to actually move. It’s really amazing to me that once all that comes on, that she just becomes alive, and it kind of takes over. It’s the best feeling getting lost in the character, because it’s just so freeing, and you’re able to play.

Ballpark, how much does all of this stuff physically weigh on you when you’re on stage?

It doesn’t weigh a lot. The mask really feels like a second skin in nature. The body suit, it’s just fluff, it’s just padding, so it doesn’t weigh down as much as you might think.

How to see ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ and donate to ‘Help Is on the Way, Dear!’

“Mrs. Doubtfire” opens at the Hult Center on Friday, Nov. 21, for five performances through Sunday, Nov. 23. Tickets are available online, starting at $44 for most performances. 

But people have a chance to win free tickets this weekend with “Help Is on the Way, Dear!”, a drive-through giving event this Saturday, Nov. 15, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Volunteers will collect donations in the Hult Center’s drive-through lanes, between Oak and Olive on Sixth and Seventh Avenues in downtown Eugene.

Donations will support Food for Lane County, Catholic Community Services of Lane County, and Toys for Tots. The Hult Center has advertised it’s looking for nonperishable food, warm clothing and blankets, and new, unwrapped toys.