In a behind-the-scenes clip shared exclusively with PEOPLE, the actress can be seen recording — and singing live — the many tunes her character Lucy Gray Baird performs throughout the film.
Lionsgate
“It was one of the most interesting things when I was reading the book, because I was like, how are they going to make this music work in the context of a film version?” said Zegler, a musical theater actress who made her Golden Globe-winning feature film debut inSteven Spielberg’s 2021remake ofWest Side Story.
“When I got all the scratch recordings for the music, I just fell in love,” she added in the clip. “We got this part right, for sure.”
“Not only could she do the pre-record, in-studio versions of these songs,” he explained, “but we also knew that once we had her on set, Rachel really could do it.”
Watching Zegler sing live on set, producer Nina Jacobson “would get chills,” she recalled in the clip.
“Especially because she mostly chose to sing live. Which is really rare — usually [actors] lay down tracks and then they lip-sync or maybe sing softly along, but they don’t bring it every time because that would be exhausting. She brought it every time!”
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Rachel Zegler in 2023.Tristar Media/WireImage
Tristar Media/WireImage
One of those times was the very first day of shooting, Lawrence toldEntertainment Weeklyin November. “The Old Therebefore," a song Lucy Gray sings at one of the movie’s most pivotal moments, “gave everybody chills,” he recalled. “Some people were even tearing up.”
Cobb toldEWthat Zegler was a “genius” and made producing the musical aspects of the film “effortless and fun.” He added, “She didn’t need a lot of coaching. She kind of coached us.”
Songbirds & Snakesalso starsHunter Schafer,Viola Davis,Peter Dinklage, Jason Schwartzman andJosh Andrés Rivera.
Murray Close/Lionsgate
Ahead of the movie’s Nov. 17 release, Zegler told PEOPLE she didn’t know belting on set would factor so much into her screen work. Asked what advice she would give her younger self, she responded, “I would say, ‘Stay in voice lessons. You’re going to be singing live for a lot more than you probably thought you would be transitioning into film.’ That would probably be my advice to little Rachel.”
source: people.com
