Carly Sakolove on Slim Jims, Jennifer Coolidge, and the perks of a good airline credit card

Sakolove, who also does film, TV, and voice-over work, first performed in the role of Rosie 12 years ago and said she believes she brings “so much more” to it now. “I’ve had more life experience and grown as an actress, so I have learned to make her more of a well-rounded character who people can identify with. She’s not just a clown; she’s grounded, too,” she said. “People come up to me and say, ‘You were so funny, but also so genuine,’ or ‘You made me laugh and you made me cry,’ and that kind of thing. I love that.” We caught up with the actress, who lives in Brooklyn with her wife, Anne Haerling, who works at HBO (where she writes subtitles in French and German), and their rescue dog, Harper, to talk about all things travel.
Actress and singer Carly Sakolove spends most of her time on the road, and has performed in plays and musicals around the world — including on cruise ships. But the Hingham native has never performed in Boston’s theater district. That is about to change, as Sakolove, 38, is in the national tour of “Mamma Mia!,” which is coming to the Citizens Bank Opera House Sept. 24-Oct. 6. “I am so excited. It’s a really big deal coming back to Boston, because I used to see shows there as a kid,” said Sakolove, who moved to Florida when she was a freshman in high school (she attended a performing arts school there), then returned to Boston for college at what is now called the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, where in 2008 she earned a bachelor’s degree in musical theater. In “Mamma Mia!,” Sakolove plays Rosie Mulligan, one of the three members of Donna Sheridan’s former band “Donna and the Dynamos,” who belt out many of ABBA’s greatest hits during the musical, celebrating its 25th anniversary on this national tour. “The music is what makes people keep coming back, but it’s also the story. The themes are universal and make people feel good,” she said. “And that fact that it’s not too deep — especially in this political climate — means that people can come to the show, get swept away onto this Greek island, enjoy our story and this fabulous music, and leave feeling happy. … It’s magical and I think that is why it has such staying power.”
If you could travel anywhere right now, where would you go? I would love to travel to Paris. Summer is winding down, a lot of the locals are vacationing elsewhere. The Olympics are over, so it’s pretty calm over there. And it is my favorite city in which to relax, eat, and walk around.
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Do you prefer booking trips through a travel agent or on your own? I do a pretty good job booking on my own, so that is usually the route I go.
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Thoughts on an “unplugged” vacation? Wow. It sounds amazing. I think if I had my family with me, and nothing pressing in my real world, I would enjoy a vacation with nature, books, and games.
What has been your worst vacation experience? I was going to a wedding in Puerto Rico with my wife, but the location of the Airbnb was wrong and the cab driver was about to drop us in, like, a jungle. We couldn’t get ahold of our Airbnb host because it was so late, so we had the cab driver take us to the nearest hotel, which was a rent-by-the-hour, rundown motel. We stayed for an hour or two before our host got in touch with us and we made it there basically when the sun was coming up. When we got home to New York City, our tires were all slashed. The wedding was fun, though.
What is your favorite childhood travel memory? When I was a kid, my parents would take my sister and me into the city — Boston — and we would stay on a little docked houseboat called The Pink Slipper. We would go out to eat, see shows in the theater district, bop around the Haymarket, and they even took me to my first piano bar.
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Do you vacation to relax, to learn, or for the adventure of it all? I enjoy getting immersed in another culture. Though I like to relax, I am more of an adventurer.
What book do you plan on bringing with you to read on your next vacation? I am working on reading all the memoirs of my favorite author, Augusten Burroughs. The next one I plan to read is called “Toil and Trouble.”
If you could travel with one famous person/celebrity, who would it be? I think it would be fun to take in the sights with Jennifer Coolidge. She is one of my idols, and is a Boston girl as well. We have worked together on set and I loved every minute.
What is the best gift to give a traveler? I think a travel journal, sketchbook, or some really great headphones.
What is your go-to snack for a flight or a road trip? I enjoy Cheez-Its or Slim Jims, and Vitamin Water or bottled Starbucks coffee. The usual gas station crap.
What is the coolest souvenir you’ve picked up on a vacation? I have these gorgeous handmade ceramic espresso cups we picked up at a gallery in Reykjavik, Iceland. You can also use them for sake or a little nightcap. I absolutely love those.
What is your favorite app/website for travel? I like Airbnb for booking lodgings and I use Amex Travel to book flights and hotels. Also, The Infatuation is a good app for recommended restaurants and bars.
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What has travel taught you? Travel has taught me not to be afraid to try new things, that there are so many different ways to do things, and it is so special to see how other people live their lives. It has taught me to be organized, and how to plan well, but also that it’s important to let yourself get a little lost, because it’s often the places you stumble upon that are the real gems.
What is your best travel tip? Get the good credit card. Put everything on it and pay it right off. As someone who travels for a living, I use the system to my advantage, earning points, miles, status, and free flights and stays. And most importantly, the airport lounges. They make those travel days more relaxing and way more fun.
Juliet Pennington can be reached at writeonjuliet@comcast.net.