Courtesy of Craig Schwartz Brandon Victor Dixon and Nikki Renee Daniels star in "Ray Charles Live!" Dixon has the title role and Daniels plays Della, Charles' second wife.

Courtesy of Craig Schwartz Brandon Victor Dixon lets loose on stage in "Ray Charles Live!" at the Pasadena Playhouse. "If you give an honest performance, the audience agrees to come along on the journey with you," the Tony-nominated actor says.

The actor most closely associated with the late, legendary Ray Charles is Jamie Foxx, who won an Oscar for portraying Charles in the 2004 bio film "Ray."

But now, at least for Southern California audiences, Foxx has some competition in New York-based actor Brandon Victor Dixon, who plays the legendary R&B singer in the new musical "Ray Charles Live!" at the Pasadena Playhouse.

Dixon's been on a roll of late. Since graduating from New York's Columbia College, he's toured in "The Lion King" and received a Tony nomination in 2006 for his portrayal of Harpo in the Broadway musical "The Color Purple" on Broadway.

But "Ray Charles Live!" looks to be his biggest challenge yet. The production, directed by Pasadena Playhouse artistic director Sheldon Epp, is built around Charles' songs and a book by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks ("Topdog/Underdog").

Parks' story imagines a final recording session, where Charles reunites with important people in his life and recounts seminal moments. Woven throughout are Charles' many hits, including "Georgia On My Mind," "Hit the Road Jack" and "I Got a Woman."

Dixon didn't know a Ray Charles musical was in development until producers contacted him.

"I got a call from my manager and I had a few days to prepare," Dixon said. "My inner monologue said to me that this was the one, the show that would be the next step I wanted to take."

He was happy that producers had no interest in casting a impersonator.

"That was good, because that's not what I'm about," he explained. "You do have to get the sound and the movement. But once you do the research to put the character together, there comes a point when you have to break from that and realize you are part of that character. And if you give an honest performance, the audience agrees to come along on the journey with you."

Dixon is excited to be working with Parks. He's especially impressed with her determination not to make the musical a carbon copy of the film.

"I studied her (Parks) in school," Dixon said. "I'm a big fan. Her writing is amazing. For this show, the facts are there, but she reveals more of who the man was and how he felt about things in his life. It's a more intimate look at the person than the movie."

In a recent interview with Pasadena-based Arroyo Monthly magazine, Parks said, "I feel that when I'm asked to do the job, I am called — for lack of a better word — by the spirit of the original artist. When they said they were going to do a musical and they needed someone to write it for the stage, I felt that a lot of people would be interested in it. I wasn't intimidated at all."

Dixon wasn't intimidated either, even though he knows it's a big step.

"First there was Lion King,' which was the most enjoyable time in my life," he said. "I thought nothing like that would ever happen again. And then The Color Purple,' came along, and, again, I thought it was a once-in-a-lifetime thing. And now this. I just can't believe it."

— E-mail freelance columnist Jeff Favre at jjfavre@yahoo.com.