The singer-actress plays Tammy, a beleaguered bride-to-be who accompanies her best friend, Rachel( Alison Luff ), to an island resort for a bachelorette week filled with stiff cocktails and sinewy men. With each tropical sundown, however, Tammy questions whether she’ll be content marrying her uncouth fiance( Ian Michael Stewart) as she falls for a sweet-natured bartender, Brick( Eric Petersen ). True to Broadway musical tradition, Tammy’s inevitable self-discovery features a great dress, a high-flying solo number and, of course, a happy ending.

Walter McBride via Getty Images “I think it’s important to be telling stories that empower women, especially nowadays, ” Howard( third from left) said. “When females see that reflected in art, the more empowered they’ll feel.”

“She really objective up procuring her self-worth, ” Howard told HuffPost. “You insure her go on that journey. I think it’s important to be telling narratives that empower women, especially nowadays, because it hasn’t always been that way. The more instances we, as artists, can show in the world, and the women see that reflected in art, the more empowered they’ll feel to speak out, say something, make a statement and stand up for themselves.”

Buffett, Howard said, was a “great presence” throughout the development of the prove. “It’s been a pleasure to get to know him, ” she explained. “He’s kind of like you’d think he’d be. He’s very chill, but he’s a very smart, passionate industrialist. He’s taken this idea — this culture of island life — and run with it.”

Howard boasts an enviable theatrical resume that includes “South Pacific” and “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.” The Akron, Ohio, native’s cinema career got a significant boost in 2012, when she appeared as a vampire in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Component 2.”

The secret to her success, she said, has been picking roles written for plus-sized females like herself that don’t hinge on a weight-loss narrative and aren’t intended as comic relief. She said the possibility for plus-sized starrings have expanded in both movie and theater in the 18 years since she made her Broadway debut in “The 25 th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.”( Witness, for example, Keala Settle’s breakout turn in the movie musical “The Greatest Showman, ” which turned out to be a surprise made this winter .)

Walter McBride via Getty Images Jimmy Buffett joined the cast of Broadway’s “Escape to Margaritaville” onstage during the show’s opening night March 15.

“I’ve simply been blessed to have been a part of projects where my appears or my sizing don’t matter, ” Howard, who also is a plus-size fashion model, said. “These are lead roles I’m playing. I’m not just the funny sidekick or the character actor . … The diversity of the actual population, I feel, is being more represented. I’m glad that I’m a part of that.”

Howard is best known for the 2015 Broadway musical, “It Shoulda Been You, ” in which she played a wallflower bridesmaid who takes her romantic fate into her own hands as her sister’s wedding schemes unravel.

Many critics find the slapstick, directed by “Frasier” veteran David Hyde Pierce, as a breakout moment for Howard. Her sultry anthem, “Jenny’s Blues, ” was one of the show’s highlightings, and has become popular on the cabaret circuit.

Watch Howard perform “Jenny’s Blues” on the 2015 Tony Awards below.

“It Shoulda Been You” dedicated Howard a signature tune, but the musical struggled to find an audience and closed after simply 135 performances. That experience, however, forced her to explore new, less-heralded realm. She was invited to read for training workshops version of “Escape to Margaritaville” soon afterward.

“I don’t fit into anyone else’s mold, ” said Howard, who names Mama Rose in “Gypsy” as a dream role. “Sometimes it’s simply an issue of perseverance. You say yes to every opportunity, and keep putting yourself out there, so that people recognise what you have to offer, and where you fit in.”

Regardless of how “Escape to Margaritaville” fares with critics, Howard hopes Buffett fans, or “Parrot Heads, ” will take the time to check out the musical.

“In spite of the craziness in the world right now, I hope they come[ to the demonstrate] to escape, relax and enjoy a good love story, ” she said. “You can take with you no matter what you do.”

Lisa Howard stars in “Escape to Margaritaville, ” now playing in New York.

Noam Galai via Getty Images From left, “Escape to Margaritaville” superstars Eric Peteren, Lisa Howard, Alison Luff and Paul Alexander Nolan.

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