The Great Gatsby had its opening night April 25 and no one was more surprised to be there than actor Samantha Pauly. "I feel like I could cry," she told Playbill on the red carpet. Pauly plays golfer Jordan Baker in the new musical, based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel. Her previous Broadway credit was as the original Katherine Howard in Broadway's SIX: The Musical.

"Doing Six, I was like, 'OK, well, I'll do this, and I might never be on Broadway again,'" she said. "And like, that's just how the business works. And to be originating another principal role is far beyond the scope of anything I thought I would do with my life in general. And I feel lucky. It still doesn't feel real."

But the former queen is not letting this green light pass her by. Pauly showed up looking every inch a Broadway star. And she let Playbill follow her as she got ready in her dressing room at the Broadway Theatre. Scroll on for an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look (including how she had to be sewn into her dress), with commentary from Pauly.

"Oh my god...OK, so when we first did our run out at Paper Mill Playhouse [in New Jersey], I was really proud of myself because I am a huge Smash fan. And I never brought it up to [Jeremy Jordan, who plays Gatsby]. I never asked him to sing anything from it. I pretended like I was not a superfan of that show. And I mentioned all of that on an Instagram Live once. And then someone sent this to me at the theatre, can you believe? The SIX and Great Gatsby fandom is hilarious."

"I don't trust anyone to touch my hair. But you know who I DO trust to beat my face? Kasey Spickard. I will never hire another makeup artist if I can help it. He just knows what I like, my weird preferences, and how to contour the hell out of my face. He also lets me do my own eyebrows whenever we work together which I appreciate. He knows how to make a girl feel absolutely beautiful."

"My first time working with a stylist and Gregory Dassonville is IT, y'all. He helped me style a dress I had panic ordered from Mew Mews, and his tailor Alan Gonzalez was sewing me into it. Gregory was with me on the carpet as well to make sure I was always looking fabulous."

"This was when I started to panic about my hair not turning out how I wanted. I had five minutes of looking in the mirror thinking 'Oh god, what did I do? How can I save this?' I think it turned out alright in the end, but everyone watched me have a mini panic attack."

"Legacy Robe ceremony! A first for me, and what a beautiful thing to witness. To see past recipients there to support our cast and hear their beautiful speeches. I was trying not to cry so I wouldn't ruin my makeup."

"Katie Webber is one of the most iconic, fierce, caring women I have ever met. And to witness her being awarded the Legacy Robe for the fourth time was so emotional and special. Another first for me to experience, and I just love her so much."

"This was probably sometime after I finally fixed my hair and calmed down a little bit. I'm very particular about my hair, I don't really ever let anyone else touch it or style it for me. In my five-minute panic attack, I looked in the mirror and I said, 'Why did I do my own hair? Why did I pick this dress? Can everyone just leave the room for a second?!' Sometimes I get over stimulated." [laughs]

"Heather [Gershonowitz] stopped me before I went to the stage door to head to the carpet. While the stage was empty, she asked to capture a few shots and my GOD, that woman is good."

"This was when we first saw each other outside before we went to the red carpet. Ugh, I love Noah J. Ricketts [who plays Nick] so much."

"I texted this photo to Noah and he said 'Our wedding shoot.' I truly adore this man, and couldn't have done this show without him. We've been lucky that a lot of photographers have captured many genuine moments like this, where you can just feel the love radiating from both of us."

"I feel like I never know what I'm doing on a red carpet. I try to think of how I see Zendaya or Kim Kardashian pose and just hope I end up looking like I belong there."

"I didn't expect to be signing Playbills on the carpet! We didn't do any red carpet or press before opening when I did SIX, it was all after the show. So this whole red carpet experience was next level."

See more photos of Pauly at the opening night of The Great Gatsby below.

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Photos: Samantha Pauly Gets Ready For The Great Gatsby Opening Night on Broadway

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Styled by Greg Dassonville for DassonVogue
Tailoring by Alan Gonzalez
Makeup by Kacey Spickard
Dress by Mew Mews
Jewelry by Swarovski
Shoes by SJP Collection